§ 19-11-21.Payment of support to department
Chapter 11. Enforcement of Duty of Support · Article 1. Child Support Recovery Act · Last amended 2015 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-11-21
Plain-English Summary
This section answers a practical question: who receives the money? For support set through the department’s own process — an administrative determination or a voluntary agreement — the answer is fixed. Payment shall go to the Department of Human Services. In non-TANF cases, those not involving temporary assistance for needy families, the department may, where it deems it appropriate, let other individuals, agencies or entities handle the actual distribution and use the certification schedules it requires, in line with the federal Social Security Act.
The last sentence reaches court-ordered support. It covers support ordered in a divorce decree or in any other proceeding, civil or criminal, that requires a parent to support a child. Once the department certifies either that the child receives public assistance or that an application for support enforcement under the federal Social Security Act has been filed with it, the money must flow to the department. That duty falls on whoever pays or collects the support: the responsible parent, the clerk of court, a juvenile probation officer, a community supervision officer, a child support receiver or a similar official.
The rule ties into the assignment provisions earlier in the article. Under § 19-11-6, a family that accepts public assistance assigns its right to support to the department, and an application for child support services also operates as an assignment. Routing payments through the department lets it account for collections and distribute them under federal standards. The section was last amended in 2015.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I pay child support to the other parent or to the state in Georgia?
It depends on how support was set and whether the department is involved. Support set by an administrative determination or a voluntary agreement shall be paid to the Department of Human Services. Court-ordered support must be paid to the department once it certifies that the child receives public assistance or that an application for support enforcement has been filed with it. Absent one of those situations, this section doesn’t redirect a court-ordered payment.
Why did my court-ordered child support start going through the Department of Human Services?
Under this section, the switch happens when the department certifies that the child receives public assistance or that someone has filed an application with it for support enforcement. After either certification, court-ordered support — whether from a divorce decree or another civil or criminal case — must be paid to the department by the parent or the official collecting it. The section ties the change to the certification, not to any amendment of the order.
Who has to send child support payments to the department under this section?
Whoever pays or collects court-ordered support once the department makes its certification. The section names the responsible parent, the clerk of court, the juvenile probation officer, the community supervision officer, the child support receiver, and any similar official who collects support. Each must pay the support to the department rather than directly to the family.
Does this payment rule apply to child support ordered in a criminal case?
Yes. It covers support ordered in a divorce decree or in any other proceeding requiring a parent to support a child, whether the proceeding is civil or criminal. Under § 19-11-3, a court order for child support includes an order in a criminal case that results in support payments, such as a condition of probation. Once the department makes either certification, that support must be paid to the department.
Can someone other than the department distribute child support payments in a non-TANF case?
Yes, if the department deems it appropriate. In non-TANF cases, those not involving temporary assistance for needy families, the department may authorize other individuals, agencies or entities to distribute the actual payment and may use certification schedules it requires to reflect those payments, consistent with the federal Social Security Act. The section grants that option only for non-TANF cases.
Amendment History
Laws 1973, p. 192, § 16; Laws 1976, p. 1537, § 14; Laws 1982, p. 1207, §§ 3, 6; Laws 1997, p. 1021, § 8; Laws 2015, Act 73, § 5-44, eff. July 1, 2015.