Federal Child Support Agency Updates Standard Income Withholding Order

Author: Rena Pirsos, XpertHR Legal Editor

August 21, 2014

The federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) has updated the standard Income Withholding For Support (IWO) form, which must be used whenever an employer is required to withhold child support from an employee's pay. The Income Withholding For Support - Instructions have also been updated.

Courts, child support agencies, private attorneys and other entities that issue child support withholding orders to an employer must use an IWO that is approved by the federal Office of Management and Budget. The new IWO expires on July 31, 2017, but the OCSE directs employers to continue to honor previous IWO forms for new income withholding requests until July 31, 2015.

Changes to the IWO

The OCSE has updated the IWO form and the instructions for clarity and consistency. The form has increased from three pages to four pages. The following key changes have been made to the form:

  • Updated hyperlinks. Hyperlinks now direct the employer to the OCSE's current web pages;
  • Standardized references. The OCSE standardized some terms, such as "Remittance ID" for "remittance identifier"; legal citations appear in similar fashion;
  • Increased font size and more lines for state-specific information. States' requests are accommodated by increasing the number of lines available for state-specific information. A larger font size improves readability;
  • Non-employee withholding limits. The OCSE has added clarifying language to the Remittance information section on page two. The employer or other income withholders are now directed to the Supplemental information section on page three for withholding limits for non-employees, such as independent contractors;
  • Standardized headers. Headers now run across the top of pages two, three, and four. The headers contain the employer's name and federal Employer Identification Number, the employee's name and Social Security Number, the child support agency case identifier and the order identifier; and
  • Withholding limits on tribal orders. The IWO now clarifies that Native American tribal law governs withholding limits.

Changes to the IWO Instructions

The instructions have increased from six pages to seven pages. The following key changes have been made to the instructions:

  • Title IV-D (i.e., welfare) cases. The revised instructions note that one IWO must be issued for each Title IV-D case;
  • IWO dos and don'ts. A link to the OCSE's web page advises an employer on how to use the income withholding order; and
  • Note to employer/income withholder. Page three now advises the employer that an acceptable method of determining the amount to withhold on a weekly or biweekly basis is to multiply the monthly amount due by 12, and divide the result by the number of pay periods in a year.