I have to pay child support. If my job now pays me less, how do I change the amount I have to pay?

Last reviewed July 2026 by the Clicklaw editors

You can try talking to your child's parent first to see if they agree with a new child support amount. You might have an agreement, or you might have a BC court order about child support.

If you’re enrolled with the BC Family Maintenance Agency (BCFMA), talk to them as soon as possible about your financial situation.

If you have an agreement

If you have a written agreement about child support, and your child's parent agrees to the change, you can work together to amend your current agreement. If they don't agree, you can apply to the court to cancel or set aside the agreement, but you need to file it in court first.

The Family Law in BC website has information on how to make changes to an agreement, and how to change an agreement that was never filed in court: How do you change an agreement?

If you have a BC court order

If you have a BC court order that states the specific child support you must pay, you’ll need to apply to the court to get it changed, whether or not your child's parent agrees with the change. This is called varying the order. Court orders don’t automatically vary themselves. If your financial situation changes, you need to apply for a variation.

What’s the process of changing a court order?

The process will depend on two things:

Are you applying in Provincial or Supreme Court? Usually, you need to apply to the court that made the original order.
Do you and your child's parent agree about what the new support amount should be? If you agree, you’ll be applying for a consent order.

The Family Law in BC website has different guides for the process:

Helpful resources

JP Boyd on Family Law: Changing Family Law Orders, Awards and Agreements Involving Child Support (John-Paul Boyd, KC): This resource has more information on how to vary child support orders.
If You're Struggling to Pay Support (Justice Education Society): This resource has information about what to do if you’re not able to pay support payments because of changes to your financial situation.
File Your Agreement in Supreme Court and File Your Agreement in Provincial Court (Justice Education Society): These resources have information about how to file your family law agreement in BC Supreme Court or BC Provincial Court.
Changing a Support Order (BC Family Maintenance Agency): This page provides information about how to notify the BC Family Maintenance Agency when changing a support order or agreement.

Helpful services

Family Justice Counsellors (Government of BC): The counsellors at Family Justice Centres provide services to British Columbians going through separation or divorce. They can help with support issues.
Find more services.