Notice of Offset

• Under the Internal Revenue Code, the Department of Treasury may legally disclose each taxpayer's refund information to the Office of Child Support Enforcement. The Office of Child Support Enforcement verifies the taxpayer's identity to ensure the taxpayer has no outstanding child support liabilities. If the Department of Treasury obtains information about a taxpayer owing court-ordered child support payments to a state's child support enforcement office, then the IRS provides the taxpayer with a written offset notice specifying the offset amount, the state's support agency that will receive the offset and their rights to contact that state's agency.
  
  

Limits

• The Department of Treasury may offset child support arrears with tax refunds if the obligations exceed $25 and are at least 30 days late. Although the IRS has congressional authority to offset delinquencies that exceed $25, each state can set its own limit providing a higher threshold amount of arrears before the state will provide delinquency information. For instance, states can provide the Department of Treasury child support arrears that exceed $50, instead of the $25 threshold or payments that are 60 days late instead of 30 days.
  
  

Joint Liability Limits

• The Department of Treasury provides taxpayer's spouses tax relief from the federal offset program by using IRS Form 8379. Thus, spouses who file joint returns and are entitled to receive a part of the federal tax refund that is offset can complete the Injured Spouse Allocation Form or Form 8379 and attach it to their tax returns. The IRS determines how to split refunds between the spouse and the other spouse's child support obligations by using their state's marital property division laws.
  
  

Disagreeing with Offset Amount

• Taxpayers who disagree with the Treasury's offset amount can contact their state's child support agency. The state agency or the Department of Health and Human Services that provided the delinquency information to the IRS is responsible for the information it provides. Taxpayers who believe they've already settled their tax support debts or need additional information about their child support liabilities can contact their state's child support enforcement agency or contact the Treasury Offset Program's call center directly.