Child Support Enforcement Index

This Division locates absent parents, establishes legal paternity for children born outside marriage, establishes/enforces child support orders, and monitors collection and disbursement of child support payments. Family Assistance recipients are automatically referred by their worker.

HOW TO CONTACT THE CHILD SUPPORT UNIT

Persons who currently have support orders payable through the Oneida County Support Collection Unit and should receive support may call for payment information. You must have a PIN; if you do not you may obtain one from the local office.

For payment information only ...................1-800-846-0773 (24 hours/7 days a week)

For all other questions, please call ..........1-888-208-4485 (8am - 7pm)

WHERE TO WRITE THE CHILD SUPPORT UNIT

Address to Send Payments to:

Oneida County Support Collection Unit
PO Box 15363
Albany, NY 12212-5363

For all other inquiries:

Oneida County Support Collection Unit
800 Park Ave. 1^st floor
Utica, NY 13501

Linked Sites

New York State Office of Child Support and Enforcement

CHILD SUPPORT FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. Who can get help in obtaining child support & where do I go?

     Any parent or person who has legal custody of a child can get help in locating the
     child's absent parent, establishing a child's paternity (legal fatherhood),
     establishing a child support order, modifying the order, obtaining health
     insurance for a child, collecting current child support, and any past due child
     support.

People who receive Family Assistance or Medicaid automatically receive child
support enforcement services.

     People not receiving Family Assistance or Medicaid can receive our services
     by simply applying for such services, without regard to income. There is no
     charge for our services.

You may call 315-798-5048 and request an application for services to be
mailed to you or stop in and pick one up at the following address:

Oneida County Support Collection Unit

800 Park Ave. 4^th floor

Utica, New York 13501

2. I always get my check the same day, but it's not here. What happened?

     You should first contact our payment information line at 1-800-846-0773,
     available 24 hours/7days a week. It is necessary to have your PIN available. If
     you do not have one, our local Support Collection Unit can give you one.

     If no payment has been reported on our information line, you should then contact
     your Investigator via fax, mail, or in person. No payment information can be
     given over the phone from our Local Unit to protect your confidentiality. The
     Investigator will advise you what action should be taken next.

3. I don't know where my child's absent parent is. Can you help with location?

     The Child Support Enforcement program uses computer searches against a
     large number of New York State, other States and Federal data banks to locate
     non-custodial parents.

     The most critical piece of information you can supply to help find an
     absent-parent is his/her social security number. If you do not have the social
     security number, you can check hospital records, bank records, insurance
     policies, credit card records, paystubs, or income tax returns.

4. I'm not married to my child's father. Can I still get Child Support?

Yes! Once you establish paternity (Legal Fatherhood) for the child. There are
many excellent reasons for parents to legally establish the paternity of their child.

A man's name cannot appear on his child's birth certificate unless paternity has been established.

A child is entitled to financial support, including child support, social security benefits, veteran's benefits, military allowances, and inheritance, once paternity has been established.

A child may be entitled to health insurance through his/her father, or mother, once paternity has been established. This will also allow access to medical history records.

5. How do I get a child support order?

     A court can establish a child support order based on the filing of a petition
     requesting to do so. The person chargeable with support must be the child's
     parent through marriage, adoption, or through the establishment of paternity.
     Child support orders are generally payable until the child's twenty-first birthday.

6. Can I get health insurance for my child through the Child Support Unit?

     New York State law mandates that all orders of child support must require either
     parent to extend health insurance available through an employer, at the time the
     order is issued or at any time in the future, to cover the child. If the non-custodial
     parent has health insurance available, but does not enroll the child, the Child
     Support Unit can help enforce this provision of the court order.

7. My child support order is too low. How can I get it increased?

     The Child Support Unit can help you increase the obligation amount of your child
     support order depending on the situation. Further questions can be answered
     by the Investigator at the local office.

8. I have a child support order, but the other parent doesn't pay. Can you help me?

Administrative remedies can be used to collect all current and past due child
support. Some of the remedies are as follows:

	Income Executions - All orders of child support issued in New York State are required to provide for immediate wage withholding.
	Income Tax Refund Offset
	Lottery Prize Offset
	Driving Privilege Suspension
	Liens
	Referral to the Tax Department
	Credit Bureau Reporting

9. Can I get child support when the other parent lives in another state?

     All states are required to pursue all child support enforcement programs for
     out-of-state cases in the same way they do for in-state cases. All states must
     cooperate with each other in these matters.