Bonus / Lump Sum Payments

Bonus and lump sum payments are considered employee income and can be garnished to collect child support.  Lump sum payments include (but are not limited to):

• Severance
• Leave payouts
• Insurance settlements
• Retirement incentives
• Commissions 
• Stock options
• Lottery winnings 
• Awards
• Payments resulting from verdicts 

Report these types of payments directly to the agency that issued the child support order to your company. See the All State Bonus/Lump Sum Contact Matrix tab below for more information on out of state orders.

The Montana CSED may take up to 50% of the bonus or lump sum payment depending on the amount of arrears the employee has. Other states may request a larger percentage of the payment.

You may report in one of three ways:

• Federal Office of Child Support Employer Services Portal
  • the most convenient, cost-effective way for employers to report
• Electronic Income Withholding (e-IWO)
  • must be using e-IWO for income withholding in order to report bonus/lump sum payments through this service
• Report Directly to the Montana CSED
  • if the child support order is from Montana CSED, you may report directly to the agency