Employer FAQ

Payments must be received at the CSSD within seven (7) business days from the date the employee is paid.

Child support payments are to be deducted from the employee’s income after taxes and mandatory deductions and prior to any assignments of income, voluntary deductions, and other court-ordered garnishments. MCA §40-5-310

Exceptions: If a federal levy was in place prior to child support order being established the federal levy has priority. Bankruptcy and some orders for restitution have priority of child support withholding.  Please contact the caseworker or the Employer Liaison if you have any questions. 

No. You may submit one payment for your employee.

No. In order to offer employers the option of electronic income withholding orders (e-IWO) our processes have changed. You will now receive one order per case/custodial parent. If you have an employee with multiple cases you will receive multiple orders.

Check to see if the other case participants are different on each order. If they are the same on each order, contact the caseworker that sent you the order. The caseworker contact information can be found on the order.

No. In order to offer employers the option of electronic income withholding orders (e-IWO) our processes have changed. You will now receive one order per case/custodial parent. If you have an employee with multiple cases you will receive multiple orders.

Check to see if the other case participants are different on each order. If they are the same on each order, contact the caseworker that sent you the order. The caseworker contact information can be found on the order.

The employee's name, case number or participant id, and date the employee was paid must be included with each payment.

Contact the child support agency right away to get the payment stopped or corrected. Employer Liaison (406) 444-6893 or by email at srafferty2@mt.gov.

 

No.Child support orders are valid until a termination order is received from the issuing agency. Continue to withhold and have your employee contact his/her caseworker if they feel the withholding is in error.
Contact the agency that sent you the income withholding order right away. See Reporting Bonus/Lump Sum Payments & Terminations for reporting options.
Yes. Child support withholding orders are valid until you receive a termination order from the issuing agency. If an employee later returns to work for you, the child support withholding order is still valid unless terminated.
New Hire Reporting was created to help locate parents, establish and enforce child support orders. The information submitted may also be used to prevent unemployment and welfare fraud. To find out more about New Hire Reporting, please visit our New Hire Reporting page.
Employers may be held liable for child support payments not withheld or sent to the CSSD.  Employers could be subject to a fine of $500.00 per each finding of contempt. See the Income Withholding Orders (IWO) page.
No. Employers SHALL NOT use a child support obligation as grounds for refusing to hire a person or for taking a disciplinary or termination action against a current employee. MCA§40-5-422
Employer may withhold a $5.00 fee per month per withholding order from the employee to help offset the cost of withholding. This fee would be deducted from the employee's disposable income, not the child support payment.
Yes. It is CSSD policy to only take up to 50% of disposable income after taxes and mandatory deductions. Child support withholding orders from other agencies may take up to 65%.

Child support garnishments take priority over all other wage garnishments with few exceptions.

If a federal levy was in place prior to child support being established the federal levy has priority. To find out when the child support order was established, please contact the employees’ caseworker.  

Bankruptcy takes priority over child support garnishments. If a bankruptcy order is received, please contact the employees’ caseworker.

In some special circumstances, restitution for victims of crime take priority over child support garnishments. Please contact the employees caseworker if you receive such an order.

Yes. Employers may receive a withholding order through an attorney, clerk of court, another state or a Tribal agency.

Payments are to be prorated between child support withholding orders with current amounts being paid first, arrears second.

If you have questions, please contact the Employer Liaison at (406) 444-6893.

Please send payments to the agency that issued the child support order. The specific address to send payments to is located on the order.
The NMSN or Order to Enroll (OTE) in Health Coverage is a medical child support order. The NMSN can be issued for either parent. It requires employers to enroll the child(ren) under the employee’s insurance plan. If health coverage is not offered, return the form to the issuing agency stating your company does not offer insurance. If you have any questions, please contact the caseworker contact indicated on the form.