Dallas, TX asked in Family Law, Child Custody and Child Support for Texas

Q: Hello me and my ex have a son and we are co parenting but live sperated. Ive been paying her about $400 a month thro-

Through my bank for the past year to support my son. We are on great terms and communicate everything very well. I am concerned that the Texas laws won't allow me to do this over time and I wanna be sure I'm doing the right thing. She is in a serious relationship who is paying most of the bills and also caring for my son.

1 Lawyer Answer
Rafee'a S. Majeed
Rafee'a S. Majeed
Answered
  • Dallas, TX
  • Licensed in Texas

A: If you don't currently have a Texas court order regarding child support, you can continue to do what you are doing (i.e. paying through your bank account) for however long you guys want to do it. The State of Texas doesn't have any say in the matter.

However, if there is a Texas court order, most of the orders require that all child support payments made through the Texas State Disbursement Unit in San Antonio, Texas. This helps track the payments made in accordance with the court order. Most Texas court orders also state that you will not receive child support credit for "informal payments". Informal payments are any payments that are NOT made through the Texas State Disbursement Unit (i.e. payments made directly to the other parent, gifts for the child, etc.). In that case, the payments that you are making through your bank account to the other parent can be considered informal payments.

I hope this information helps. Good luck to you.

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