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These FAQs are based on information currently available to the Arizona Department of Economic Security, Division of Child Support Services (DCSS) and will be updated as new information becomes available.
What are the Economic Impact (stimulus) Payments?
On March 27, 2020, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act, which, among other things, authorizes economic impact payments (also referred to as stimulus payments or recovery rebate payments) to eligible individuals. For details on these economic impact payments, please visit www.irs.gov/coronavirus.
Under the CARES Act signed on March 27, 2020, the first stimulus payment was required to be intercepted to pay child support arrears. If you pay child support through the state’s IV-D program and owe child support, the Federal Treasury Offset Program (TOP) reduced your first stimulus payment up to the amount owed. The intercepted amount was applied toward your child support arrears.
Will my first stimulus payment be intercepted to pay my child support arrears?
Yes, if you pay child support through the state’s IV-D program and owe child support, the Federal Treasury Offset Program (TOP) will reduce your stimulus payment up to the amount owed. This amount will be applied toward your child support arrears.
How does the Federal Treasury Offset Program know how much to reduce my first stimulus payment?
DCSS must, by law, certify past-due child support debts to the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement for federal enforcement.
States are not provided the option to reduce the amount submitted for federal enforcement.
How can I check to see if I owe child support arrears?
For questions regarding the Treasury Offset Program’s (TOP) record of child support debt, please call the TOP Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system at 800-304-3107. You can also visit the DCSS website or call DCSS customer service at 1-800-882-4151 Monday - Friday, 7:00 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
How much of my first stimulus payment can be taken to satisfy my child support arrears?
When the stimulus payment is subject to being intercepted, your stimulus payment will be reduced up to the total amount of past-due child support owed. The total stimulus payment may be intercepted when the child support amount owed is greater than the stimulus payment. The COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020 that was signed on December 27, 2020, that is an extension of the CARES Act, does not require the second stimulus payment to be intercepted to pay child support arrears.
I pay child support to another state where the receiving parent lives. Which state will take my first stimulus payment if I owe past-due child support?
When the stimulus payments are subject to being intercepted, the state where the past-due payments are owed will process the intercept of your stimulus payment. The COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020 that was signed on December 27, 2020, that is an extension of the CARES Act, does not require the stimulus payment to be intercepted to pay child support arrears.
For example:
If you are currently paying child support through Arizona as a result of an intergovernmental case with California (i.e. another state), that other state will intercept your first stimulus payment.
What options do I have if I believe my stimulus payment should not have been intercepted?
You may dispute your stimulus payment being intercepted if you do not believe that you owe past-due child support. The paying parent may exercise his/her right to contest the intercept by submitting the completed request for an Administrative Review form to [email protected] or by mailing your form to DCSS, Attn: ARU, P.O. BOX 40458, Phoenix, AZ 85067.
I am the parent court-ordered to receive child support and currently receiving or have received public assistance or TANF. Will I receive money from the first stimulus payment that was intercepted from the paying parent and will it be applied to my case?
When the stimulus payments are subject to being intercepted, the federal law indicates how monies received by a state child support agency under the Federal Tax Refund Offset Program are distributed. Money from federal tax offsets are first applied to past-due payments owed to the state and then to the past-due amount owed to the receiving parent. If there is money owed to the State of Arizona in your case, the stimulus payment up to the amount owed to the state will be retained by the state. The remainder will next be applied to arrears in your case. The COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020 that was signed on December 27, 2020, that is an extension of the CARES Act, does not require the stimulus payment to be intercepted to pay child support arrears.
What is the second round of stimulus payments?
The COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020, signed on December 27, 2020, includes a second round of economic stimulus payments for families who meet certain financial thresholds. The IRS expects to start sending out stimulus payments in January 2021. For details on the economic stimulus payments, please visit https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/second-eip-faqs.
Will my second stimulus payment be intercepted to pay my past-due child support?
No. Unlike the first round of stimulus payments approved by Congress through the Coronavirus, Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, the second round of stimulus payments authorized through the COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020 are not subject to intercept for past-due child support.
What is American Rescue Plan Act of 2021?
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) is a continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis corresponding plan to provide aid to many American’s across the U.S. Similar to the first and second stimulus payments, under the 2020 CARES act. The plan includes providing an extension to federal unemployment programs including PUA and PEUC, and Economic Impact Payments. For more information, please visit: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/legislation/2021/01/20/president-biden-announces-american-rescue-plan/
Will my third stimulus payment be intercepted to pay my past-due child support?
No. The third round of stimulus payments authorized through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 are not subject to intercept by child support. The stimulus payment will be similar to the second round of stimulus payments as previously approved by congress under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020. For more information, please visit: https://fiscal.treasury.gov/top/faqs-for-the-public-covid-19.html
What is the Recovery Rebate Credit?
The Recovery Rebate Credit is a benefit that was received last year in a form of an Economic Stimulus Payment for most people. However, those who were not able to receive the maximum amount or did not receive an Economic Stimulus Payment, and whose circumstances have changed, now make them eligible to receive. Please visit: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/recovery-rebate-credit
Will the Recovery Rebate Credit be intercepted to pay child support arrears?
Yes, if you pay child support through the state’s IV-D program and owe child support, the Federal Treasury Offset Program (TOP) will reduce the amount of your tax return to pay outstanding child support arrears. For more information please visit: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/recovery-rebate-credit-topic-e-receiving-the-credit
What is a Federal Tax Offset?
The Division of Child Support Services, in accordance with federal requirements, is allowed to submit (and certify), through the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) to the Department of Treasury, names, identifying information, and amounts of past-due child support of non-custodial parents who are behind on their payments. The non-custodial parent whose past-due child support obligation meets the criteria for the Federal Offset Program will qualify to have amounts deducted from their tax refunds through the Department of Treasury. A pre-offset notice is sent to the non-custodial parent that explains the process and shows the amount of past-due child support owed at the time of the notice prior to action taken. For more information on the Federal Tax Refund Offset Program, please visit: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/css/faq/how-does-federal-tax-refund-offset-program-work
How long does it take for Arizona to receive an offset?
Typically, DCSS will receive money from a tax refund offset within two or three weeks. If the tax refund offset is from a jointly filed tax return, the money may be held for up to six (6) months or 180-days, before it is applied to the case.
I am the paying parent and file my taxes jointly with my spouse. Will my spouse’s tax offset be applied to the past-due child support I may owe?
Yes. Unless the paying parent’s spouse filed an Injured Spouse Claim Form 8379 with the IRS when filing joint tax returns in which only the paying parents’ payment will be offset for past-due child support.
Note: An Injured Spouse Waiver can be filed with DCSS by the paying parent’s spouse when joint tax returns have been offset, in order to waive the 180-day timeframe. The Injured Spouse Waiver does not prevent the paying parents spouse offset to be applied for past-due child support.
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Pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other nondiscrimination laws and authorities, ADES does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. Persons that require a reasonable modification based on language or disability should submit a request as early as possible to ensure the State has an opportunity to address the modification. The process for requesting a reasonable modification can be found at Equal Opportunity and Reasonable Modification.