I am divorced in 2004. I paid Alimony and Child support to the NJ State Human services till February 2007. I got vey sick and had to leave USA to live under the care of my family in India. The child was sudying in the college and did not live with hi ...

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I am divorced in 2004. I paid Alimony and Child support to the NJ State Human services till February 2007. I got vey sick and had to leave USA to live under the care of my family in India. The child was sudying in the college and did not live with his mother. I supported the child directly and still supporting after his graduation in 2010. I do not have any income other tha Social securoty and pension.Now I would like to settle with my X-wife out of court by bringing a motion in the court. Can we do it and get my record clean so that I can go back to USA.

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DakotaLegal's picture

 

 
 
Generally, New Jersey’s child support enforcement is fairly willing to negotiate past payments, when it’s a first time agreement. I’m assuming they are going to be involved since immigration will be reviewing arrearages. If you can reach an agreement with your ex-wife, then this will be a great advantage and New Jersey would tend to support such an agreement, given the age of the child. In this case, I’m assuming,,,,(a) we’ll be looking at approximately two years of back support that is due, (b) that you lived in New Jersey, and (c) there has been no prior agreement with Child Support Enforcement for payment. You mentioned several issues, including immigration, but they all come down to your desire to settle past child support. Among the other things we have to look at are whether you are still receiving Social Security (and what kind of disability).
 
Don’t Assume…
 
Don’t assume you have to pay a certain past amount, especially since it seems you had a life threatening condition. Be certain to gather evidence of your medical condition, and what happened, when. Since you were apparently getting Social Security disability, that evidence will be useful in showing your inability to pay this back custody support, too.
 


  • Getting An Agreement With New Jersey Child Enforcement

 
I’m not sure if you had a property Settlement Agreement (PSA) with your ex-wife, or if you reached an agreement with child support. Either way, you should get familiar with some of the considerations used in following the “Child Support Guidelines” for your payments. Your child’s going to college is actually one common reason for decreasing child support payments, even with a PSA.
 
Here are the conditions that may be most relevant to your situation and the problems you faced, in lowering past and future payments:
 
(1) Standard of living and economic circumstances of each parent;
 
(2) All sources of income and assets of each parent;
 
(3) Earning ability of each parent;
 
(4) Responsibility of the parents for the court-ordered support of others;
 
(5) Reasonable debts and liabilities of each child and parent; and,
 
(6) Any other factors the court may deem relevant.
 
You should look at the specific New Jersey rules on what range you’ll be likely to pay for child support (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-23[a]): http://law.onecle.com/new-jersey/2a-administration-of-civil-and-criminal-justice/34-23.html.
 
There are also specific forms you should become familiar with, to start the process of catching up. To start… http://www.njchildsupport.org/pdfs/change_of_address.pdf.
 
 

  • Immigration Issues For Your Past Child Support

 
There have been similar cases, involving a parent who had a college student with about two years of past support due. For example, it’s even possible that you were paying too much in past child support. Here’s a case worth looking at, because it showed how a parent, who was overseas and facing his own immigration problems due to child support, can reduce past obligations, especially when the child has gone on to college: http://law.justia.com/cases/new-jersey/appellate-division-unpublished/2012/a0765-10.html. This case also helps explain how an agreement between the parents may be worked out. Notice, it was important that child support reflect the actual wages (in that case, Egypt) instead of possible wages in New Jersey.
 
 

  • Social Security Disability payments

 
Most states (38) don’t require SSDI payments to be used for child support. You mentioned that you have been receiving Social Security payments. It can make a difference whether you are receiving SSI (income based disability) or SSDI. Your immigration status may also require that you try and get specialized immigration assistance on this important point: http://www.citizenshipworks.org/legalhelp/ organization.393765-International_Institute_of_New_Jersey_Immigration_Law_Center. The Center may be able to give you low-cost or even free legal help.
 
 

All Comments

DakotaLegal's picture

 

 
 
Generally, New Jersey’s child support enforcement is fairly willing to negotiate past payments, when it’s a first time agreement. I’m assuming they are going to be involved since immigration will be reviewing arrearages. If you can reach an agreement with your ex-wife, then this will be a great advantage and New Jersey would tend to support such an agreement, given the age of the child. In this case, I’m assuming,,,,(a) we’ll be looking at approximately two years of back support that is due, (b) that you lived in New Jersey, and (c) there has been no prior agreement with Child Support Enforcement for payment. You mentioned several issues, including immigration, but they all come down to your desire to settle past child support. Among the other things we have to look at are whether you are still receiving Social Security (and what kind of disability).
 
Don’t Assume…
 
Don’t assume you have to pay a certain past amount, especially since it seems you had a life threatening condition. Be certain to gather evidence of your medical condition, and what happened, when. Since you were apparently getting Social Security disability, that evidence will be useful in showing your inability to pay this back custody support, too.
 


  • Getting An Agreement With New Jersey Child Enforcement

 
I’m not sure if you had a property Settlement Agreement (PSA) with your ex-wife, or if you reached an agreement with child support. Either way, you should get familiar with some of the considerations used in following the “Child Support Guidelines” for your payments. Your child’s going to college is actually one common reason for decreasing child support payments, even with a PSA.
 
Here are the conditions that may be most relevant to your situation and the problems you faced, in lowering past and future payments:
 
(1) Standard of living and economic circumstances of each parent;
 
(2) All sources of income and assets of each parent;
 
(3) Earning ability of each parent;
 
(4) Responsibility of the parents for the court-ordered support of others;
 
(5) Reasonable debts and liabilities of each child and parent; and,
 
(6) Any other factors the court may deem relevant.
 
You should look at the specific New Jersey rules on what range you’ll be likely to pay for child support (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-23[a]): http://law.onecle.com/new-jersey/2a-administration-of-civil-and-criminal-justice/34-23.html.
 
There are also specific forms you should become familiar with, to start the process of catching up. To start… http://www.njchildsupport.org/pdfs/change_of_address.pdf.
 
 

  • Immigration Issues For Your Past Child Support

 
There have been similar cases, involving a parent who had a college student with about two years of past support due. For example, it’s even possible that you were paying too much in past child support. Here’s a case worth looking at, because it showed how a parent, who was overseas and facing his own immigration problems due to child support, can reduce past obligations, especially when the child has gone on to college: http://law.justia.com/cases/new-jersey/appellate-division-unpublished/2012/a0765-10.html. This case also helps explain how an agreement between the parents may be worked out. Notice, it was important that child support reflect the actual wages (in that case, Egypt) instead of possible wages in New Jersey.
 
 

  • Social Security Disability payments

 
Most states (38) don’t require SSDI payments to be used for child support. You mentioned that you have been receiving Social Security payments. It can make a difference whether you are receiving SSI (income based disability) or SSDI. Your immigration status may also require that you try and get specialized immigration assistance on this important point: http://www.citizenshipworks.org/legalhelp/ organization.393765-International_Institute_of_New_Jersey_Immigration_Law_Center. The Center may be able to give you low-cost or even free legal help.