§ 19-11-76.Additional remedies on foreign support order
Chapter 11. Enforcement of Duty of Support · Article 2. Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act · Last amended 1979 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-11-76
Plain-English Summary
This section belongs to Article 2, Georgia’s version of the Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act (URESA). Under § 19-11-40.1, no new petition may be filed and no new proceeding may begin under Article 2 on or after January 1, 1998; the article applies only to proceedings pending before that date. Interstate support cases begun since then fall under Article 3, the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, which starts at § 19-11-100.
Most of Article 2 works through a two-court petition process: the person owed support files in one state, and a court in the payer’s state holds a hearing and orders support. This section opens a second route when a support order already exists. If the duty of support is based on a foreign support order — an order made in another jurisdiction, which the article calls the rendering state — the obligee, the person owed support, has additional remedies in §§ 19-11-77 through 19-11-81.
Those sections set up registration. Under § 19-11-77, the obligee may register the order in a Georgia court, and the superior court clerk keeps a registry. Section 19-11-79 lists the papers to send to the district attorney and the notice the clerk mails to the payer. Section 19-11-80 governs the hearing and the defenses, and § 19-11-81 says a registered order is treated like a Georgia support order.
The word “additional” matters. Registration adds to the obligee’s options; it doesn’t take any away. Article 3 offers its own registration procedure for newer cases in §§ 19-11-160 and following.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I enforce an out-of-state support order in Georgia under URESA?
One route is registration. When the duty of support is based on a foreign support order, this section gives the obligee additional remedies in §§ 19-11-77 through 19-11-81. Those sections let the obligee register the order in a Georgia superior court, after which it is treated like a Georgia support order. Newer cases use Article 3 instead.
What is a foreign support order under Georgia’s URESA?
In this article, it refers to a support order made in another state. Section 19-11-79 shows this: registration requires a copy of the Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act of the state in which the order was made, and the definitions in § 19-11-42 speak of the support order of the rendering state.
Does registering an order take away my other URESA remedies?
No. The section calls the registration remedies “additional.” They supplement the article’s other procedures, such as the petition process in which a responding court holds a hearing and orders support. Nothing in this section requires the obligee to choose registration over the petition process.
Which sections cover URESA registration in Georgia?
Sections 19-11-77 through 19-11-81. Section 19-11-77 permits registration and creates the clerk’s registry, § 19-11-78 applies the district attorney provisions of § 19-11-53, § 19-11-79 lists the documents and notice, § 19-11-80 covers the hearing, and § 19-11-81 gives a registered order its effect.
Can I still register an out-of-state order under URESA today?
No new proceeding may begin under Article 2 on or after January 1, 1998, under § 19-11-40.1. To register an order from another state now, you would use Article 3, where § 19-11-160 lets a support order or income withholding order of another state, or a foreign support order, be registered in Georgia for enforcement.
Amendment History
Laws 1979, p. 938, § 1.