what is retroactive child support

Retroactive child support refers to the payment of child support for a period before a formal support order is established by a court. In the state of Texas, retroactive child support can be claimed under specific conditions, such as when a parent has not been previously ordered to pay child support for the child and was not a party to a suit in which child support was ordered. This means that if there was no existing court order for child support, a parent may be able to seek retroactive support for the period before the support order was established. Retroactive child support is different from child support arrearage, which is when a parent has failed to pay their court-ordered support obligation for a period of time. Its important to note that there are deadlines for seeking back child support in Texas, and the limits on how much back child support can be recovered may vary depending on whether a child support order was already in place or not.