How is child support paid?
There are three options for payment of child support: direct pay (one parent is ordered to pay the child support directly to the other parent), state disbursement unit (one parent is ordered to send payments to the state disbursement unit who then sends the payment to the other parent), and Income Deduction Order (this is an Order entered by the Court that is sent to the employer of the parent ordered to pay with an amount that must be deducted from the parent’s paycheck and sent to the state disbursement unit – the state disbursement unit then sends the payment to the other parent). Florida law requires that all child support payments must be paid through the state disbursement unit unless both parties agree to have it paid directly. Self-represented litigants whose pleadings include issues of child support should consider which option would work best for their situation – this information should be explained to the judge or magistrate during the hearing so that the best solution can
