A Notice of Delinquency in a California child support case is a court filing that starts a 30-day clock: if you don’t pay the overdue balance in full within 30 days of being served, a 6 percent monthly penalty begins accruing on the unpaid amount, on top of the 10 percent annual interest that already runs on all unpaid child support in the state. It is filed on Judicial Council form FL-485 by the other parent or the local child support agency once payments are more than 30 days past due, and it comes with a blank Request for Order (form FL-300) you can use to push back.1Judicial Council of California. California Court Form FL-485 Notice of Delinquency
What Triggers the Notice
There’s no minimum dollar amount. One missed monthly payment that stays unpaid for 30 days is enough for the custodial parent (the “support obligee”) or the local child support agency to file FL-485.1Judicial Council of California. California Court Form FL-485 Notice of Delinquency Partial payments don’t count as compliance. If your order is $1,000 a month and you send $600, the missing $400 is delinquent, and every short month stacks on the last.
The Department of Child Support Services uses a stricter internal threshold before escalating a case for its own collection efforts: arrears more than 60 days past due totaling more than $100.2California Legislative Information. California Code Family Code 17500 – Responsibility for Collecting and Enforcing Child Support Obligations Crossing that line opens the door to state-level tools like tax intercepts and license suspension referrals.
The notice has to be served by someone at least 18 years old who is not a party to the case, either in person, by certified mail, or by first-class mail with an acknowledgment of receipt. A proof of service must be filed with the court before the other side can actually collect the penalty.1Judicial Council of California. California Court Form FL-485 Notice of Delinquency
The 6 Percent Monthly Penalty and 10 Percent Interest
This is the part most people underestimate. Once 30 days pass after service without full payment, a penalty of 6 percent per month starts running on the unpaid balance, and it can accumulate up to a maximum of 72 percent of the original unpaid amount.1Judicial Council of California. California Court Form FL-485 Notice of Delinquency
Separately, all unpaid child support in California accrues interest at 10 percent per year, running from the date each payment was originally due.3Justia Law. California Code of Civil Procedure 685.010 – Interest on Money Judgments There’s no cap on that interest, and it doesn’t stop until the balance is paid in full.
The two run in parallel. If you owe $5,000 in arrears and do nothing after being served, you could face roughly $3,600 in penalties within a year, plus the annual interest, plus the underlying $5,000. That’s the math the notice is built around.
What to Do in the First 30 Days
The clock starts the day you are served. Use the window.
Check the numbers first. Compare the arrears figure in the notice against your own payment records, bank statements, and receipts from the California State Disbursement Unit. Errors are common enough that verifying is worth the hour it takes. If the amount looks wrong, call the local child support agency and ask for an accounting review.
If the number is right and you can pay it, pay it. Send full payment through the State Disbursement Unit by check, money order, or online payment before the 30-day window closes. Full payment inside that window stops the 6 percent penalty from ever accruing.
If you can’t pay in full, don’t wait. Two moves are worth making inside the 30 days. You can file a Request for Order on form FL-300, which comes attached to the FL-485 you were served, asking the court to determine the correct arrears amount and to decide whether the 6 percent penalty should apply.1Judicial Council of California. California Court Form FL-485 Notice of Delinquency You can also contact the local child support agency about an installment plan. Under Family Code 17522, the agency has authority to negotiate installment agreements with parents who are at least 30 days delinquent, though these agreements typically require regular payments toward arrears on top of ongoing current support.4California Legislative Information. California Code FAM 17522
The one option that reliably makes things worse is silence. Ignoring the notice is what the penalty structure and the enforcement tools below are designed to punish.
Modifying the Order Going Forward
If your income has genuinely dropped, an installment plan doesn’t fix the underlying problem. You need the ongoing monthly obligation lowered, which means filing a Request for Order (FL-300) with an Income and Expense Declaration (FL-150) documenting your current earnings and expenses. The filing fee is $60 unless you qualify for a waiver.5California Courts Self Help. Ask for or Change Child Support
A modification generally applies only from the date you file forward. It does not erase arrears that built up before the filing. That’s why the common advice is to file the day something changes, not months later. Simply paying less on your own does not prevent delinquency from being recorded; the order stays in force until a judge changes it. If a local child support agency is involved in your case, modification goes through the agency rather than directly through the court.
