Can Child Support Be Waived in Texas?

We agreed I wouldn’t pay for now.” For many Texas parents, that sounds settled until they look at the court order. Can Child Support Be Waived in Texas depends on what “waive” means: reducing future payments, stopping current support, forgiving a past-due balance, or ending wage withholding. A private agreement alone does not change an existing order.

Texas Family Code § 154.124 allows parents to propose a different support amount, but a judge must find the agreement is in the child’s best interest before making it an order. Past-due support raises a separate question. Knowing which issue you face can help you avoid an expensive misunderstanding.

At the Houston-based Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC, South Texas College of Law graduate Bryan Joseph Fagan and our family law team believe in educating families and protecting futures. This guide will help you understand what your order requires, what Texas law may allow, and where to start so you can move forward with greater clarity and peace of mind.

Key Takeaways

• A private waiver is not a court order. Support stays in place until the order ends under its own terms or the law, or a court signs a new one.
• Parents can ask for less or no support. Under Section 154.124, the court decides whether the agreement is in the child’s best interest.
• Past-due support is not erased by agreement. A missed payment becomes a judgment, and private forgiveness does not wipe it out.
• Proof of payment is a different question. Evidence of payments actually made can matter when a court confirms what is still owed.
• Withholding and termination follow the court order. Neither one ends because the parents agreed to a waiver.

Can Child Support Be Waived in Texas by Agreement or Court Order?

Can Child Support Be Waived in Texas by agreement? Parents can propose a different amount for future support, but their private agreement does not change an existing order. Under Texas Family Code § 154.124, a judge may make their written agreement an order if it is in the child’s best interest. Past-due payments, wage withholding, and ending support raise separate questions.

The table below helps you identify which question you need answered. Start with the signed support order, then check the payment record and any later court orders. If you signed a waiver of service in a divorce, that document concerns how you received notice of the case; it does not waive child support.

Our Texas family law team helps parents in the Houston area and across Texas review those documents and understand their next steps.

Can Parents Agree to No Current Child Support?

Parents can propose it, but a proposal is not a waiver that takes effect on its own. Under Section 154.124, a written agreement about support can vary from the guidelines, and the court decides whether that agreement is in the child’s best interest before it becomes an order. The details of how agreements work are covered in our agreement guide.

Can a Parent Waive Past-Due Child Support?

Past-due support is not something one parent can simply waive away. Under Section 157.261(a), a payment not made on time becomes a final judgment for the amount owed, and under Section 157.263(b-3) a court confirming arrearages may not reduce or modify them except for the credits, offsets or payment-record corrections the Family Code allows. Our arrears guide covers payment plans and credits.

What If We Agreed—or I Already Paid?

An agreement to stop paying and proof that support was paid are different questions. A private understanding does not end a court-ordered obligation. If you made payments outside the method required by the order, however, those payments may matter when a court determines what remains unpaid.

In Office of the Attorney General of Texas v. Scholer, a father stopped paying after signing an affidavit to relinquish his parental rights. The affidavit was never filed, and his rights were not terminated. The Supreme Court of Texas held that he could not rely on the other parent’s conduct to avoid enforcement of the support order.

The document’s purpose matters. A waiver of service in a Texas divorce concerns how a spouse receives formal notice of the case. It does not, by itself, waive child support or mean the spouse agrees to the support terms. Scholer involved an affidavit concerning parental rights, not a waiver of service.

Ochsner v. Ochsner addressed actual payments. The court allowed consideration of undisputed tuition payments made directly to the child’s schools, although the order specified payment through a registry. Those payments satisfied an expense the receiving parent was obligated to pay. The decision did not give parents a general right to replace ordered support with expenses of their choosing.

Start with the signed order and payment record. If you relied on an agreement, check whether a later court order changed the obligation. If you paid directly, gather receipts showing when, how much, and to whom you paid. Texas Family Code § 157.263 limits a court’s ability to reduce arrears, but determining what remains unpaid requires examining the payment evidence.

When Is Support Ending Different From Waiving Support?

Support can end because the law or the court order provides for it; that is different from one parent agreeing to “waive” payments. Texas Family Code § 154.006 lists events that can terminate a support order, subject to the order’s terms and statutory exceptions. They include the child’s marriage or death. When the issue is whether a child age 18 or older has failed to meet the applicable school enrollment or attendance requirements, the statute calls for a court finding.

