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How to Modify Child Support in Arkansas

September 21, 2026 · LawDiver Research Team

If you only remember one point about modifying child support in Arkansas, remember this: A material change of circumstances; a change in the payor’s or payee’s gross income of 20% or more is statutorily a material change. A change in health-insurance availability can also qualify, and IV-D cases may be reviewed every three years without any showing. Procedure, examples, and the opinions below hang off Ark. Code § 9-14-107. File a motion for increase or decrease filed in circuit court, or a review request through OCSE. Any modification is effective as of the date of service of the file-marked notice of the motion, unless the court orders otherwise. OCSE reviews its IV-D caseload every three years without regard to changed circumstances.

Step-by-step: how to file

A motion for increase or decrease filed in circuit court, or a review request through OCSE. The typical sequence:

Confirm jurisdiction. Arkansas courts modify their own orders; if the child and parties have moved, the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA) determines which state may act. Generally the issuing state keeps exclusive continuing jurisdiction until all parties and the child have left, or the parties agree in writing to transfer.
Gather financial proof. Two to three years of tax returns, recent pay stubs, proof of benefits or disability, health-insurance costs, and child-care invoices. Expect a financial affidavit or worksheet under Ark. Code § 9-14-107.
File the modification request. A motion for increase or decrease filed in circuit court, or a review request through OCSE.
Serve the other parent. Service starts the retroactivity clock in most states — delays cost you.
Exchange discovery. Interrogatories, document requests, and sometimes a vocational evaluation if underemployment is disputed.
Negotiate or litigate. Many modification cases settle at mediation or a case-management conference; a stipulated modification must still be approved and entered by the court.
Get the new order entered. Support does not change until a judge signs — keep paying the existing order until then.

Walking through Arkansas facts

Use this walkthrough to see which Arkansas authority does the work at each step.

A parent in Arkansas lost income after the last child-support order and wants the number changed.

File in the circuit court (domestic relations division) or the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) using a motion for increase or decrease filed in circuit court, or a review request through OCSE.
Prove the Arkansas standard: A material change of circumstances; a change in the payor’s or payee’s gross income of 20% or more is statutorily a material change. A change in health-insurance availability can also qualify, and IV-D cases may be reviewed every three years without any showing.
Expect the effective date to follow this rule: Any modification is effective as of the date of service of the file-marked notice of the motion, unless the court orders otherwise.
If the case is IV-D, also consider administrative review: OCSE reviews its IV-D caseload every three years without regard to changed circumstances.

A Arkansas modification is a new order under Ark. Code § 9-14-107. It is not automatic, and arrears already due generally stay due.

When the change takes effect (retroactivity)

Any modification is effective as of the date of service of the file-marked notice of the motion, unless the court orders otherwise.

This is the single most expensive mistake in modification practice. If circumstances changed in January but the motion is filed in June, the months in between are almost always governed by the old order. Filing promptly — even before you have perfect evidence — protects the effective date.

Periodic reviews and administrative modification

OCSE reviews its IV-D caseload every three years without regard to changed circumstances.

Administrative review is often faster and cheaper than litigation, but its scope is narrower: agencies adjust amounts under the guidelines, while only the circuit court (domestic relations division) or the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) can resolve disputed facts about custody, income imputation, or deviations.

Interstate cases (UIFSA)

When parents live in different states, a Arkansas order can usually be registered and enforced anywhere, but modification follows UIFSA's jurisdictional rules. Register the order in the responding state, then seek modification where the law permits it. Do not simply stop paying while a jurisdictional fight is pending — arrears keep accruing under the existing order.

Case law: how Arkansas courts decide modification motions

The opinions below are in the LawDiver corpus, with block quotes pulled from the opinion text so you can jump straight into the full decisions.

In Re Guidelines for Child Support Enf.

In Re Guidelines for Child Support Enf., 301 Ark. 627 (1990)

…ognizes that the trial court has continuing jurisdiction to modify child support orders to advance the welfare of the child when there is a material change in circumstances. See Hitt v. Maynard, 265 Ark. 31, 576 S.W.2d 211 (1979); Lively v. Lively, 222 Ark. 501, 261 S.W.2d 409 (1953). Approval of the Family Support Chart by this Court does not per se create a material change in…

In Re Guidelines for Child Support Enf. is worth reading on Arkansas child support modification because the court put the point in its own words: "See Hitt v. Maynard, 265 Ark. 31, 576 S.W.2d 211 (1979); Lively v. Lively, 222 Ark. 501, 261 S.W.2d 409 (1953)." Use that passage as the starting point, then read the facts that precede it.

OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Clarence L. WOOD, Jr.

OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Clarence L. WOOD, Jr., 373 Ark. 595 (2008)

…County Circuit Court declining to exercise jurisdiction to modify an order of child support. On appeal, OCSE argues that in declining to exercise its jurisdiction, the trial court erroneously considered collateral issues outside the scope of the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA), codified at Ark. Code Ann. §§ 9-17-101 to -905 (Repl. 2002). As the present appeal is…

On child support modification, OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Clarence L. WOOD, Jr. speaks to the Arkansas dispute in this passage: "County Circuit Court declining to exercise jurisdiction to modify an order of child support." The surrounding opinion shows how the court applied that language to the record.

OFFICE OF CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Shaun PITTMAN

OFFICE OF CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Shaun PITTMAN, 70 Ark. App. 487 (2000)

…has appealed from an order of the Lee County Chancery Court modifying appellee Shaun Pittman’s child-support obligation for Shamara Pittman, who was born out of wedlock to Sonya Pointer and appellee on July 30, 1996. We agree with appellant that the chancellor erred in determining appellee’s net income and the amount of child support required by the family-support chart in refe…

Practitioners open OFFICE OF CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Shaun PITTMAN when Arkansas child support modification turns on the distinction in this sentence: "Lee County Chancery Court modifying appellee Shaun Pittman’s child-support obligation for Shamara Pittman, who was born out of wedlock to Sonya Pointer and appellee on July 30, 1996." Do not lift it out of the facts the court was deciding.

OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Amanda BURROUGHS

OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Amanda BURROUGHS, 100 Ark. App. 128 (2007)

…ed to show a material change of circumstances sufficient to modify the prior agreed order that provided no child support. OCSE now appeals from that order, arguing that the trial court clearly erred in failing to find a material change in circumstances. We agree, and we reverse and remand. The only witness to testify at the hearing was Mr. Kendall. There was also some discussio…

OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Amanda BURROUGHS is worth reading on Arkansas child support modification because the court put the point in its own words: "OCSE now appeals from that order, arguing that the trial court clearly erred in failing to find a material change in circumstances. We agree, and we reverse and remand. The only witness to testify at the hearing was Mr. Kendall." Use that passage as the starting point, then read the facts that precede it.

OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Grant E. GOFF

OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Grant E. GOFF, 96 Ark. App. 238 (2006)

…the noncustodial parent had physical custody. We affirm as modified. The trial court in this case refused to find appellee in contempt for failure to pay child support and found that appellee was entitled to a credit of child support from June 24, 1999, through August 1, 2002. The divorce decree between appellee, the payor father in this case, and the mother was filed on June…

Arkansas opinions such as OFFICE of CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Grant E. GOFF are cited where child support modification is disputed. The court stated: "We affirm as modified. The trial court in this case refused to find appellee in contempt for failure to pay child support and found that appellee was entitled to a credit of child support from June 24, 1999, through August 1, 2002." That is the language to brief; the rest of the decision supplies the procedural posture.

STATE, CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Burger

STATE, CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Burger, 92 S.W.3d 64 (2002)

…accrued. Furthermore the court may not set aside, alter, or modify any decree, judgment or order which has accrued unpaid support prior to the filing of the motion. While it appears that there is no exception to the prohibition against the remittance of unpaid child support, the commentary to the federal regulations which mandated our resulting State statutes, makes it clear th…

Practitioners open STATE, CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT v. Burger when Arkansas child support modification turns on the distinction in this sentence: "Furthermore the court may not set aside, alter, or modify any decree, judgment or order which has accrued unpaid support prior to the filing of the motion." Do not lift it out of the facts the court was deciding.

State of Arkansas Office of Child Support Enforcement v. Timothy R. Wells

State of Arkansas Office of Child Support Enforcement v. Timothy R. Wells, 612 S.W.3d 761 (2020)

…cement (OCSE) appeals from an order denying its’s motion to modify appellee Timothy Wells’s child-support obligation and a subsequent order denying its motion for new a trial. OCSE contends the trial court erred (1) as a matter of law in denying OCSE’s motion to set child support based on the noncustodial parent’s Veteran’s Administration disability benefits; (2) in finding the…

Arkansas opinions such as State of Arkansas Office of Child Support Enforcement v. Timothy R. Wells are cited where child support modification is disputed. The court stated: "OCSE) appeals from an order denying its’s motion to modify appellee Timothy Wells’s child-support obligation and a subsequent order denying its motion for new a trial." That is the language to brief; the rest of the decision supplies the procedural posture.

