Can You Refuse Visitation if Child Support is Not Paid?

You have joint custody of your daughter with your ex-husband, who pays you child support since he makes more money than you. He feels that he doesn’t need to pay you child support and for the past few months hasn’t given you any more. Though he still visits his daughter, you have not seen a single penny. Can you prevent him from seeing his child until he pays? What are your next steps?

You would be surprised how often this happens. Many feel that despite what the court has ruled, if you share custody with your ex you shouldn’t be required to pay child support. But it doesn’t work that way. Child support is much more than covering the bare necessities for a child, such as food and clothing. It can also be used for:

• Medical care
• Uninsured medical expenses
• Education fees
• Transportation or travel
• Child care
• Any extracurricular activities such as sports or camps
• College expenses

Child support is given so the child can maintain an existing standard of living. So if your spouse is making much less than you are and you divorce, you may be required to pay support, even if you share custody.

So what if your ex hasn’t paid? Can you prevent visitation? Absolutely not. In order to cancel visitation, you will need to go back to court, something you will have to do anyway if support is not being paid. It’s best to speak with an experienced family law attorney on how to file a contempt of court petition.

If you are having trouble getting child support payments from your ex, we can help. Contact the Law Offices of Anthony Carbone today for a free consultation.