Pennsylvania: modifying child support and alimony

Sources last checked: 3 November 2026. The Cusp is not a law firm. This page is information only, not legal advice.

Pennsylvania divorce kit How child support is calculated Alimony in Pennsylvania Legal aid in Pennsylvania

The short version

In Pennsylvania, child support is usually handled through the county Domestic Relations office. The state courts’ self-help page says you “will need to contact your county domestic relations office” to start a child support claim. We did not find a statewide court form for asking to change a support order, so the petition you use comes from your county. Under Pa.R.C.P. 1910.19, a petition to modify a support order “shall specifically aver the material and substantial change in circumstances” it relies on. Alimony after a divorce is a separate statute, 23 Pa.C.S. 3701, which allows a change on “changed circumstances of either party of a substantial and continuing nature”.

What the petition can ask for

Child or spousal support: Rule 1910.19 covers a petition to modify or terminate an existing support order. It says the court may act “without regard to which party filed the petition for modification”. If the court finds a material and substantial change, the order may be increased or decreased based on the parties’ monthly net incomes under the support guidelines, along with the custodial time the parent has with the child when the petition is heard.
Alimony: section 3701(e) says an alimony order may be “modified, suspended, terminated or reinstituted or a new order made”. Remarriage of the person receiving alimony ends the award.
Alimony set by an agreement: section 3105(c) says that, “In the absence of a specific provision to the contrary appearing in the agreement”, alimony terms are not open to modification by the court. Read your agreement before you plan a petition.

The forms

Support modification petition: no statewide form was found on the state courts’ Forms for the Public page. Ask your county Domestic Relations office which form it uses.
One county example: Philadelphia publishes Petition to Modify (Change) an Existing Support Order (February 2015). Its instructions say to file the original and two copies, with a Domestic Relations Information Sheet, with the Clerk of Family Court. They also say “There is no filing fee for this petition.” That is Philadelphia only. Other counties differ.
Fee waiver: the state courts post an Application to Waive Fees and Costs with supplemental instructions on the same forms page. You take it to the Prothonotary or Office of Judicial Records in your county.
Confidential information: the same page lists a Confidential Information Form and a Confidential Document Form. The self-help page says income and expense statements are confidential documents under the court records policy.

What the statute says

These are plain-language summaries of the text we read on 3 November 2026 on the General Assembly’s own site.

23 Pa.C.S. 4352(a): a petition for modification of a support order “may be filed at any time”, and the statute says it is granted if the requesting party shows a “substantial change in circumstances”.
4352(a.1): on request of either parent, or automatically if there is a Title IV-A assignment, each support order is “reviewed at least once every three years”.
4352(a.2): incarceration, other than for nonpayment of support, is a “material and substantial change in circumstance” that may warrant modification or termination where the obligor lacks verifiable income or assets.
4352(e): a court may not modify support that is already due, except for a period when a petition is pending. Modification may apply to “the period beginning on the date that notice of such petition was given” to the other party. The statute lists narrow exceptions for an earlier period.
3701(e): an alimony change “shall apply only to payments accruing subsequent to the petition”. Filing sooner can matter.
3105(b): a provision in an agreement about child support, visitation or custody “shall be subject to modification by the court upon a showing of changed circumstances”.

Process

Where it goes: Rule 1910.19(b) says procedure on the petition follows Rule 1910.10 and the rules after it. Ask your Domestic Relations office what happens after you file.
Philadelphia example: the court mails a copy of the petition and an order with a date for a support conference.
Withdrawing: once a child support modification petition is filed, it “may not be withdrawn unless both parties consent or with leave of court”. A spousal support or alimony pendente lite petition may be withdrawn without consent.

Before you file

Court staff cannot give legal advice. See legal aid in Pennsylvania for free or low-cost help, or the Pennsylvania divorce kit for the wider process.
This page does not state a statewide filing fee. The state courts say fees “can vary by the type of document and the county” and are available from the Prothonotary or Office of Judicial Records. Ask your county for the current amount.
Support amounts follow the state guidelines. See how child support is calculated in Pennsylvania and alimony in Pennsylvania.
The state courts say to confirm requirements with your local county court administration. Local rules and forms differ.

What we could not confirm

A statewide court form, with a revision date, for a support modification petition. We found none on the state courts’ site.
The form name, revision date, fee and filing steps in any county other than Philadelphia. The Philadelphia form is dated February 2015 on its face.
A filing fee for alimony modification. No official source we read states one.
Section 3107 of Title 23: the General Assembly’s site returned no document at that chapter and section number, so we cite 3701 and 3105 only.
How a Domestic Relations conference, hearing or timeline works in your county.
Rule 1910.19 text beyond subdivisions (a) to (c), and its comments.

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