How Military Child Support Works in Texas

Texas calculates military child support from the service member’s net resources, which can include base pay, BAH, BAS, and special pays. A Texas court order sets the amount, and the Defense Finance and Accounting Service can withhold payments through an income withholding order. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.062; Tex. Fam. Code ch. 158; 42 U.S.C. § 659.

Quick Answer

How Texas Military Child Support Works, in Five Steps

1. 1Build the income proof packet. Pull the complete LES (the last 3 months is ideal), confirm BAH and BAS status, and gather any special or incentive pay, retirement records, and VA disability documentation.
2. 2Calculate net resources. Under Texas Family Code section 154.062, military pay actually being received generally counts toward net resources, including allowances like BAH and BAS.
3. 3Apply the Texas guideline. Guideline support runs by number of children, up to the $11,700 monthly net-resource cap effective September 1, 2025. Low-income obligors and parents with children in another household follow different rules.
4. 4Get a Texas court order. File through your own counsel or open a case with the Texas Attorney General’s Child Support Division. If an order already exists, a modification motion handles material and substantial changes.
5. 5Route withholding to DFAS. An income withholding order under Texas Family Code chapter 158 reaches military pay through federal authority at 42 U.S.C. section 659. SDU records keep payment proof clean.

Warren & Migliaccio, L.L.P. has handled Texas family law since 2006, and we help parents in Richardson and across Dallas, Collin, Denton, and Tarrant counties work through child support when one parent serves in the military. Our firm is Lead Counsel Verified. If you are trying to set up, calculate, or collect support from a military parent, call (888) 584-9614 for a free consultation.

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Key Definitions for Military Child Support in Texas

Texas treats a military parent’s pay like any other parent’s income for child support. The hard part is not the law. It is that the military builds pay differently than a civilian paycheck, so the words on the page take some translation. Here are the terms that come up the most.

Term	What It Means in Texas
Net resources	The income figure Texas courts use to calculate child support. For a military parent, it can pull from several pay categories, not just base pay, because Texas net resources include income actually being received unless excluded. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.062(b)(5).
LES (Leave and Earnings Statement)	The military version of a pay stub. It lists base pay, allowances, and special pays. It is the single most important document in a military child support case.
BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing)	An untaxed allowance that helps cover housing. It does not show up on a W-2, but Texas courts can still count it.
BAS (Basic Allowance for Subsistence)	An untaxed allowance for food. Like BAH, it counts as real income for Texas child support.
DFAS	The Defense Finance and Accounting Service. This is the agency that actually pays service members and can withhold child support from their pay.
Income withholding order	A court order that tells an employer, or DFAS, to take child support directly out of a parent’s pay.
Texas SDU (State Disbursement Unit)	The state office that receives and records many child support payments. Payments should follow the court order, and income-withheld payments generally go through the SDU, but a court may consider proof of direct payments in an enforcement case. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.004(b); Ochsner v. Ochsner, 517 S.W.3d 717, 724–25 (Tex. 2016).

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The Court-Ready Military Support Packet

Military child support in Texas is a proof problem before it is a math problem. The guideline math is straightforward once you know the income. Getting an honest, complete income picture is the part that decides cases. So the strongest move a parent can make is to build one packet before anyone files anything.

Here is what belongs in that packet:

• The complete, current LES. Every page, not a one-page summary and not a screenshot of a single line.
• BAH and BAS status and the current rates, which depend on rank, location, and dependents.
• Any special or incentive pay and bonuses, like flight pay or hazardous duty pay.
• Retirement or VA disability records, if the parent is retired or receiving those benefits.
• The existing Texas child support order, if there is one already.
• The correct enforcement document for the path you actually need.

That last item matters more than people expect. Once you have the income picture, you still have to pick a lane. There is the Texas court route, where a judge sets support and signs an income withholding order that goes to DFAS. There is the Texas Attorney General’s Child Support Division, which can open and pursue a case. And there is a private motion to enforce when an order already exists and a parent is behind. The packet answers “how much,” and the lane answers “how do we actually collect it.” Texas courts build the support number from a parent’s net resources under Texas Family Code section 154.062.¹

If you want a personalized version of this packet for your situation, use the builder below. Five questions, and you walk away with the documents you need to gather, the enforcement lane that fits, and your next three steps.

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Who This Guide Helps vs. Who Needs Something Else

This guide fits a specific situation. Here is who it helps, and who needs a different starting point.

This guide helps you if:

• You are a Texas parent trying to set up, calculate, or collect child support and the other parent is active duty, in the Guard or Reserve, retired military, or receiving military or VA benefits.
• You are a service member who wants to understand what you will owe and how the court builds the number.

