How to modify child support or alimony in Arkansas

Sources last checked: 8 November 2026. Information only, not legal advice. The Cusp is not a law firm.

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The short version

Read this page with one limit in mind: we could not read the Arkansas Code from an official source. We read two sections, 9-12-312 and 9-14-107, on FindLaw, a free mirror that labels its text “Current as of March 28, 2024” and says to verify with the legislature. We also read the Arkansas Judiciary’s Domestic Relations Benchbook (updated 2022), which says it does “not carry any legal authority”, and two pages of the state’s Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE). Check anything you plan to rely on against the current Code.

On the statute text as FindLaw shows it: for child support, a change in either parent’s gross income “equal to or more than twenty percent (20%)” counts as a material change of circumstances. For alimony, either person may ask for a review “at any time based upon a significant and material change of circumstances”.

On those sources: OCSE says “all changes to child support orders must be signed by a judge”. For child support, OCSE gives a right to a review when it has been “more than three years since the last child support order was entered” or sooner for an income change of “equal to or more than 20% per month”. For alimony, the benchbook reprints a provision letting the paying spouse ask for a change “based upon a significant and material change of circumstances”.

What the statute text says (FindLaw copy)

  • Income change: section 9-14-107 says a change in the gross income of either parent “equal to or more than twenty percent (20%)” “shall constitute a material change of circumstances” sufficient to petition for modification.
  • Health insurance: a change in a parent’s ability to provide it “may constitute a material change of circumstances”.
  • A gap from the chart: “An inconsistency between the existing child support award” and the amount from the family support chart can also count, with exceptions the section lists (a gap that does not meet the state’s quantitative standard, a deviation that has not changed, and a gap caused only by a revised chart).
  • When a change starts: any modification is “effective as of the date of service on the other party” of the motion, unless the court orders otherwise.
  • Proof of income: a parent may request the other parent’s income proof in writing “not more than one (1) time a year”, and the parent asked must respond “by certified mail within fifteen (15) days”.
  • The state’s own review: the child support office reviews certain cases “at least one (1) time every three (3) years”.
  • The chart and jail: section 9-12-312 tells the court to refer to “most recent revision of the family support chart” when setting or reviewing child support, and says incarceration “shall not be treated as voluntary unemployment”.
  • Alimony review: section 9-12-312(a)(7) says “Both a person paying alimony and a person receiving alimony” may petition for review or modification “at any time based upon a significant and material change of circumstances”. Subsection (b)(4) says the same for the paying person.
  • Alimony that ends on its own: the same section says alimony “shall automatically cease upon the earlier of” several events, including remarriage, “The living full time with another person in an intimate, cohabitating relationship”, and death, unless the court or the parties provide otherwise.

Child support: when a change is possible

  • OCSE review rights: OCSE says you have a right to a review if it has been “more than three years since the last child support order was entered” by the court or reviewed by OCSE. A review can come sooner if there has been a significant change in income “equal to or more than 20% per month”. OCSE’s FAQ says reviews can happen “once every 36 months at the request of either parent”, and that for a court petition there must be a change in “the noncustodial parent’s gross income” of at least that size.
  • What the benchbook says Administrative Order 10 requires: it says the order treats a gap between the existing award and the amount from the Family Support Chart as something that “shall be a material change of circumstances sufficient to petition the Court”, with three exceptions: a gap that does not meet the “quantitative standard (20%)”, a “Justified deviation that has not changed”, and a gap “due solely to promulgation of revised Family Support Chart”. The benchbook adds that Administrative Order 10 “was revised in 2020”.
  • Not a ground on its own: the benchbook says a later child support obligation “shall not constitute the sole basis for a material change of circumstances”.
  • Health insurance: it says a change in a parent’s “ability to provide health insurance may be a material change of circumstances”. OCSE says medical insurance for the children is addressed every time an order is changed.
  • Jail or prison: the benchbook says “The incarceration of a parent shall not be treated as voluntary unemployment”. OCSE says “Being incarcerated does not automatically change a court-ordered child support obligation”, and that a parent who will be “incarcerated for more than six months” and has no other income or property may be eligible for a lower payment.
  • Losing a job: OCSE says “Your support obligation does not change or stop when you lose your job”. It suggests asking for a review or petitioning the court.
  • A child turning 18: OCSE’s FAQ says “Arkansas law provides for an automatic adjustment to the support amount” for the remaining children, and suggests asking for a review. A different OCSE page says that when the last or only child emancipates, the obligation “automatically ends”, though past-due support is still owed. We did not reconcile these.
  • The result: OCSE says “the amount of current support may go up, go down, or stay the same”.
  • Orders from another state: OCSE says “the laws of that state will determine when an order can be changed”.

