Where to Get Help and Child Support in BC
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This page from JP Boyd on Family Law—and other pages from this Wikibook that discuss BC family law litigation topics—are under editorial review to provide more thorough, current, and practical guidance. Since 2020, procedures, forms, and laws have changed significantly. While gross inaccuracies have been corrected, some details may still be outdated. These pages were not included in the 2024 print edition, and have been highlighted in orange where they appear in the navigation menu on this website. |
Child Support in BC from People's Law School is no longer available. For updated coverage of this topic, see Dial-A-Law's page on child support.
Where to Get Help
| Comprehensive Child Support Service | If you live in the Kelowna, Nanaimo, Vancouver or Surrey areas and you need to find out more about child support and obtaining or changing a child support order or agreement, the new Child Support Officer can help. Child Support Officers will help you understand the child support guidelines and calculate what you are entitled to receive or must pay under those guidelines. | Kelowna: 250.712.3636 Vancouver: 604.660.2084 |
| Family Justice Counsellors | Family Justice Counsellors can mediate issues involving parenting arrangements, contact, child support and spousal support. Family Justice Counsellors don’t provide legal advice. They will refer you to legal services if you need them. Family Justice Counsellors can also make referrals to other sources of help. | Call Enquiry BC to find the nearest Family Justice Centre Greater Vancouver:604.660.2421 |
| Family Maintenance Enforcement Program (FMEP) | FMEP is a government service that enforces orders and agreements for child support and spousal support. FMEP staff will receive, record, and forward support payments to the recipient. If necessary, staff will take action to try to ensure that the payor makes the required payments. To register with FMEP, you need an enrolment package. You can get the enrolment package at any Provincial Courthouse, Service BC Centres, Ministry of Social Development office or FMEP at the central Enrolment Office. | Enrolment Office Box 5100 |
| Parenting After Separation Program | The Parenting After Separation Program is a free, three-hour information session that parents (and other family members, such as grandparents) may attend in person. You do not have to attend the same program session as the other parent. The Parenting After Separation Program is also available online. | www.familieschange.ca To find out more abou tParenting After Separation, talk to a Family Justice Counsellor. |
Legal Advice
| JP Boyd’s BC Family Law Resource | Website offers a comprehensive survey of family law, divorce law and the court process in British Columbia, Canada. It’s written in plain language, with handy pop-up definitions for legal words and phrases, and covers pretty much everything there is to know about family law and divorce law in the province. | www.bcfamilylawresource.com |
| Legal Services Society of BC (Legal Aid) | If your legal problem is covered under the legal aid rules and you are financially eligible, the Legal Services Society of BC will appoint a lawyer for you if you apply.
Legal Services Society of BC has helpful booklets, videos, and an online self-help kit for people who are facing legal issues from separation or divorce, including child support. LSS may have additionalservices available. |
Lower Mainland: 604.408.2172 Outside the Lower Mainland: |
| Lawyer Referral Service | The Lawyer Referral Service can give you the name of a family law lawyer near you who will give you a 30-minute consultation for $25. You can then hire that lawyer, if you wish. | Greater Vancouver: 604.687.3221 |
| Mediate BC | Mediators are impartial and have no decision-making powers. The mediator’s roles include:
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Mediate BC Society Family Mediation Services |
| This information applies to British Columbia, Canada. Last reviewed for legal accuracy by People's Law School, 2014. |
Child Support in BC from People's Law School is no longer available. For updated coverage of this topic, see Dial-A-Law's page on child support.
 Child Support in BC © People's Law School is, except for the images, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence.
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