You may need something else if:

• Your whole dispute is about custody (conservatorship), possession, or visitation (possession and access). That runs on a separate process, even though it often travels alongside support. Tex. Fam. Code Ch. 153.
• You have an out-of-state order and no clear Texas connection. In that case, the first question is jurisdiction, not calculation.

If you are not sure which bucket you fall into, that is normal, and it is one of the first things we sort out in a consultation.

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How is military child support calculated in Texas?

Texas uses the same guideline framework for military parents that it uses for everyone else. The court starts with the paying parent's net monthly income under Texas Family Code section 154.061,² then applies a flat guideline percentage based on how many children are before the court under section 154.125.³ So the framework is simple. The work is in identifying every piece of income.

Here is what the guideline percentages look like.

Number of Children	Guideline % of Net Resources
1 child	20%
2 children	25%
3 children	30%
4 children	35%
5 children	40%
6 or more children	At least the five-child amount. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.125(b).

Those percentages can scale down if the parent is already supporting children in another household. And there is a ceiling. Effective September 1, 2025, Texas guideline percentages apply to the first $11,700 of an obligor's monthly net resources. Income above that cap can still matter if a child has proven needs beyond the guideline amount, but the cap is the usual starting limit. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.125(a); Tex. Fam. Code § 154.126; Texas Register, Office of the Attorney General, Correction of Error, Aug. 29, 2025. For most military families, the real fight is not the percentage. It is what counts as net resources in the first place.

What military pay counts as income?

Texas can count far more than base pay. Texas Family Code section 154.062 defines net resources, and Texas courts have included military housing and subsistence allowances in that calculation. For service members, the income picture can include base pay, BAH, BAS, and many special or incentive pays. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.062(b)(5); In re K.M.B., 606 S.W.3d 889, 896–97 (Tex. App.—Dallas 2020, no pet.).³ So flight pay, hazardous duty pay, sea pay, and similar add-ons are generally part of the conversation. Bonuses can be too. The point is that a military parent's true earning power spreads across a lot of line items, and Texas courts can look at the whole thing.

How to read a military LES

The LES is the Leave and Earnings Statement, and it is basically a military pay stub with a lot more going on. It breaks pay into entitlements, deductions, and allotments, and it shows base pay separately from BAH and BAS. Here is the part that trips people up. The military prints the LES; nobody volunteers it. A single page, an old copy, or a civilian-style summary almost never tells the full story. What we like to do is work from a complete, current LES, every page, so we build the income figure on real numbers, not a partial snapshot. If you cannot get a clean copy on your own, that is a normal hurdle, and it is something a Texas family lawyer can help pull through the court process.

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Does BAH or BAS count as income for Texas child support?

Yes. Texas courts can treat BAH and BAS as part of a military parent's net resources, even though the IRS does not tax those allowances and they never show up on a W-2. So the fact that the IRS does not tax BAH and BAS does not take them off the table. They are real money the service member receives every month, and Texas law looks at resources, not just taxable wages.

This is where a lot of cases quietly go wrong. The most common mistake we see is a paying parent disclosing an income figure that only reflects taxable wages, which leaves out the basic allowance for housing and the basic allowance for subsistence entirely. For a service member, those untaxed allowances can be a large share of real take-home pay. So a number that looks low at first glance is often just an incomplete number. If BAH and BAS are missing from the income figure, the support number rests on a foundation with holes in it. Texas courts can include these allowances when calculating net resources under current Texas law.

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Can military or VA disability be used for child support in Texas?

It depends on what you mean by "used," and this is the question we see confused more than any other. There are really two separate lanes here, and mixing them up leads people to the wrong conclusion.

Lane one is whether it counts toward the support amount. Texas courts can consider military retired pay when setting the support number. Texas courts can often consider VA disability compensation as a resource too, even when federal law limits garnishment. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.062(b)(5); Rose v. Rose, 481 U.S. 619 (1987). So even disability-related income can play a role in figuring out what support should be.

Lane two is whether the parent can reach it to collect support. This is different. Under the Uniformed Services Former Spouses' Protection Act, 10 U.S.C. § 1408, courts can garnish military retired pay for child support.⁴ 38 U.S.C. § 5301 generally protects VA disability compensation from ordinary garnishment,⁵ but 42 U.S.C. § 659(h)(1)(A)(ii)(V) can allow support garnishment when VA disability is paid in place of waived military retired pay. VA apportionment is a separate process under 38 U.S.C. § 5307 and 38 C.F.R. § 3.450. So the honest answer is this: "counts toward the number" and "can be garnished" are two different questions, and a parent can be right about one and wrong about the other. Sorting out which lane applies to your case is exactly the kind of thing to walk through with a lawyer before you rely on what you read in an online forum.

