Back child support (arrears) in Alabama: interest, enforcement and jail (2026)

Back child support, also called arrears or past-due support, is support that an Alabama order required and that was not paid when due. Alabama law adds interest at the judgment rate, the Child Support Enforcement Division of the Department of Human Resources (DHR) collects it in the cases it handles, and the court can enforce it through contempt. This guide describes those rules; it does not compute arrears, because the amount owed depends on the payment record of each case.

What happens when child support is not paid in Alabama?

The unpaid amount stays owed as arrears. Federal law requires every state to treat each support installment, on and after the date it is due, as a judgment by operation of law, with the full force of a judgment of the state and entitled to full faith and credit in other states (42 U.S.C. § 666(a)(9)). In Alabama, a child support judgment can be modified only as to installments that accrue after a petition to modify is filed (Rule 32(A)(3)(a), Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration), so missed payments before that date stay owed in full.

From there, DHR can act administratively in the cases it handles, and the parent owed support or DHR can go to court for contempt or for other remedies, such as an order that the paying parent post a bond or other security for overdue support (§ 30-3-6).

What is the Alabama child support interest rate?

It depends on when the judgment was entered. Section 8-8-10 sets interest on judgments other than contract judgments at 7.5 percent a year, for judgments entered on and after 1 September 2011. DHR gives the rates for child support judgments:

Child support judgment entered	Interest, a year
On or after 1 September 2011	7.5 percent
13 November 1981 to 31 August 2011	12 percent
Before 13 November 1981	6 percent

Source: § 8-8-10; DHR, Child Support: A Guide to Services in Alabama, checked 3 November 2026.

DHR counts interest as part of the arrears it enforces: its rules define arrearage to include “statutory interest that accrues on the debt” (Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-3-17-.01), and lien and levy thresholds are measured on the arrears including interest (r. 660-3-17-.03).

The monthly amount itself does not change because arrears exist. For one child, with incomes of $4,000 and $6,000 a month and no shared custody, the guideline is $693.00 a month; arrears and interest are owed on top of the current amount until they are paid.

Can interest on child support be rebated in Alabama?

Yes, with conditions. Section 30-3-6.1 lets the parent who was behind ask the court that entered the order for a rebate of interest once either of these is true:

• they have paid the past-due amount and have paid current support for 12 months before petitioning;
• they have entered a repayment agreement, made every payment on it for at least 12 months, and paid current support for those 12 months.

Before the court can order a rebate, each person owed the interest must agree in writing to the rebate and its amount: the other parent, or DHR when the interest is owed to the state, according to DHR. The court can reinstate the rebated interest after a later finding of contempt for not paying support (§ 30-3-6.1(b)).

How does Alabama collect back child support?

Tool	When it applies	Source
Income withholding	Every support order includes a withholding order, which the parents cannot waive by agreement; DHR adds an amount toward arrears, normally 25 percent of current support	§ 30-3-61(a); r. 660-3-16-.06
State and federal tax refunds	Arrears of at least $150 when the child receives public assistance, or $500 otherwise; a $10 fee is taken from the amount collected (how the tax refund offset works)	DHR; § 40-18-100; 42 U.S.C. § 664
Credit reports	Arrears above $1,000 are submitted to credit reporting agencies	DHR
Liens on property	Arrears of at least $1,000, including interest, and equal to at least three months of support	r. 660-3-17-.03
Bank accounts	A lien and levy on an account with at least $5,000, on the same arrears conditions; the bank freezes the funds for 21 days	r. 660-3-17-.03 and -.05
Driver’s, professional and recreational licenses	Six months or more of support behind; see the next section	§§ 30-3-170 to 30-3-177
Passport	Arrears above $2,500	42 U.S.C. § 652(k); DHR
Bond or security	A court can order the parent to post a bond, security or other guarantee for overdue support	§ 30-3-6
Publication	DHR can publish the names and photographs of 10 delinquent parents in a county whose whereabouts are unknown, after a notice that gives 90 days to avoid it	§ 30-3-8
Contempt of court	A parent found in contempt can be sent to jail	DHR

DHR also lists garnishments, criminal nonsupport cases, federal prosecution and IRS full collection among the remedies it can use.

How much of a paycheck can be withheld for child support in Alabama?

A withholding order for support can go above Alabama’s usual garnishment limits but not above the federal maximum for support garnishments, and current support is paid before arrears (§ 30-3-67). The federal maximum is a share of disposable earnings, meaning pay after the deductions the law requires (15 U.S.C. § 1673(b)):

Situation of the parent who owes support	Maximum withheld
Supports another spouse or child	50 percent of disposable earnings
Does not support another spouse or child	60 percent
Either case, when the support is more than 12 weeks overdue	55 percent or 65 percent

When can a driver’s license be suspended for child support in Alabama?

