§ 19-11-123.Information to be provided to responding tribunal

Chapter 11. Enforcement of Duty of Support · Article 3. Uniform Interstate Family Support Act · Part 3. Civil Provisions · Last amended 2013 · Last verified October 9, 2026

In one sentenceO.C.G.A. § 19-11-123 tells a Georgia initiating tribunal where to send an interstate support petition and its papers, and requires it, when asked, to supply the certificates, findings and foreign-currency figures the responding state or country needs.

Full Text of § 19-11-123

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b)

(a) Upon the filing of a petition authorized by this article, an initiating tribunal of Georgia shall forward the petition and its accompanying documents:

(1) To the responding tribunal or appropriate support enforcement agency in the responding state; or

(2) If the identity of the responding tribunal is unknown, to the state information agency of the responding state with a request that they be forwarded to the appropriate tribunal and that receipt be acknowledged.

(b) If requested by the responding tribunal, a tribunal of Georgia shall issue a certificate or other document and make findings required by the law of the responding state. If the responding tribunal is in a foreign country, upon request the tribunal of Georgia shall specify the amount of support sought, convert that amount into the equivalent amount in the foreign currency under applicable official or market exchange rate as publicly reported, and provide any other documents necessary to satisfy the requirements of the responding foreign tribunal.

End

Plain-English Summary

When someone files an interstate support petition in Georgia for forwarding, the Georgia tribunal acts as a messenger with duties. Subsection (a) says that once the petition is filed, the initiating Georgia tribunal shall forward the petition and its accompanying documents. It sends them to the responding tribunal or to the appropriate support enforcement agency in the responding state. If no one knows which tribunal should respond, it sends them to the responding state’s state information agency, asking that they be forwarded to the right tribunal and that receipt be acknowledged.

Subsection (b) covers paperwork the other side needs. If the responding tribunal asks, a Georgia tribunal shall issue a certificate or other document and make the findings the law of the responding state requires. When the responding tribunal is in a foreign country, the Georgia tribunal, upon request, shall state the amount of support sought, convert it into the equivalent amount in the foreign currency using the applicable official or market exchange rate as publicly reported, and provide any other documents the foreign tribunal requires.

Georgia plays the receiving role too. Its own state information agency is the Department of Human Services under Code Section 19-11-129, which forwards incoming documents to the appropriate tribunal in Georgia. Code Section 19-11-130 lists what a petition must contain. A petitioner may skip this forwarding step and file directly in the other state under Code Section 19-11-120(b). The section was amended in 2013.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens after I file an interstate support petition in Georgia?

Under subsection (a), the Georgia initiating tribunal shall forward the petition and its accompanying documents to the responding tribunal or the appropriate support enforcement agency in the responding state. From there, the responding tribunal takes up the case.

What if nobody knows which court in the other state should get the case?

Subsection (a)(2) covers that. If the identity of the responding tribunal is unknown, the Georgia tribunal shall send the papers to the state information agency of the responding state, with a request that they be forwarded to the appropriate tribunal and that receipt be acknowledged.

Does the Georgia court have to provide documents the other state requires?

Yes, if the responding tribunal asks. Subsection (b) says a Georgia tribunal shall then issue a certificate or other document and make the findings required by the law of the responding state. The duty is triggered by the responding tribunal’s request.

How is the support amount converted when the case goes to a foreign country?

Upon request, the Georgia tribunal shall specify the amount of support sought and convert it into the equivalent amount in the foreign currency under the applicable official or market exchange rate as publicly reported, as subsection (b) provides. It shall also provide any other documents the responding foreign tribunal needs.

Do I have to go through a Georgia court to reach a parent in another state?

No. Code Section 19-11-120(b) also lets a petitioner file a petition or comparable pleading directly in a tribunal of another state or a foreign country that has or can obtain personal jurisdiction over the respondent. This section governs only the forwarding route.

Amendment History

Laws 1997, p. 1613, § 33; Laws 2013, Act 224, § 1, eff. July 1, 2013.

Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, enacted by the Georgia General Assembly, and checked word for word against the Georgia Code Revision Commission’s public-domain edition and the acts that later amended it. Section headings are the Code’s official catchlines. Last verified October 9, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: initiating tribunal duties georgiaforward child support petition another stateinterstate child support petition processstate information agency child support