§ 19-11-169.Enforcement pending modification
Chapter 11. Enforcement of Duty of Support · Article 3. Uniform Interstate Family Support Act · Part 6. Enforcement and Modification of Support Order After Registration · Last amended 2013 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-11-169
Plain-English Summary
A child support order from another state may be registered in Georgia for the purpose of modifying it, under § 19-11-168. This section answers what happens to that order while the modification request is pending — and what it takes for the change to happen.
On enforcement, the answer is generous. A Georgia tribunal may enforce the registered order in the same manner as if a Georgia tribunal had issued it. So a pending modification request doesn’t leave the order unenforced; Georgia’s remedies remain available, and the issuing state’s law still governs matters like amount and arrears under § 19-11-163. The word is “may,” which leaves enforcement to the tribunal’s judgment.
On modification, the answer is restrictive. The registered order may be modified only if the requirements of § 19-11-170 or § 19-11-172 have been met. Section 19-11-170 generally requires that no one involved still lives in the issuing state, that the person asking for modification isn’t a Georgia resident, and that the respondent is subject to Georgia’s personal jurisdiction — or, instead, that Georgia is home to the child or an individual party and all individual parties have filed consents in a record in the issuing tribunal. Section 19-11-172 covers the case where all individual parties live in Georgia and the child does not live in the issuing state. If neither applies, the Georgia tribunal can enforce but can’t change the order. The section was last amended in 2013.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Georgia enforce an out-of-state child support order while my modification request is pending?
Yes. A Georgia tribunal may enforce a child support order of another state registered for modification in the same manner as if a Georgia tribunal had issued the order. The modification request doesn’t stop the tribunal from enforcing the existing order.
When can a Georgia court modify a child support order from another state?
Only when the requirements of § 19-11-170 or § 19-11-172 have been met. Section 19-11-170 covers cases where no party or child still lives in the issuing state, a nonresident of Georgia seeks modification, and the respondent is subject to Georgia’s personal jurisdiction, or where Georgia is home to the child or an individual party and all individual parties have filed consents in a record in the issuing tribunal. Section 19-11-172 covers cases where all individual parties live in Georgia and the child doesn’t live in the issuing state.
Does registering for modification mean Georgia will change my out-of-state support order?
No. Registration for modification lets Georgia enforce the order as its own, but the order may be modified only if § 19-11-170 or § 19-11-172 is satisfied. Whether a change is warranted on the merits is a separate question, decided under the same requirements that apply to modifying a Georgia order, as § 19-11-170 provides.
Is an out-of-state child support order registered for modification treated like a Georgia order?
What should be in a request to modify another state’s child support order in Georgia?
Under § 19-11-168, the order must be registered if it isn’t already, and the pleading must specify the grounds for modification. This section adds that the Georgia tribunal can grant the modification only if the requirements of § 19-11-170 or § 19-11-172 are met, so the facts supporting jurisdiction matter as much as the grounds.
Amendment History
Laws 1997, p. 1613, § 33; Laws 2013, Act 224, § 1, eff. July 1, 2013.