Child support in Kentucky
Kentucky uses the income-shares model: both parents' incomes count, and each parent pays a share of the child's support. To open a case, contact the Department of Child Support Services, Office of the Attorney General at (800) 248-1163.
Checked against official sources: Oct 25, 2026. · Free letters and checklist ↓
How much child support in Kentucky?
The parents' monthly gross incomes are added together (minus certain support and maintenance already paid). You look up the total and the number of children in the state table, then each parent pays a share in proportion to their income. Health insurance and work-related child care are split the same way.
Law: KRS 403.212; KRS 403.2122 (shared parenting time credit); KRS 403.211
We don't estimate Kentucky's amount here: its formula uses both parents' incomes and other facts, and a home-made number could mislead you. The official tool gives the real starting number:
Open a child support case in Kentucky
- Phone
- (800) 248-1163, Child Support Hotline (8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Eastern)
- Apply
- Apply online
- How to open a case
If you get K-TAP, your caseworker refers your case. Otherwise, apply online on the Kentucky Child Support Interactive Website, or fill out the Application for Child Support Services (CS-33) and the Authorization and Acknowledgement of No Legal Representation (CS-11) and mail or bring them to your local child support office. You can also ask the Family Court (or Circuit/District Court) for support in a divorce, custody or paternity case.
- Application fee
No application fee is listed on the current application form (CS-33) or the Attorney General's child support page. Kentucky law lets the office charge applicants who don't get K-TAP an income-based application fee; K-TAP families never pay one.
Law: KRS 15.810(3)
- Yearly fee
$35 a year, taken out of a child support payment, for families who never received public assistance, in each federal fiscal year in which at least $550 is paid out on the case.
Law: KRS 15.810(4); 40 KAR 1:380 Sec. 2
- Forms
- Paternity (legal fatherhood)
Unmarried parents can sign a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, usually at the hospital. If paternity is disputed, the child support office or the court can order genetic testing.
Source: Kentucky Paternity Acknowledgement Program: (502) 564-2285
Kentucky child support by topic
How support is calculated in Kentucky
The model, the percentages or the official calculator, and low-income rules.
Change child support in Kentucky
When you can ask, how to ask, and a review letter.
Collect unpaid support in Kentucky
Collection tools, interest and license rules, and a letter.
When support ends in Kentucky
The end age, high school and disability rules.
How child support is figured in Kentucky
- Model
- Income shares
- How it works
The parents' monthly gross incomes are added together (minus certain support and maintenance already paid). You look up the total and the number of children in the state table, then each parent pays a share in proportion to their income. Health insurance and work-related child care are split the same way.
- Low income
The minimum order is $60 a month. A low-income parent (for example, monthly adjusted gross income of $1,100 or less with one child) gets a self-support reserve of $915 a month, and support is figured on that parent's income alone; the parent pays the lowest of the amounts the rules give.
Law: KRS 403.212(3)(d), (5), (6)
- Official calculator
- Official Kentucky child support calculator
- Health insurance and medical costs
The court must order one or both parents to provide health care coverage if it is reasonable in cost (5% or less of that parent's gross income) and accessible. If it isn't, the court orders cash medical support. Insurance costs and uninsured medical bills are split by income.
Law: KRS 403.211(7)-(8)
Law: KRS 403.212; KRS 403.2122 (shared parenting time credit); KRS 403.211
Change a child support order in Kentucky
- When a change is allowed
Only when there is a material change in circumstances that is substantial and continuing. If the guidelines applied to your current situation give a change of 15% or more in the monthly amount, that is presumed to be a material change; less than 15% is presumed not to be. A change only applies to payments due after the motion is filed.
Law: KRS 403.213(1)-(2)
- How to ask
Ask the Department of Child Support Services for a review (either parent can ask; you must give income, health insurance, child care and other support information), or file a motion to modify in the court that made the order.
