Updated for 2026 guidelines
Ohio Child Support Arrears Calculator 2026
Unpaid support in Ohio does not grow interest on its own. A court has to find the default willful before any rate attaches, and the rate itself changes every January. This page computes what can be verified and refuses to guess the rest.
Reviewed by SupportDecode Editorial Team Page content reviewed Sources Methodology Update log
Check an Ohio arrears balance
Estimated arrears with interest: $5,000.00
Interest of $0.00 under Ohio Rev. Code 3123.17(A); 1343.03.
| Line item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Arrears principalORC 3123.17 (arrears interest on willful default; rate per ORC 1343.03) (Ohio Legislature) | $5,000.00 |
| Interest not computed: no verified numeric rate (Ohio Rev. Code 3123.17(A); 1343.03)Interest may be assessed only when the court finds the default was willful, at the ORC 1343.03 judgment rate (federal short-term rate plus 3%, certified annually by the Tax Commissioner under ORC 5703.47; changes each January 1). The 2026 rate is reported as 7% by secondary sources but is official-confirmation-required: confirm at tax.ohio.gov before display.ORC 3123.17 (arrears interest on willful default; rate per ORC 1343.03) (Ohio Legislature) | $0.00 |
| Arrears principal plus interestORC 3123.17 (arrears interest on willful default; rate per ORC 1343.03) (Ohio Legislature) | $5,000.00 |
Assumptions
- Accrual period expressed as 12 month(s); partial months prorate.
- No verified numeric interest rate for this state; interest shown as 0 and the result is an estimate of principal only.
Estimate only. The court or state agency calculation controls.
Ohio arrears interest under Ohio Rev. Code 3123.17(A); 1343.03; rules last reviewed 2026-08-06.
How arrears work in Ohio
Arrears are support payments that came due and were not paid. In Ohio the county child support enforcement agency, working under the state Office of Child Support, keeps the ledger, and each missed payment becomes part of a fixed balance.
Interest is not automatic. Under ORC 3123.17(A), when a court issues or modifies an order and finds arrears, it MAY assess interest from the default date, and only if it determines the default was willful. A parent who fell behind through job loss and a parent who simply refused to pay sit in very different places under that word.
When a court does assess interest, the rate comes from ORC 1343.03: the statutory judgment rate, which is the federal short-term rate plus 3 percent, certified by the Ohio Tax Commissioner each year and effective every January 1. The interest is simple, not compounded, and gets folded into the new payment plan on the order.
That yearly recertification is why this tool shows no 2026 interest figure. Secondary sources report the 2026 rate as 7 percent, but we have not confirmed it against the Tax Commissioner certification itself. A calculator that quietly picks a number it cannot verify is the kind of calculator this site was built to replace, so the tool reports the principal and explains the rate machinery instead.
- Automatic interest
- None. A court must find the default willful before assessing any (ORC 3123.17(A))source
- Rate when assessed
- ORC 1343.03 judgment rate: federal short-term rate plus 3 percentsource
- Rate cycle
- Certified by the Tax Commissioner annually; changes each January 1source
- 2026 rate
- Reported as 7 percent by secondary sources; not officially confirmed, so not computed heresource
How to use this estimate
Enter the arrears principal and the period. Because no verified 2026 rate exists in our data, the tool reports the principal back with a zero-interest line and the reason. The balance itself is real and enforceable; only the interest math is on hold.
If a court order in your case already assessed interest under ORC 3123.17, that order names its own rate and start date. Read the order rather than assuming the current judgment rate applies; the rate in effect when the judgment was rendered is the one that sticks.
The county child support enforcement agency ledger is the balance that counts. Withholding, tax offsets, and direct payments all move it in ways a one-number estimate cannot follow.
What this estimate includes
- The arrears principal you enter, unchanged
- A zero-interest line explaining that the 2026 judgment rate is unconfirmed
- The willful-default rule and the rate statute, cited so you can check them
What it leaves out
- Any interest computed from an unverified rate; we would rather show zero than guess
- Interest a court has actually assessed in your case under its own order
- Partial payments, offsets, and the running agency ledger
- New support accruing under the current order while arrears sit
Ohio arrears FAQs
Do Ohio child support arrears earn interest automatically?
No. ORC 3123.17(A) makes interest a court decision, available only when the court finds the default was willful, and even then the statute says may, not shall. Plenty of Ohio arrears balances carry no interest at all. This is different from states that run a statutory rate on every unpaid dollar.
What rate applies when an Ohio court does assess interest?
The judgment interest rate in ORC 1343.03: the federal short-term rate plus 3 percent, certified by the Ohio Tax Commissioner under ORC 5703.47 and taking effect each January 1. The interest runs simple, from the default date the court sets, and becomes part of the repayment terms on the modified order.
Why does this calculator show zero interest for 2026?
Because the 2026 certification has not been confirmed against an official source from this project. Secondary reports say 7 percent, and they may well be right, but our rule is that an unverified number does not get computed. When the certification is confirmed, the data pack gains the rate and this page gains the math, with a dated changelog entry.
What does willful default mean?
The statute does not define it, which is part of why interest is discretionary. In practice courts look at whether the parent had the ability to pay and chose not to, as opposed to falling behind through unemployment, illness, or incarceration. The finding gets made case by case when the order is issued or modified.
Can Ohio arrears be reduced or waived?
The balance owed to the state can be addressed through state debt-reduction processes, and a person owed arrears can agree to compromise them, but a court cannot erase support that lawfully came due. Modification works forward from a filed request, not backward over the existing balance.
Where do I find my real Ohio arrears balance?
Through the county child support enforcement agency handling the case or the Ohio child support customer portal. That ledger reflects every charge, payment, offset, and adjustment, and it is the figure enforcement runs on.
Official sources
Official sources last verified: .
- ORC 3123.17 (arrears interest on willful default; rate per ORC 1343.03)
Ohio Legislature Last checked
- ORC 1343.03 (interest rate on judgments; rate per ORC 5703.47 certification in effect at rendition)
Ohio Legislature Last checked
Reviewed by SupportDecode Editorial Team Page content reviewed Sources Methodology Update log
Changelog: page first published with the willful-default rule and the unconfirmed 2026 judgment rate stated plainly. Material changes are dated in the update log.