§ 19-11-172.Jurisdiction; application of article
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 § 19-11-172
Plain-English Summary
This section handles a common situation: everyone has moved to Georgia. If all the parties who are individuals reside in Georgia and the child does not reside in the issuing state, a Georgia tribunal has jurisdiction to enforce and to modify the issuing state’s child support order in a proceeding to register that order. Neither the nonresident-petitioner rule nor the consent requirement of § 19-11-170 applies; that section expressly gives way when this one applies.
Both conditions are needed. Every individual party must live in Georgia — a support enforcement agency, which isn’t an individual, doesn’t count — and the child must not live in the issuing state. If one parent still lives elsewhere, or the child still lives in the issuing state, the case falls back on § 19-11-170.
Because the case is in substance a Georgia case, the section tells the tribunal which law to use. It shall apply Parts 1 and 2 of the article — the general provisions and the rules on jurisdiction and cooperation between states — together with Georgia’s procedural and substantive law. Parts 3, 4, 5, 7, and 8 of the article do not apply. Those parts hold the article’s civil provisions for interstate cases, the rules for establishing a support order, direct enforcement without registration, the Hague convention provisions, and interstate rendition.
Even so, the proceeding begins with registration, so § 19-11-168 still governs how to start it. The section was last amended in 2013.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Georgia modify an out-of-state child support order if both parents now live in Georgia?
Yes, if the child also no longer lives in the issuing state. When all the parties who are individuals reside in Georgia and the child does not reside in the issuing state, a Georgia tribunal has jurisdiction to enforce and modify the issuing state’s child support order in a proceeding to register that order.
What law applies when Georgia modifies a child support order because everyone moved to Georgia?
Georgia law. A Georgia tribunal exercising jurisdiction under this section shall apply Parts 1 and 2 of the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act and Georgia’s procedural and substantive law. Parts 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8 of the article do not apply.
Do I need the other parent’s consent to modify an out-of-state order in Georgia if we both live here?
Not under this section. The consent route belongs to § 19-11-170. Under this section, jurisdiction depends only on two facts: all individual parties reside in Georgia and the child does not reside in the issuing state. The case must still begin as a proceeding to register the order.
What if the child still lives in the state that issued the support order?
Then this section doesn’t apply. It requires that the child not reside in the issuing state. In that situation a Georgia tribunal can modify the order only if it meets one of the tests in § 19-11-170, such as all individual parties filing consents in a record in the issuing tribunal for Georgia to take over.
Do I still have to register the out-of-state order if everyone lives in Georgia?
Yes. This section gives Georgia jurisdiction in a proceeding to register the issuing state’s order, and § 19-11-168 requires registration, if it hasn’t happened already, before modification. The petition for modification may be filed with the registration or later and must state its grounds.
Amendment History
Laws 1997, p. 1613, § 33; Laws 2013, Act 224, § 1, eff. July 1, 2013.