Can I ask for a change? Check your situation
Collect unpaid child support in Kentucky
Arrears means support that is past due. The child support agency can use these tools to collect it:
- Collection tools
- Income withholding
- Driver's, professional, occupational, hunting and fishing license denial or suspension
- Federal and state tax refund offset
- Liens on real and personal property
- Bank account liens (financial institution data match)
- Vehicle immobilization (booting)
- Credit bureau reporting
- Published list of delinquent obligors ("most wanted")
- Court contempt
- License suspension
An arrearage equal to or more than six months of nonpayment, or failing to obey a subpoena or warrant in a paternity or child support case.
Law: KRS 15.802(9)
- Contempt of court
The court can hold a parent who does not pay in contempt. Flagrant nonsupport can also be a crime.
Law: KRS 15.802, 15.820, 15.838, 15.850, 15.055
When child support ends in Kentucky
- Support ends
18, or while still a high school student, but not past the end of the school year in which the child turns 19
- Exceptions
Support can last longer if the parents agree in writing or the decree says so. Unpaid support that built up before the child was emancipated is still owed. A parent's death does not end support automatically; the court can change it.
Law: KRS 403.213(3)
When does support end? Check your situation
Free help in Kentucky
Official self-help
Free letters and checklist
Ask the agency to review (change) your order
A letter to the child support agency asking for a review and adjustment.
Ask the agency to collect unpaid support
A letter asking the agency to enforce the order and collect what is past due.
Checklist: what to bring to open a case
IDs, birth certificates, the other parent's details and your papers, with Kentucky's agency contact.
Good to know in Kentucky
- Since July 1, 2025, Kentucky's child support program is run by the Office of the Attorney General instead of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (KRS 15.802; 2023 Ky. Acts ch. 124).
- A parent who has the child at least 88 days a year can ask for a shared parenting time credit that lowers support (KRS 403.2122).
- With court approval, the state can put a boot on the car of a parent who owes six months or more of support (KRS 15.820).
Changes in 2024–2026
2024 Ky. Acts ch. 219 created a shared parenting time credit and amended the guidelines, which now include a $915 self-support reserve and a $60 minimum. On July 1, 2025, the child support program moved to the Office of the Attorney General.
Law: KRS 403.2122, effective July 15, 2024; KRS 403.212, effective July 1, 2025
Federal rules in every state
- Applying. If you don't get TANF, Medicaid or foster care help, a state may charge an application fee of up to $25 to open a child support case. Law: 42 U.S.C. 654(6)(B)(i)
- Yearly fee. If you never got TANF and the agency collected at least $550 for you in a year, the state charges a $35 yearly fee. It can come out of your support, but never out of the first $550. Law: 42 U.S.C. 654(6)(B)(ii)
- Review every 3 years. If your case is with the child support agency, either parent can ask it to review the order every 3 years and adjust it to the guidelines. Law: 42 U.S.C. 666(a)(10)(A); 45 CFR 303.8
- Past-due support. Each unpaid payment becomes a judgment on the day it is due. It can't be lowered later, except back to the date the other parent got notice of a request to change the order. Law: 42 U.S.C. 666(a)(9)
- Tax refunds. The federal government can take a federal tax refund to pay past-due child support. Law: 42 U.S.C. 664
- Passports. A parent who owes more than $2,500 in past-due support can be refused a passport. Law: 42 U.S.C. 652(k)
- Pay withholding limit. For support, up to 50% of take-home pay can be withheld if the parent supports another spouse or child, or 60% if not. It is 55% or 65% when support is more than 12 weeks behind. Law: 15 U.S.C. 1673(b)
- How long support lasts. How long support lasts follows the law of the state that made the order, even if you move. Law: 28 U.S.C. 1738B(h)(2)
Questions about child support in Kentucky
How is child support calculated in Kentucky?
The parents' monthly gross incomes are added together (minus certain support and maintenance already paid). You look up the total and the number of children in the state table, then each parent pays a share in proportion to their income. Health insurance and work-related child care are split the same way.
Is there an official child support calculator for Kentucky?
What if the paying parent has a low income in Kentucky?
