Judges are very hesitant to change or cancel the amount in arrears. There would have to be a really good reason why the parent should not have to pay the arrears, such as if it would be really unfair for the payor to pay the amounts owing. Usually, judges will postpone the payments or allow the payor to pay the amount they owe over time instead. If a payor is asking a judge to change or cancel child support arrears, they must: provide full financial disclosure prove that there has been a significant and long-lasting change to their income have made efforts to earn more money have a good reason for not asking the judge to change the child support order or agreement at the time when their income changed (instead of letting arrears add up) Having a new family or new financial obligations are not valid excuses to stop paying the full amount of child support to the children from a previous relationship. If your new financial obligations mean that you or any of your children would suffer undue financial hardship, you must provide evidence of this to the judge. Undue financial hardship can occur when the parent: has an unusually high level of family debt incurred before the separation incurs high expenses in spending parenting time with the child (such as travel) has to support other people. Last updated: March 2021