I lost my job and cannot afford to pay my child support. What should I do next?
If you lost your job and cannot afford to pay your child support, your circumstances have changed, and you should try to change your support amount immediately. Any child support payments that are due before you try to change your support cannot be reduced after they were due. Any change in child support ordered by the court will start on the day the other parent is notified that you have asked the court to change your child support amount, not on the day you become unemployed. KEEP IN MIND, voluntarily becoming unemployed or underemployed won't cut it -- you will be IMPUTED that income, whether or not you still earn it.
How can I change my child support amount?
There are two ways to change child support payment amounts. First, you can ask the friend of the court (FOC) to review your child support order. The FOC will review a child support order that is older than three years and when more than three years’ time has passed since the FOC last reviewed the child support amount. If the order has changed within the last three years or if less time than three years has elapsed since the FOC last reviewed the child support order, the FOC can review child support only when there has been a change in circumstances. The FOC can usually review child support amounts if you have lost your job. If the FOC review agrees that the support order should change, the FOC will ask the court to change the order.
You can also change child support amounts through the court by filing a Motion Regarding Support (Form FOC 50). You can get a copy of the form from your local FOC or print one from: http://courts.michigan.gov/scao/courtforms/domesticrelations/drindex.htm.