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How to get child support from a military parent

You get child support from a military parent the same way you would from any parent in Texas: with a valid Texas order and the right collection tool behind it. The difference is that the military pay system gives you a clean, reliable way to withhold support directly. There are three main lanes.

1. A Texas income withholding order routed to DFAS. Once a Texas court signs a support order, it can issue an income withholding order under the income withholding rules in Texas Family Code Chapter 158.⁶ Federal law lets that order reach military pay, because Congress consented to garnishment of federal pay for child support under 42 U.S.C. section 659.⁷ In practice, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service can then withhold the support directly from the service member's pay, which is usually the most reliable way to keep payments steady.
2. The Texas Attorney General's Child Support Division. The Attorney General's office can open and pursue a child support case, and it enforces orders against military parents the same way it does against civilian parents. Service status does not exempt a parent from a Texas support obligation.
3. A private motion to enforce. When an order already exists and a military parent has fallen behind, a motion to enforce brings the issue back in front of the judge. Falling behind on a court-ordered obligation can carry consequences, from wage withholding to other penalties, and a service member can also face administrative attention from their own command.

One thing worth knowing: before any Texas court order exists, the military branches have their own interim financial support rules that can apply to a service member. Those rules are a stopgap, though. They are not a substitute for a Texas court order, and they do not carry the same enforcement weight. In over 20 years of handling family law across North Texas, what we see is that the cases that move fastest are the ones where a parent gets a real Texas order in place early and routes collection through DFAS, rather than relying on branch policy or informal arrangements. That is the difference between hoping for a payment and having a system that produces one.

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What happens to child support when a military parent deploys or moves?

We have covered how Texas calculates support and how the lanes collect it. Now here is what changes when the military side of life, deployment, a permanent change of station, or a sudden swing in pay, lands in the middle of a child support case.

Deployment, PCS, and modifying a Texas military child support order

Deployment or a PCS move does not automatically change a child support order. This is the single biggest misunderstanding we see. A Texas court order controls the amount of support until a court signs a temporary order or a modified order. So orders, deployment, and relocation do not rewrite support on their own. They are reasons to ask a court to act.

The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act can let an active-duty service member request a stay of certain civil proceedings when military duties materially affect the member's ability to appear. That protection can delay the timing of a hearing, but it does not erase a child support obligation or stop unpaid support from adding up. 50 U.S.C. § 3932.

When deployment or relocation actually changes a service member's income, either parent can ask the court to modify support. Texas allows modification when there has been a material and substantial change in circumstances, or when the order meets the statutory three-year/20-percent-or-$100 test.⁹ A real shift in military pay can support a modification request. Tex. Fam. Code § 156.401. Texas also recognizes that military pay fluctuates, so the law leaves room to adjust orders when duty changes the numbers. The practical version is this: if pay goes up or down because of deployment, a PCS, or a change in duty status, that is the moment to talk to a lawyer about a modification, not the moment to stop paying or to assume the old number still fits.

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Step-by-Step: How to Establish or Enforce Military Child Support in Texas

Here is the sequence we walk clients through. Every case is a little different, but the path usually looks like this.

1. Gather the support packet. Pull together the complete LES, BAH and BAS status, special pays, any retirement or disability records, and the existing order if there is one.
2. Confirm Texas jurisdiction and the status of any existing order. Figure out whether Texas is the right court and whether you are establishing a first order or working with one that already exists.
3. Calculate guideline support on true net resources. Run the guideline percentage against the full income picture, not just taxable wages.
4. File to establish or modify, or open a case with the Attorney General. Choose the lane that fits your situation.
5. Obtain the income withholding order. Once the court sets support, get the order that authorizes withholding from pay.
6. Route the withholding order to DFAS. Send it to the Defense Finance and Accounting Service so support comes straight out of military pay.
7. Confirm payments follow the court order and, when required, flow through the Texas State Disbursement Unit. SDU records make proof easier. Direct cash payments can be treated as gifts or rejected for lack of proof, although a court may consider payment evidence in an enforcement case. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.004(b); Tex. Fam. Code § 157.162(c-1); Ochsner v. Ochsner, 517 S.W.3d 717, 724–25 (Tex. 2016).

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Texas Statutes and Federal Rules That Apply

Military child support sits at the intersection of Texas family law and federal military pay rules. These are the main authorities, and what each one does for you as a parent.

