Child Support in Hollister and San Benito County, California

If you need to file for child support in Hollister, CA, you file with the Superior Court of California, County of San Benito, which covers all of San Benito County. The court has a public portal at portal.sanbenito.courts.ca.gov and allows electronic filing, so a child support case may not require a trip to Hollister. If you want to file in person, the courthouse is at 450 Fourth Street, Hollister, CA 95023, phone (831) 636-4057.

California uses one statewide child support formula, Family Code 4055. It compares each parent's net income with the percentage of time the child spends with each parent. That calculation is the same in San Benito County. You can estimate the amount for free at childsupport.ca.gov, then file Form FL-300 with an FL-150 income declaration through the court's portal or in person.

You may also ask the San Benito County Local Child Support Agency to handle the case. The office is at 1111 San Felipe Rd Ste 104 in Hollister. It can establish parentage, set a guideline order, and collect payments, usually without charging the parent who asks for help.

If you cannot afford the filing fee, ask the clerk for Form FW-001 to request a waiver. After an order is entered, California generally adds an automatic income withholding order to the paying parent's wages. The portal can also help later when you need to check whether a modification or enforcement filing was received.

How child support is calculated in California

California sets child support with a statewide uniform guideline (Family Code section 4055) that applies the same way in San Benito County as everywhere else. The formula is based mainly on two things:

1. Both parents' net disposable incomes.
2. The percentage of time the child spends with each parent (the timeshare).

The guideline amount is presumed to be correct, and courts use a calculator to run the numbers. Because the result depends on accurate income, the Income and Expense Declaration (Form FL-150) you file is what drives your number.

Where child support cases are handled in San Benito County

Child support in San Benito County is handled through the Superior Court of California, County of San Benito, and the county's Local Child Support Agency, which is part of the California Department of Child Support Services. There are two common paths:

1. Either parent files a Request for Order (Form FL-300) with an Income and Expense Declaration (Form FL-150) inside a divorce, parentage, or custody case.
2. The Local Child Support Agency opens a case to establish, collect, and enforce support, often at no cost to the parents.

Because courthouse and local agency office details change over time, confirm current details using the official California Courts court finder:

Find the San Benito County Superior Court (official California Courts finder)

Local notes for San Benito County

The online public portal is what makes San Benito County different from many nearby rural counties, since several of them have no e-filing option. Use portal.sanbenito.courts.ca.gov to check current case information and file electronically instead of assuming you must go in person.

Even so, drop-in hours for the family law facilitator are not posted. It also is not confirmed whether a commissioner or a judge usually hears San Benito County's support calendar. Call ahead before a hearing or a visit to the facilitator.

The Local Child Support Agency office on San Felipe Road is separate from the courthouse. A parent working only through DCSS for collections usually does not need to go to 450 Fourth Street. San Juan Bautista parents who file through the portal should still keep the Hollister courthouse address available, because some documents, or an in-person hearing, may still require a trip to Fourth Street no matter how the case began.

Official child support resources in San Benito County

Superior Court of California, County of San Benito handles child-support filings, located at 450 Fourth Street, Hollister 95023. Phone: (831) 636-4057.

E-filing is available through https://portal.sanbenito.courts.ca.gov/public-portal/. The court offers electronic filing and an online public portal for case information.

San Benito County Self-Help Center / Family Law Facilitator (https://www.sanbenito.courts.ca.gov/self-help/family-law-mediation) can help with procedure and paperwork. Helps self-represented parents with forms and procedure; cannot give legal advice for your situation.

• Superior Court of California, County of San Benito
• San Benito County Self-Help / Family Law Facilitator
• San Benito County Local Child Support Agency
• California Guideline Child Support Calculator
• Form FL-300 Request for Order
• Form FW-001 Request to Waive Court Fees

Local details reviewed August 2026. Offices and locations can change, so confirm with the official sites above before you file.

San Benito County Child Support FAQs