Parents may discuss support while working through custody issues in mediation. Our guide to mediation and its impact on a Texas child custody case explains that process, but reaching an understanding during mediation does not itself establish that current support has ended. Read the signed support order, gather proof of the event you believe applies, and check whether earlier payments remain unpaid.

Why Wage Withholding May Continue

Even when current support ends, wage withholding may continue if past-due support and interest remain. Texas Family Code § 157.269 allows the court to enforce a support order, including by adjusting withholding, until the covered obligations are paid. Section 158.004 addresses withholding for arrears when no current support is due.

If deductions are still appearing on a paycheck, compare the support order, withholding order, and payment record before asking an employer to change payroll. The question may be whether current support is still due, whether a balance remains, or whether the employer has received the direction needed to change withholding.

Does Terminating Parental Rights Waive Child Support?

Signing papers to relinquish parental rights does not, by itself, end child support. Termination requires a court order. Under Texas Family Code § 161.206, a termination order generally ends the parent’s future legal rights and duties concerning the child, subject to statutory exceptions. It does not automatically erase support that came due before termination.

Check which document you signed. A divorce waiver of service concerns notice of the divorce case; it is not an order terminating parental rights or child support. If a judge did sign a termination order, review that order alongside the support order and payment record to determine what happened to future payments and whether any past-due balance remains.

Where Each Related Question Belongs

The word “waive” can point to several different problems. Once you know which one you face, you can look for the right answer:

• You want to stop current payments or know when support ends: Read our guide to stopping child support and our guide to the events that end an order.
• Both parents agree to a different amount going forward: Read our guide to child support agreements.
• You dispute a past-due balance or made payments directly: Read our guide to arrears, payment records, and possible credits.
• Payments continued after you believe support ended, or wages are still being withheld: Read our guide to the legal steps for addressing payments and withholding.
• You signed parental-rights paperwork: Read our guide to what a court order terminating parental rights can change, including its effect on support.
• You signed a divorce waiver: First check whether it was a waiver of service. That concerns formal notice of the divorce case; it does not itself waive child support. Our Texas divorce waiver video and guide explains that separate question.

If you are unsure where to start, compare the signed court order with your payment record and the document you believe waived something. Those papers will usually show which question needs attention first.

Legal Resources

Legal research note: This page was checked against the current official text of Texas Family Code Chapter 154, including Sections 154.006, 154.007, 154.012 and 154.124, and Chapter 157, including Sections 157.162, 157.261, 157.263 and 157.269. The Ochsner note was checked against the official court opinion; the Scholer note was checked against the court’s slip opinion as reproduced online, with the official opinions-collection copy reserved for the citation check. The authorities were last checked on October 9, 2026.

• Texas Family Code Chapter 154 — use it for: agreements, when an order ends, the withholding provision and overpayments. Official text.
• Texas Family Code Chapter 157 — use it for: arrears and enforcement. Official text.
• Office of the Attorney General of Texas v. Scholer, 403 S.W.3d 859 (Tex. 2013), No. 11-0796 — use it for: why a private understanding does not end court-ordered support (Supreme Court of Texas). Official opinions collection (FY2013), case 11-0796, p. 980.
• Ochsner v. Ochsner, No. 14-0638 (Tex. June 24, 2016) — use it for: payments actually made versus changing the amount owed (Supreme Court of Texas; confined to its facts). Official court opinion.

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Conclusion:

Can Child Support Be Waived in Texas? The answer starts with what you want to change and what the court has already ordered. In straightforward situations, parents may agree on future support and need help putting that agreement into a court order. Reviewing the order and payment record first can make the next step much clearer.

In more complex cases, past-due support, direct payments, medical support, or wage withholding may raise separate questions. If your case involves any of those issues, bring the order, payment history, and relevant agreements to a consultation. The Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC can help identify the issues, connect you with an attorney suited to your situation, and explain your options so you can make decisions with greater confidence and peace of mind. Call 281-810-9760 or schedule a free consultation.

About the Author

About the Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC

This page provides general information about what waiving child support can mean under Texas law. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. How these rules apply depends on the order’s terms, any agreement, the payment record, the governing statutes and the individual facts.

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