Authority	Why It Matters to You
Tex. Fam. Code § 154.061	Sets how the court figures net monthly income, the starting point for the support number.
Tex. Fam. Code § 154.062	Defines net resources, which is what the guideline percentage actually applies to.
Tex. Fam. Code § 154.125	Sets the guideline percentages by number of children and caps the net resources the guideline applies to.
Tex. Fam. Code § 156.401	Allows courts to modify a support order after a material and substantial change, like a deployment-driven pay swing.
Tex. Fam. Code ch. 158	Provides for income withholding, the order that pulls support directly from a parent's pay.
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, 50 U.S.C. § 3901 et seq.	Can pause certain proceedings during deployment, but does not erase the support obligation.
42 U.S.C. § 659	Federal consent that lets a state income withholding order reach military and other federal pay for child support.
10 U.S.C. § 1408 (USFSPA)	Allows courts to garnish military retired pay for child support.
38 U.S.C. § 5301	Generally protects VA disability benefits from ordinary garnishment, with VA apportionment as a separate path.

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Mistakes to Avoid (And Bad Advice Online)

A lot of the trouble in military child support cases comes from advice that sounds right but is not. The internet is generous with confident answers; the law is less so. Here are the ones we see most often.

• You may read online that BAH and BAS do not count because they are not taxed. Under Texas law, courts can still include those allowances as part of a military parent's net resources.
• You may read online that deployment automatically pauses or lowers child support. It does not. A Texas court order stays in force until a judge signs a temporary or modified order.
• You may read online that paying cash directly to the other parent is good enough. In Texas, payments should follow the court order, and income-withheld payments generally go through the State Disbursement Unit. Direct cash payments are risky because they can be hard to prove and may not receive credit unless the court accepts the payment evidence. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.004(b); Tex. Fam. Code § 157.162(c-1); Ochsner v. Ochsner, 517 S.W.3d 717, 724–25 (Tex. 2016).
• You may read online that VA disability can never be touched for child support. The reality is more layered. Federal law generally protects it from ordinary garnishment, but it can still factor into the support amount, and VA apportionment is a separate route.
• You may read online that the military "handles" child support internally. Branch rules can fill a gap before there is a court order, but a Texas court order is what actually sets and enforces support.

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FAQ: Military Support Payments in Texas

Quick Answers

Does the military pay child support, or does the parent?

The parent owes child support, not the military. DFAS is the pay system that can withhold support after a Texas court signs an income withholding order under Texas Family Code chapter 158 and that order reaches military pay through federal garnishment authority. This distinction matters because branch rules do not replace a Texas court order.

Related: Can military retirement pay be garnished for child support in Texas?

Can military retirement pay be garnished for child support in Texas?

Yes. Under the Uniformed Services Former Spouses' Protection Act, 10 U.S.C. section 1408, courts can garnish military retired pay for child support when there is a valid support order and proper withholding paperwork. The key mistake is treating retired pay like VA disability. Those are different benefit categories with different collection rules.

Can the Texas Attorney General's Office help me collect support from a service member?

Yes. The Texas Attorney General's Child Support Division can help establish and enforce support against a service member, including through the HEROES program for military families. The Attorney General can be useful for enforcement, but it still works from legal orders and documented income, not informal promises from a command or finance office.

Related: What happens to child support arrears while a military parent is deployed?

What happens to child support arrears while a military parent is deployed?

Arrears keep adding up while a military parent is deployed unless a Texas court changes the order. The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act can delay some proceedings, but it does not cancel support or stop past-due balances from growing. A deployed parent should seek modification rather than assuming deployment pauses the debt.

Does child support change automatically when a service member is promoted or gets a PCS?

No. A promotion, raise, PCS, or duty change does not automatically modify a Texas support order. Either parent must ask the court to change the order, usually by showing a material and substantial change under Texas Family Code section 156.401. Until a judge signs a new order, the old amount controls.

Related: What happens to child support arrears while a military parent is deployed?

Can you join the military if you owe child support?

Owing child support does not automatically stop someone from joining the military, but unpaid support can create enlistment and compliance problems. A Texas order remains enforceable before and after enlistment, and arrears do not disappear. The branch may review the situation case by case, especially when the debt affects dependent status or financial responsibility.

Figuring Out a Military Parent's Real Income

What if I do not know how much the military parent really makes?

Start with the complete, current LES, not a W-2, tax return, or one screenshot. In Texas, courts determine support from net resources under Texas Family Code section 154.061 and section 154.062. For a service member, that can include base pay, BAH, BAS, bonuses, and special pays. The LES is the documentation that shows the pay picture the court needs.

