§ 580-711 Modification of Convention child support order

If you have a child support order from another country (through the Hague Convention process), a New York court usually cannot change that order as long as the person receiving support still lives in that other country. New York courts have to respect the foreign order and leave it alone in most cases.

There are two situations where a New York court can step in and modify the order anyway. First, if the person receiving support agrees to let New York handle it, either by directly asking the New York court to take over or by fighting the case in New York court without first objecting to that court's authority. Second, if the foreign court refuses to change its own order or does not have the power to do so, then New York can take over and modify it.

If a New York court decides it cannot recognize the foreign order at all, then a different rule applies (section 580-708(c)) to figure out what happens next. This system exists so that people cannot easily dodge a foreign support order just by moving to New York, while still giving New York courts a way to help when the foreign country's court system cannot or will not act.