The Debt Reduction Program
If part of your arrears is owed to the government rather than to the other parent, because your children received public assistance or were in foster care while you weren’t paying, you may qualify to settle that government-owed portion for less than the full amount. Eligibility looks at income, assets, family size, and cost of living.6California Child Support Services. Debt Reduction Program
There are conditions. You have to keep making current child support payments while your application is pending; a missed payment during that time is a denial. Hiding income or assets is also a denial. And if you reach a settlement but later stop paying under it, the deal is canceled and the full original amount comes back. The program does not touch arrears owed directly to the other parent, which have to be handled through negotiation or a court proceeding.
What Happens If You Ignore the Notice
California’s collection tools operate independently of the FL-485 penalty and can stack on top of it.
Wage Withholding
Wage withholding is the default. The local child support agency can serve an income withholding order directly on your employer without a judge’s signature, and it carries the same force as a court order.7California Legislative Information. California Code FAM 5246 – Earnings Assignment Order When arrears exist alongside current support, the order can direct additional withholding to pay down the back balance, up to the federal maximum under the Consumer Credit Protection Act.
License Suspension
California can suspend your driver’s license, professional licenses, and recreational licenses when you’re more than 30 calendar days behind on current support or on agreed-upon arrears payments.8California Legislative Information. California Family Code 17520 “License” here reaches State Bar membership, contractor licenses, nursing credentials, notary commissions, and commercial fishing permits. Before the suspension takes effect, you’ll get notice and a 150-day window to either catch up or enter a payment agreement with the local agency.
Tax Refunds, Bank Levies, and Liens
The Franchise Tax Board and the IRS can intercept state and federal tax refunds to cover arrears. If you filed a joint return with a new spouse, that spouse can file IRS Form 8379 to recover their share.9Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8379, Injured Spouse Allocation California can also intercept lottery winnings, place liens on real and personal property, and levy bank accounts directly. A property lien prevents the sale or refinancing of a home until the debt clears.
Credit Reporting
California operates a statewide automated system that reports child support obligations and delinquencies to credit bureaus monthly. Before the first report, the local agency has to notify you and give you 30 days to pay or dispute the accuracy in writing.10California Legislative Information. California Code Family Code 4701
Passport Denial
Once arrears reach $2,500, your name goes to the federal Office of Child Support Services and then to the State Department. New passport applications and renewals will be denied, and an existing passport can be revoked or restricted.11Administration for Children and Families. Passport Denial Program 101 The hold clears only when arrears drop below the threshold or you make satisfactory payment arrangements with the child support agency.
Contempt and Criminal Charges
A parent who willfully disobeys a support order can be held in civil contempt under Code of Civil Procedure 1218, with penalties escalating each finding through community service, jail hours, or probation, counted per missed payment.12California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 1218 Willful failure to provide for a child is also a separate criminal offense: a misdemeanor carrying up to one year in county jail, a fine of up to $2,000, or both, and a possible felony if parentage was previously established in a civil or criminal proceeding and you had notice of that finding.13California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 270 – Omission to Provide for Child Criminal prosecution is reserved for parents who have the ability to pay but refuse.
Things That Won’t Save You, and a Few That Might
Bankruptcy will not discharge child support. Federal law lists domestic support obligations as debts that survive any type of bankruptcy filing, and that covers arrears, interest, and penalties.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 523 – Exceptions to Discharge A filing may briefly pause collection through the automatic stay, but child support agencies typically obtain relief quickly.
Time will not save you either. California imposes no statute of limitations on collecting past-due child support. The obligation doesn’t expire when the child turns 18, and interest and penalties keep accruing until the balance is paid.
Active-duty military members have real protections under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. If military duties prevent you from appearing, you can request a stay of proceedings, and you can ask a court to halt execution of a judgment, garnishment, or attachment when service has prevented compliance. The interest rate on arrears that accrued before deployment can be reduced to 6 percent if you show military service materially affects your ability to pay the standard rate.15California Child Support Services. Military Specific Services
Incarcerated parents get statutory relief. California law suspends the current support obligation and interest on arrears created during incarceration for any period of incarceration or involuntary institutionalization exceeding 90 consecutive days, unless the incarcerated parent has the means to keep paying.16California Legislative Information. California Code Family Code 4007.5 If arrears or interest were charged during a qualifying period, the local agency can administratively adjust the balance after notifying both parents and allowing 30 days for objections; a dispute sends the adjustment to a judge.