A common mistake is asking how much the armed forces pay for support, as if there is a military schedule. There is not. Texas guideline percentages apply after the court identifies the parent's true resources under section 154.125. Do not rely only on taxable wages, because untaxed housing and food allowances may not appear on a W-2. If the LES is missing, outdated, or does not show allowances, the next step is usually to request complete pay records in the case and compare them with rank, duty station, dependent status, recent income changes, and any allotments or deductions. That keeps the calculation tied to records instead of guesses, and it also helps spot whether past payments ran through the Texas State Disbursement Unit.

Related: Can Texas count VA disability as income even if ordinary garnishment is limited?

Can Texas count VA disability as income even if ordinary garnishment is limited?

Yes, Texas can often consider VA disability when calculating support, even when federal law limits collection. The important split is calculation versus collection. Texas courts look at resources when setting support under Texas Family Code section 154.062, while 38 U.S.C. section 5301 generally protects VA benefits from ordinary garnishment and 42 U.S.C. § 659(h)(1)(A)(ii)(V) can apply when VA disability is paid in place of waived military retired pay.

That does not mean VA-related income is irrelevant to financial stability or support. A parent may still need to disclose it, and VA apportionment can be a separate path for benefits to support a child. Military retired pay is different because 10 U.S.C. section 1408 allows courts to reach retired pay for child support in proper cases. The edge case is a veteran who receives both retired pay and VA disability, because collection rules treat those payments differently. The practical mistake is saying VA disability cannot be garnished, so it cannot count. A court may look at the benefit when setting the number, even if DFAS withholding is not the right collection tool. That is why the paperwork should separate each benefit source instead of listing one blended veterans payment.

Related: Can military retirement pay be garnished for child support in Texas?

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Talk to a North Texas Family Law Team

Military child support cases turn on getting the income picture right and picking the right way to collect. That is hard to do alone, and it is exactly the kind of work our firm has handled since 2006. What we like to do is start with the full pay picture, build the packet, and then choose the lane that fits your family. If you are a parent in Richardson, Dallas, Plano, McKinney, Fort Worth, or anywhere across Dallas, Collin, Denton, and Tarrant counties, call (888) 584-9614 for a free consultation. We will help you sort out where you stand and what the next step looks like, so you can stop guessing about the number and start moving forward for your kids.

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Legal Authorities

1. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.062 (defining net resources for child support).
2. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.061 (computation of net monthly income).
3. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.125 (application of guidelines and percentages; cap on net resources to which the guidelines apply).
4. Uniformed Services Former Spouses' Protection Act, 10 U.S.C. § 1408 (garnishment of military retired pay for child support).
5. 38 U.S.C. § 5301 (protection of VA benefits from claims of creditors; VA apportionment governed separately by federal regulation).
6. Tex. Fam. Code ch. 158 (income withholding for support).
7. 42 U.S.C. § 659 (consent to income withholding, garnishment, and similar proceedings for child support from federal pay).
8. Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, 50 U.S.C. § 3901 et seq. (stay of certain proceedings for service members).
9. Tex. Fam. Code § 156.401 (grounds for modification of child support, including material and substantial change in circumstances).
10. In re K.M.B., 606 S.W.3d 889 (Tex. App.—Dallas 2020, no pet.) (Texas case authority for inclusion of military housing and subsistence allowances in net resources).
11. Ochsner v. Ochsner, 517 S.W.3d 717 (Tex. 2016) (Texas Supreme Court guidance on direct-payment credit and court-ordered SDU disbursement).
12. Rose v. Rose, 481 U.S. 619 (1987) (state courts may consider VA disability benefits when setting child support obligations).
13. 50 U.S.C. § 3932 (Servicemembers Civil Relief Act stay of civil proceedings when military service materially affects appearance).
14. 42 U.S.C. § 659(h)(1)(A)(ii)(V) (federal-pay garnishment may reach VA disability paid in place of waived military retired pay).
15. 38 U.S.C. § 5307 (VA apportionment statutory framework).
16. 38 C.F.R. § 3.450 (VA regulation governing apportionment of compensation, pension, and DIC awards).
17. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.004(b) (state disbursement unit and recordkeeping for support payments).
18. Tex. Fam. Code § 154.126 (high-income obligor and proven needs of the child above the guideline cap).
19. Tex. Fam. Code § 157.162(c-1) (court consideration of proof of direct payments in enforcement cases).
20. Tex. Fam. Code ch. 153 (Texas family-law framework for conservatorship, possession, and access).

This article is for informational purposes only and does not create an attorney-client relationship.