State child support agencies and the IRS work together to redirect income tax refunds to pay back child support. This system is one benefit custodial parents get when they sign up with the Virginia Division of Child Support Enforcement (DCSE). If the parent required to pay child support has an arrearage, the IRS will not send the refund to the parent who overpaid their taxes. It will send it instead to DCSE to be applied toward the child support arrearage. Although it is relatively easy to avoid this happening by adjusting the withholding so that there is no overpayment that needs to be refunded, few people actually do that. So, even in the case of extremely delinquent people, there can be a once a year payment courtesy of DCSE and the IRS.
This is only one of several benefits that come with opening a case with DCSE. Here is a link to their site: https://www.dss.virginia.gov/family/dcse/
Just set your expectations on low. DCSE is a big, government bureaucracy and can be frustrating for both the custodial parent and the parent who has been ordered do pay support. But it is a free service and far more economical than hiring a lawyer to deal with child support issues.