Practical checklist before you file

Re-read the existing order: does it recite a modification standard, a reservation of jurisdiction, or agreed deviation findings? Those terms shape your burden.
Run the current Arkansas guideline calculation on today's incomes before filing; know the percentage gap.
Assemble documents that date the change (termination letter, disability award, new lease, custody order).
Calendar the three-year review cycle if Arkansas offers one for your case type.
Keep paying the current order until a new one is entered — arrears are nearly impossible to erase later.
Search LawDiver for recent Arkansas modification decisions before briefing or mediating.

Key takeaways

Arkansas modification actions are filed in the circuit court (domestic relations division) or the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE).
The legal standard: A material change of circumstances; a change in the payor’s or payee’s gross income of 20% or more is statutorily a material change.
Any modification is effective as of the date of service of the file-marked notice of the motion, unless the court orders otherwise.
OCSE reviews its IV-D caseload every three years without regard to changed circumstances.
A modification is never automatic — even when a percentage threshold is met, the court must enter a new order.
Companion reading: Arkansas child support guidelines and how to modify alimony in Arkansas.

The legal standard in Arkansas

In practice, the moving parent carries the burden. The court compares the facts as they stood when the last order was entered against the facts today, and asks whether the difference is significant enough — and durable enough — to justify a new order. Judges distinguish between temporary setbacks (a few weeks of reduced hours) and genuine, continuing changes (a layoff, a new custody schedule, a child's changed medical needs).

What counts as a change in Arkansas

Facts that most often support modification:

Income changes. Job loss, demotion, retirement, disability, or a significant raise on either side. Voluntary quits and deliberate underemployment usually backfire — courts may impute income.
Parenting-time shifts. A new custody order, a child moving households, or substantial unexercised visitation.
The child's needs. New medical or educational expenses, health-insurance changes, or a child reaching an age that changes the guideline bracket.
Guideline updates. In many states, a recalculated guideline amount that differs from the current order by the statutory margin is itself the change — Ark. Code § 9-14-107 controls how that math works here.
Incarceration, military deployment, or other statutory events that Arkansas treats as qualifying changes.

Facts that rarely work: a short gap between jobs, a new partner's income (usually not imputed to a parent), lifestyle choices, or the passage of time alone where Arkansas still requires a showing.

Frequently asked questions

Can child support be modified in Arkansas?

Yes. A material change of circumstances; a change in the payor’s or payee’s gross income of 20% or more is statutorily a material change. A change in health-insurance availability can also qualify, and IV-D cases may be reviewed every three years without any showing. Modifications are handled through a motion for increase or decrease filed in circuit court, or a review request through OCSE.

How much does income have to change to modify child support in Arkansas?

A material change of circumstances; a change in the payor’s or payee’s gross income of 20% or more is statutorily a material change. A change in health-insurance availability can also qualify, and IV-D cases may be reviewed every three years without any showing. Some changes — custody shifts, medical needs, or statutory events — qualify even without hitting a numeric threshold.

Can Arkansas child support be modified retroactively?

Any modification is effective as of the date of service of the file-marked notice of the motion, unless the court orders otherwise. Plan on the current order controlling until a new one is entered.

Who can request a modification?

Either parent, and in IV-D cases the state child support agency on a parent's behalf. OCSE reviews its IV-D caseload every three years without regard to changed circumstances.

Do I need a lawyer to modify child support in Arkansas?

Not always — the circuit court (domestic relations division) or the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) accepts filings from self-represented parents, and administrative reviews are designed for that. Contested income imputation, self-employment income, or interstate jurisdiction issues are where counsel matters most.

Does the other parent's refusal to follow the visitation order change support?

Not automatically. Custody interference and support are legally distinct issues in Arkansas; withholding support in response to withheld visitation typically creates arrears and contempt exposure. Seek modification or enforcement of the parenting order through the court instead.

Disclaimer

This guide is general legal information about modifying child support in Arkansas, not legal advice. Statutes, guidelines, and case law change. Confirm the current text of Ark. Code § 9-14-107 and consult a licensed Arkansas family-law attorney about your specific order.