Illinois child support arrears forgiveness

ESTIMATE — based on the rules Illinois published, checked October 2026. Only the agency can approve a reduction, and approvals are discretionary.

What can be reduced

Assigned (state-owed) arrears forgiven in exchange for 6 months of regular, ordered current-support payments. Family-owed arrears NOT touched

Who may be eligible to apply

• Low-income NCPs who could not pay assigned support when it accrued due to unemployment, incarceration, or serious illness

Where to apply

HFS Division of Child Support Services / regional office

Confirm current availability with HFS before relying on Project Clean Slate — its status has been under review.

The split still decides it

State-owed (assigned) arrears are the state's to compromise. Family-owed arrears can only be reduced by the other parent's voluntary, documented agreement — no agency can force it. Tennessee is the verified inversion: family-owed arrears are the compromisable slice there with court approval, and state-owed cannot be forgiven. If you do not know your split, the first move is a written request to the agency for the split as separate lines.

Interest and limits

Interest: 9% per year, computed monthly at 0.75% (9% ÷ 12) of the unpaid balance at the end of each calendar month (750 ILCS 5/505(b); HFS "Interest Policy" (hfs.illinois.gov/childsupport/interestpolicy.html) — agency's own page verified. HFS also states interest cannot be collected through the federal offset program)

Limitations: Child support judgments "may be enforced at any time" — no SOL since 1997-07-01 (735 ILCS 5/12-108(a), verified anchor, sizing §5.2)

What no one can do: a judge cannot erase arrears that already accrued for hardship, job loss, or incarceration when no modification was filed at the time (Bradley Amendment, 42 U.S.C. §666(a)(9)(C)). Arrears are not dischargeable in bankruptcy.

Federal lines: arrears over $2,500 can be certified for passport denial or revocation; only the state agency can request a release, and release practice is set by the state.

Run the arrears decoder for Illinois

Source: 305 ILCS / Illinois Public Aid Code §5/10-17.12; 89 Ill. Admin. Code §160.64, via OCSS list; HFS program description ◆. ⚠️ FLAGGED FOR RE-VERIFICATION: HFS advisory minutes (2017) already called Clean Slate's design low-success and under transition discussion — re-verify current availability with HFS at build; do not ship as "open" on the OCSS listing alone · Rules checked October 2026.