How to Modify Child Support in Kansas: Filing Steps and Effective Date

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

To modify Kansas child support, file a motion in the court that has your order. The change can reach back only to the first day of the month after you file, and an increase is not a lien on real property until the order date.

How do you modify child support in Kansas?

1. Run the guideline amount in the Kansas child support calculator and check the age of your order in the modification calculator.
2. File a motion to modify in the court that has your order (K.S.A. 23-3005). The change can be retroactive to the first day of the month following the filing, so file as early in a month as you can.
3. Serve the other parent and bring current income documents for both parents; the court follows the guidelines.
4. Prove a material change if the last order is three years old or less; after three years you need not.
5. Keep paying through the central unit until the court changes the order.

Why does the filing month matter?

Because the court may make a modification retroactive to the first day of the month following the filing of the motion (23-3005(b)). A motion filed on the 2nd of a month and one filed on the 28th both start on the 1st of the next month, so filing early in a month does not help, but filing late in a month does not hurt either. What costs money is waiting to file at all.

Does an increase become a lien?

An increase in support ordered effective before the date the court’s judgment is filed does not become a lien on real property under K.S.A. 60-2202 until the date of the order (23-3005(b)). That protects the paying parent’s property for the period before the judgment.

Can I modify an order from another state or an IV-D order?

The statute allows the court to modify any prior child support order, including an order issued in a title IV-D case, irrespective of the present domicile of the child or the parents, subject to the interstate support act (23-3005(a)).

How does withholding fit in under Kansas law?

All new or modified orders for support provide for immediate income withholding unless an exception applies (23-3103(a)-(b)), and payments go through the central unit unless the court finds good cause, such as a written agreement for direct payment filed with the court (23-3004). A modification changes the withholding by motion (23-3107).

How much does a late motion cost? An example

If you file 3, 6 or 9 months after your change, the relief you lose at a $300 monthly difference is:

What if the other parent stops reporting income?

A court is not prohibited from sanctioning a parent who fails to disclose a material change of circumstances, as the annotation to the modification statute records (23-3005 annotations). Keep your own record of what each parent earns.

What happens to unpaid support while the motion is pending?

It stays owed and draws interest. See the Kansas interest rule and add up your balance.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• K.S.A. 23-3005: modification of child support
• K.S.A. 23-3002: determination of the amount of child support
• K.S.A. 23-3001: minor children; support and education
• K.S.A. 23-3004: payment through the central unit
• K.S.A. 20-165: child support guidelines and case annotations
• 42 U.S.C. 666(a)(9): no retroactive modification of support already due
• K.S.A. 23-3103: income withholding orders
• K.S.A. 23-3107: modifying or terminating withholding

This is general information, not legal advice. It is based on the cited Kansas statutes, rules and court opinions, and every case turns on its own facts. Confirm how the law applies to your situation with a licensed Kansas attorney.