Income withholding is a deduction of a payment for child support from a parent’s income. An order for income withholding can be from a court or administratively ordered by a child support agency—such as the child support division of the state’s Attorney General’s office.
The parent's employer often transmits the money directly to the child support agency.
In California, income withholding for child support is a legal mechanism by which payments for child support are deducted directly from a parent's income. This can be initiated through a court order or administratively by a child support agency, such as the California Department of Child Support Services. Once an income withholding order is in place, the parent's employer is responsible for deducting the specified amount from the parent's wages and transmitting it directly to the state disbursement unit (SDU), which then forwards the funds to the custodial parent. Employers are required to comply with the withholding order and may face penalties for failure to do so. Income withholding is a common method used to ensure that child support payments are made in a timely and consistent manner.