Domestic Violence & Safe Payment Arrangements

When there's abuse, how support moves matters as much as how much. The goal is money that flows without contact or exposure.

Never pay hand-to-hand

Route all support through the State Disbursement Unit (SDU) so the abuser can't access personal financial details or an address. Automatic wage withholding removes any chance to manipulate or condition payment; for a self-employed obligor, ask for court-ordered fixed ACH with enforcement penalties.

Privacy and no-contact

Request an address confidentiality program and redacted public records, and ask the court for remote appearances to avoid contact. A protective order should prohibit direct and third-party contact while carving out portal access for support communications only — and harassment through the portal should trigger messaging restrictions.

Safe exchanges and records

Submit reimbursement requests through the portal with redacted documents on a 30-day timeline, use police stations or supervised centers for parenting exchanges, and keep exchanges entirely separate from payment. Maintain organized records — orders, payment logs, and screenshots of abusive messages — to show the pattern.

Talk to a San Antonio child support attorney at Sinkin Law Firm — we collect and enforce child support across Texas.