New Overage Law

Each year, the General Assembly of Virginia enacts new legislation that affects Virginia families. This year, House Bill 784 adds a new notice requirement to all child and spousal support orders that states whether there is a support overage as of the date of the support order. The legislation specifies that all orders for child and spousal support must contain a statement as to whether any support overages exist and if so, (i) to whom an overage is owed and the amount of the overage, (ii) the period of time for which the overage is calculated, and (iii) how the overage is to be paid.

This law modifies Code of Virginia Sections 20.60-3 (contents of support orders) and 20-107.1 (court may decree as to maintenance and support of spouses), which both require certain notices to be contained in all child and spousal support orders. This notice applies to pendente lite (temporary) and final orders of support, whether initial or modification orders.

So, what is a support overage?

As opposed to a support arrearage (which calculates how much a parent owes in unpaid support), a support overage exists when a parent overpays his or her support obligation. For example, Susie and Billy are the parents of a minor child, Jessica. Billy, not certain on what his obligation will be, has been voluntarily paying $500 per month in child support. When Susie and Billy appear in court and the court calculates Billy’s obligation, the support obligation is determined to be $250, not $500. Therefore, Billy has been overpaying for support, which has created an overage.

If I overpay, can I get my money back?

Yes. Under the new law, support orders must also state how any overage is to be paid. In our example with Susie and Billy, when Susie and Billy go to court to get a final child support order, the Court will make a ruling on how the support overage will be paid; likely, it will be a credit that will be applied against Billy’s future support obligation.

What if I would rather get a refund than credit the overpayment towards any future obligation?

You can certainly request a refund of any overages rather than a credit. What you should not do, however, is pay less than your court-ordered support as a way to refund yourself. If you do not pay support exactly as ordered, you risk enforcement action being taken against you. Additionally, you may not be entitled to a refund for overages if any support arrearages exist.

Suppose you are the paying or receiving party of child or spousal support. In that case, it is important to consult with a family law attorney who is knowledgeable about the laws in Virginia. Consult with an attorney at Patterson Bookwalter today to get legal advice tailored to your situation.