When the support debt equals six months of payments or more on the date the notice is served, or when the parent has not complied with a subpoena or warrant in a paternity or child support case (§ 30-3-170(2); § 30-3-171). A license here means any state or local license for an occupation, profession, sport, recreation or driving (§ 30-3-170(4)).

• Notice. DHR serves a notice of intent personally or by certified mail. The license can be suspended 60 days after service unless the parent pays the whole debt, enters a payment plan DHR approves, complies with the subpoena or warrant, or asks for an administrative hearing within 15 days of receiving the notice (§ 30-3-171).
• Hearing. The hearing decides whether the parent is at least six months behind, has no approved payment plan, and whether suspension is appropriate. Evidence about whether the support order is right, or whether the parent can afford it, is not considered (§ 30-3-172(a)).
• Appeal. The parent can seek judicial review within 30 days of the decision, which stays the suspension (§ 30-3-172(c)).
• Revocation. After two suspensions in 12 months, a third finding of delinquency leads to revocation of the license (§ 30-3-173).
• Reinstatement. DHR asks the licensing authority to reinstate the license once the debt is paid in full or a satisfactory payment plan is in place (§ 30-3-175).

A court hearing a contempt petition can also order a license suspended or revoked when the parent has failed to follow its earlier orders (§ 30-3-177).

Can you go to jail for not paying child support in Alabama?

Yes, in two ways.

Contempt of court (civil). DHR says it can ask a judge to find a parent in contempt when the parent is 30 days late or does not comply with the medical support order. A parent found in contempt did not obey the support order on purpose and could be sent to jail. A judge can order the arrest of a parent who was properly notified of a hearing and did not come.

The crime of nonsupport. Under § 13A-13-4, a person commits nonsupport if they intentionally fail to provide support they are able to provide and know they are legally obligated to provide to a child under 19. It is a Class A misdemeanor: up to one year in jail (§ 13A-5-7) and a fine of up to $6,000 (§ 13A-5-12).

How much back child support is a felony in Alabama?

Alabama’s nonsupport statute sets no dollar amount and makes the offense a Class A misdemeanor (§ 13A-13-4(d)). Federal law adds crimes when the child lives in another state (18 U.S.C. § 228):

Federal offense	Maximum prison term
Willfully not paying support for a child who lives in another state, unpaid for more than one year or more than $5,000 (first offense)	6 months
The same, unpaid for more than two years or more than $10,000	2 years
Traveling to another state or country to evade support unpaid for more than one year or more than $5,000	2 years

Can back child support be forgiven or reduced in Alabama?

Not by changing the order afterwards. Rule 32(A)(3)(a) says the provisions of a judgment on child support “shall be modified only as to installments accruing after the filing of the petition for modification”, and federal law bars retroactive modification of installments already due, except from the date notice of a petition to modify was given (42 U.S.C. § 666(a)(9)). For how a modification works, see changing an Alabama child support order.

What the law does allow is a rebate of the interest, under the conditions of § 30-3-6.1 described above, with the written agreement of the person owed it. The statutes cited here do not provide a way to cancel the support itself.

What happens to back child support after the child turns 19?

It stays owed. Current support generally ends at 19, the age of majority in Alabama; see how long child support lasts in Alabama. DHR’s rules define the support orders it enforces to include arrears that built up while the child was a minor, enforced after majority, and the interest that has accrued or continues to accrue on them (Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-3-17-.01). When only arrears are left, DHR’s withholding rule says the amount withheld toward them is normally the amount that was previously paid as current support (r. 660-3-16-.06(4)).

Is there a statute of limitations on back child support in Alabama?

Alabama’s general rules for judgments are:

Rule	Code of Alabama
An action on a judgment must be commenced within 20 years	§ 6-2-32
A judgment cannot be revived after 20 years from its entry	§ 6-9-190
A judgment is presumed satisfied after 10 years with no execution issued, and the person owed must then prove it is not	§ 6-9-191

This guide does not cover how Alabama courts apply these periods to each child support installment.

Can support be ordered for the time before an Alabama order?

Yes, when no support was ever ordered. Section 30-3-110 creates a civil action for retroactive support against a parent who has failed to support a child, brought by the parent or guardian caring for the child or by DHR, but only if support has not been ordered before in a divorce or other case. It must be filed before the child reaches the age of majority (§ 30-3-111). The judgment is a sum certain and can cover every period in which the parent failed to provide support, with the amount for each period worked out under the Rule 32 guidelines for the circumstances at that time (§ 30-3-114).

What this guide does not cover

This guide does not cover how a court decides contempt in a particular case, defenses in criminal cases, bankruptcy, arrears owed to the state for public assistance, collecting arrears from another state or country, or alimony arrears. It does not calculate arrears or interest: the calculator gives the current guideline amount only. The figures are not legal advice.