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As employers, you are one of our closest partners, with an important role in helping ensure families get the financial and medical support they need. More than 70% of all child support collections are through payroll deductions. Please note that maintaining accurate information about your company with California Child Support Services benefits you by making sure official notices reach the right destination and preventing duplication. You can update your company information with our employer information form. All other forms are located on our Employer Forms page.
If you have an employee that is a member of a Native American tribe, you can find specialized information for withholding for these individuals on the Health & Human Services website. If you have other questions or need assistance you can contact us at any time as we are here to better serve you.
The federal Office of Child Support Services has released an updated Income Withholding Order with an expiration date of August 31, 2026. States have one year to implement the revised order. Please continue using the current Income Withholding Order with the outdated expiration. For additional information, please visit the Revised IWO form and Instructions page.
Employers may be served an IWO by a California local child support agency, by another state’s child support agency, or by a private party.
Cases managed by child support agencies in any state are called “4-D” cases, referring to Title IV-D of the Federal Social Security Act, the law that created Child Support Services agencies. These IWOs are issued by the child support agency and do not require a judge’s signature.
If the case is not being managed through a child support agency, the family court will issue the IWO. This is called a “Non-4-D” case. In this circumstance, you the employer will be served with the documentation by a private party, either the person who will be receiving the support or that person’s representative.
The employer’s responsibility is the same in both types of cases except on one point. Since Non-4-D orders do not originate within the child support system, the California State Disbursement Unit, which processes all child support payments, needs additional information to assure the payment is processed accurately. The IWO form is on the Employer Forms page.
View the IWO Factsheet to learn more:
See the Employer Handbook for more information on income withholding.
Federal law requires that employers have the option of receiving IWOs electronically. California uses the federal e-IWO Process to save you time and money!
By law, every order for child support must include a Medical Support Order for health Insurance. If an employee or independent contractor has an order to pay child support and is eligible for health insurance, his or her children must be enrolled in the employer’s health insurance plan even if t he employee declines his or her own personal health coverage.
Medical Support Orders may be for a specific dollar amount included on the Income Withholding Order, or as an order for health insurance. If the order is not for a specific dollar amount, you as the employer will receive National Medical Support Notice Part A and National Medical Support Notice Part B. This is a standard federal form that all state child support agencies use. The Notice may accompany an Income Withholding Order, or it may be sent separately.