Alimony: what the benchbook reprints

  • The right to ask: in its discussion of alimony, the benchbook reproduces Ark. Code Ann. section 9-12-312(b) as saying a person paying alimony is “entitled to petition the court for a review, modification, or both” of the alimony order “based upon a significant and material change of circumstances”. The benchbook sets this out after its rehabilitative-alimony text, and we could not tell from it whether it is limited to that kind of alimony.
  • The court’s general power: the benchbook quotes Ark. Code Ann. section 9-12-314 as saying the court, “upon application of either party, may make such alterations from time to time”, in the allowance of alimony. This one is not limited to the paying spouse.
  • What the benchbook says about the test: a change “must be based on a change in the circumstances of the parties”, the burden “is always upon the party seeking the change in the amount of alimony”, and the main factors are the “need of one spouse and the ability of the other spouse to pay”. These are the benchbook’s own statements and rest on court decisions we did not read.
  • Alimony that ends without a petition: the benchbook reprints section 9-12-312 as saying that “Unless otherwise ordered by the court or agreed to by the parties”, alimony “shall automatically cease upon the earlier of” several events. They include remarriage, “The living full time with another person in an intimate, cohabitating relationship”, death of either party, and “Any other contingencies as set forth in the order awarding alimony”. It also lists two situations involving a child and a support order that it says are treated as the equivalent of remarriage.
  • Alimony set by contract: the benchbook says that where alimony rests on an independent contract that the court approved, it “is not subject to modification except upon consent of the parties”. Whether your agreement is such a contract is something to ask a lawyer.

How to ask, and when it counts

  • Through OCSE: OCSE says “You must have an open enforcement case with us” to get its help, otherwise you may use a private attorney. It does a review before beginning the legal process. OCSE’s lawyer does not represent either parent. OCSE adds “We do not have the authority to address visitation or custody issues”. If you have an OCSE case, its FAQ says to ask in writing at the office you normally contact.
  • Through the court: every change needs a judge’s signature. We could not read an Arkansas court page naming the form or the court for a modification, so this page does not name one. The Judiciary does publish the child support forms required as of July 1, 2020, including the worksheet and family support chart, on its guidelines page.
  • Timing: the benchbook reprints section 9-14-234 as making an unpaid installment a final judgment “that has accrued until the time either party moves through proper motion”. That suggests filing promptly, but we found no Arkansas source stating how far back a change can reach, so we do not say.

Before you file

What we could not confirm

  • The official text of the statutes. We read only parts of sections 9-12-312 and 9-14-107, on a FindLaw copy that it labels “Current as of March 28, 2024”. We did not read sections 9-12-314, 9-14-106 or 9-14-234 beyond what the 2022 benchbook reprints. The General Assembly’s site sends visitors to the Arkansas Code through a notice that says “You are leaving our site”. We did not check the 2023 or 2025 legislative sessions for changes, so the Code may have changed since the FindLaw date.
  • The adopted text of Administrative Order 10. The Judiciary’s Order 10 page links to a rules site that loads text by script, and when we asked its server for one document it returned a robot-check page, which we did not try to get past. The 2019 and 2022 versions on arcourts.gov are labeled as published for comment, so we did not use them. The 20% figure here comes from OCSE and the benchbook, not from the order’s own wording.
  • What “20% per month” means. OCSE uses that phrase and we do not know how the change is measured.
  • Court forms, which court, and filing fees. We found no readable official page on these.
  • How far back a change can reach, for either child support or alimony.
  • How courts apply these tests. The benchbook cites court decisions; we read none and cite none.

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Sources