Child Support in Suwannee County, Florida

To set up, change, or enforce child support in Suwannee County, Florida, you can open a case through the Florida Department of Revenue Child Support Program. Or file directly with the Live Oak clerk's office if support is part of an open divorce, paternity, or custody case in the Third Judicial Circuit. Suwannee County, home to Live Oak, sits along the river it's named for, in the heart of the Third Circuit. It's one county inside the larger Third Judicial Circuit, which also handles family court for Columbia, Dixie, Hamilton, Lafayette, Madison, and Taylor under the same administration.

Every Florida county calculates child support the same way: an income shares formula set out in Fla. Stat. 61.30, applied through Form 12.902(e), the Child Support Guidelines Worksheet. The numbers come from a Family Law Financial Affidavit: Form 12.902(b) if either parent earns under $50,000 a year, or Form 12.902(c) if they earn more. Whether the Department of Revenue opens the case administratively or a parent files it in circuit court, both affidavits and the worksheet end up in the file.

Expect a dissolution filing fee around $428. A Form 12.904 petition for support alone, outside a divorce, may carry its own separate fee, so check with the clerk. Filings can go in electronically through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal at myflcourtaccess.com, which covers every circuit including the Third, or in person at the clerk's office in Live Oak. A parent who cannot afford the fee can ask the clerk to waive it with an Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status under Fla. Stat. 57.082.

For forms and instructions, the clerk hosts the Suwannee Clerk Family Law Handbook at https://www.suwgov.org/wp-content/uploads/Family-Law-Handbook-2020-Revision-Clean-Version-March-3-20211-1.pdf, a PDF linked from the Family Law and Divorce pages on suwgov.org. Enforcement steps like income withholding, license suspension, or locating a non-paying parent go through the Department of Revenue Child Support Program, not the clerk's office. Call 850-488-KIDS (5437) or use the eServices portal at childsupport.floridarevenue.com.

How child support is calculated in Florida

Florida sets child support with a statewide income shares guideline (Fla. Stat. 61.30) that applies the same way in Suwannee County, FL as everywhere else. The guideline combines:

1. Both parents' net incomes, combined into one child support obligation.
2. The number of overnights each parent has with the child (the time-sharing schedule).

The guideline result is presumed correct, and the parties complete a Child Support Guidelines Worksheet along with a Financial Affidavit (Florida Supreme Court approved family law form 12.902(b) or 12.902(c)) so the court can calculate the amount.

Where child support cases are handled in Suwannee County, FL

Child support in Suwannee County, FL is handled through the Third Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, Suwannee County, and, for enforcement and establishment cases that do not involve a private attorney, the Florida Department of Revenue Child Support Program, which can open a case at no cost to the parents. There are two common paths:

1. A parent requests support inside a dissolution, paternity, or existing family case by motion, with a Financial Affidavit.
2. The Department of Revenue Child Support Program opens an administrative or court case to establish, collect, and enforce support.

Because courthouse and local agency office details change over time, confirm current details using the Florida court clerk directory:

Find the Suwannee County, FL Clerk of Court (Florida court clerk directory)

Local notes for Suwannee County, FL

Suwannee County family law cases are filed at the Suwannee County Courthouse, 200 South Ohio Avenue, Live Oak, FL 32064. The Third Circuit hasn't published who currently sits as the child support magistrate or hearing officer, so Suwannee County filers should confirm with the family law clerk who will actually preside before their court date.

Florida circuits commonly order mediation before setting a contested child support hearing, and many allow remote appearance by Zoom or phone at the judge's discretion. Suwannee County doesn't have a published local policy on this, so ask the clerk or the assigned judicial assistant which rules apply to your case.

DOR doesn't publish a current office directory by county, so don't expect a local Suwannee County branch; use the statewide intake line at 850-488-KIDS or sign up through childsupport.floridarevenue.com instead. A Supplemental Petition for Modification of Child Support, Form 12.905(b), goes in the same county where the original order was entered, not automatically wherever a parent later moves. Modification generally requires a substantial change in circumstances under Fla. Stat. 61.30.

Official child support resources in Suwannee County, FL

Suwannee County Courthouse handles child-support filings, located at 200 South Ohio Avenue, Live Oak 32064.

The filing fee is $428. E-filing is available through https://www.myflcourtaccess.com. Statewide Florida Courts E-Filing Portal; covers all circuits and case types including family law.

Suwannee Clerk Family Law Handbook (https://www.suwgov.org/wp-content/uploads/Family-Law-Handbook-2020-Revision-Clean-Version-March-3-20211-1.pdf) can help with procedure and paperwork. A clerk-published Family Law Handbook PDF linked from the Family Law and Divorce pages on suwgov.org.

• Florida Courts E-Filing Portal
• Florida DOR Child Support Program
• Form 12.902(e), Child Support Guidelines Worksheet
• Suwannee County Clerk of Court
• Suwannee Clerk Family Law Handbook

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

Suwannee County, FL Child Support FAQs