The minimum order is $60 a month. A low-income parent (for example, monthly adjusted gross income of $1,100 or less with one child) gets a self-support reserve of $915 a month, and support is figured on that parent's income alone; the parent pays the lowest of the amounts the rules give.
How do I apply for child support in Kentucky?
If you get K-TAP, your caseworker refers your case. Otherwise, apply online on the Kentucky Child Support Interactive Website, or fill out the Application for Child Support Services (CS-33) and the Authorization and Acknowledgement of No Legal Representation (CS-11) and mail or bring them to your local child support office. You can also ask the Family Court (or Circuit/District Court) for support in a divorce, custody or paternity case.
Does it cost money to open a child support case in Kentucky?
No application fee is listed on the current application form (CS-33) or the Attorney General's child support page. Kentucky law lets the office charge applicants who don't get K-TAP an income-based application fee; K-TAP families never pay one.
Is there a yearly fee for child support services in Kentucky?
$35 a year, taken out of a child support payment, for families who never received public assistance, in each federal fiscal year in which at least $550 is paid out on the case.
When can child support be changed in Kentucky?
Only when there is a material change in circumstances that is substantial and continuing. If the guidelines applied to your current situation give a change of 15% or more in the monthly amount, that is presumed to be a material change; less than 15% is presumed not to be. A change only applies to payments due after the motion is filed.
How do I ask to change child support in Kentucky?
Ask the Department of Child Support Services for a review (either parent can ask; you must give income, health insurance, child care and other support information), or file a motion to modify in the court that made the order.
What happens if child support is not paid in Kentucky?
Arrears means support that is past due. The child support agency can use these tools to collect it: Income withholding; Driver's, professional, occupational, hunting and fishing license denial or suspension; Federal and state tax refund offset; Liens on real and personal property; Bank account liens (financial institution data match); Vehicle immobilization (booting); Credit bureau reporting; Published list of delinquent obligors ("most wanted"); Court contempt.
Can a license be suspended for unpaid child support in Kentucky?
An arrearage equal to or more than six months of nonpayment, or failing to obey a subpoena or warrant in a paternity or child support case.
Can a parent be held in contempt for not paying in Kentucky?
The court can hold a parent who does not pay in contempt. Flagrant nonsupport can also be a crime.
When does child support end in Kentucky?
18, or while still a high school student, but not past the end of the school year in which the child turns 19
Does child support continue while my child finishes high school in Kentucky?
18, or while still a high school student, but not past the end of the school year in which the child turns 19
Can child support continue past the usual age in Kentucky?
Support can last longer if the parents agree in writing or the decree says so. Unpaid support that built up before the child was emancipated is still owed. A parent's death does not end support automatically; the court can change it.
How is paternity established in Kentucky?
Unmarried parents can sign a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, usually at the hospital. If paternity is disputed, the child support office or the court can order genetic testing.
Who pays for the child's health insurance in Kentucky?
The court must order one or both parents to provide health care coverage if it is reasonable in cost (5% or less of that parent's gross income) and accessible. If it isn't, the court orders cash medical support. Insurance costs and uninsured medical bills are split by income.
More help on our sister sites
Sources
- KRS 403.212 Child support guidelines
- KRS 403.2122 Shared parenting time credit
- KRS 403.211 Establishing support; health care coverage
- KRS 403.213 Modification; emancipation
- KRS 15.810 Services, application fee, annual fee
- KRS 15.802 Duties of Department of Child Support Services; licenses
- KRS 15.820 Child support lien; vehicle immobilization
- 40 KAR 1:380 Application and services
- Kentucky Attorney General: Child Support
Last checked: Oct 25, 2026.
- State plan requirements: application fee, annual fee, safeguards, 42 U.S.C. 654
- Required state laws: arrears as judgments, review every 3 years, UIFSA, 42 U.S.C. 666
- Federal tax refund offset, 42 U.S.C. 664
- Passport denial for child support arrears, 42 U.S.C. 652(k)
- Garnishment limits for support orders, 15 U.S.C. 1673(b)
- Full faith and credit for child support orders, 28 U.S.C. 1738B
- Office of Child Support Enforcement (federal)