[WA] Does a child’s auxiliary Social Security benefit count toward child support?

Lexi, Chatbot

I understand that navigating benefits and child support can be complex. Have you already established a legal agreement regarding child support with the child’s mother?

Lexi, Chatbot

Is your son currently receiving any other forms of financial assistance or benefits?

Lexi, Chatbot

Is there anything else the Family Lawyer should know before I connect you? Rest assured they’ll be able to help with your child support paperwork.

TJ, Esq.

Hello! My name is TJ, and I’m an attorney with over 20 years of experience. Thanks so much for the opportunity to assist you!

I hear you on this. It sounds like you’re trying to figure out the right way to handle child support while your son’s getting auxiliary benefits, and that’s a lot to work through when you’re drafting the paperwork yourself. What state are you in? And just to clarify, when you say you want to file an auxiliary SSI benefit as child support, do you mean you’re looking to have that auxiliary benefit count toward your child support obligation, or are you asking if you can assign it to the mother?

Thanks so much for sharing those details.

PS: I do my best to keep chats going in real time, but if there’s a delay on my end, please don’t worry. The chat doesn’t close, and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. There’s no rush on your end either!

TJ, Esq.

Good to hear from you. Let me walk you through how this works.

In Washington, auxiliary benefits your son receives based on your SSDI are generally considered income to him, not to the mother. When calculating child support, the court looks at both parents’ incomes. Your SSDI counts as your income, but the auxiliary benefit he’s receiving is his income. That said, courts have discretion in how they treat benefits, so it could potentially be factored into the calculation depending on the specific circumstances.

As for being the payee through Social Security, that’s a separate question from child support. The payee is whoever Social Security designates to manage the benefit for the child. You could potentially apply to be the payee, but Social Security will consider what’s in the child’s best interest. Your custody arrangement matters here. If you’re moving toward a week-on/week-off schedule, that’s more equal custody, which could support your case for being payee. But Social Security doesn’t automatically change the payee just because custody changes. You’d need to request it and show why it’s in the child’s best interest.

The tricky part is that your child support obligation and the payee designation are two separate legal processes. One doesn’t automatically affect the other, though they can influence how finances flow.

When you draft the child support agreement with the mother, are you planning to address custody changes in that same document, or are those being handled separately?

Thanks for those details.

TJ, Esq.

Good thinking on trying to file these together. Let me break down what you’re facing and how to approach it strategically.

Timing on the payee application:
You’re right to be cautious here. Filing the payee application before you have a custody agreement in place could actually work against you. Social Security will look at the current situation, and if the mother is the established payee and custody hasn’t changed yet, they’re unlikely to switch it. Filing now and getting denied could make it harder to request again later. It’s better to wait until you have a parenting plan in place that shows a more equal or primary custody arrangement. Once you have that documented, you’ll have a much stronger case to present to Social Security.

Child support and custody together:
Filing the parenting plan and child support agreement at the same time is a smart move. In Washington, these typically go hand in hand anyway. The parenting plan establishes custody and visitation, and the child support order flows from that. Courts prefer to handle them together because custody directly affects support calculations. (WA Rev Code § 26.09.194) Your income from SSDI and VA disability will be counted as income for child support purposes, which is important to know as you negotiate with the mother.

Income considerations:
Both SSDI and VA disability income count toward child support calculations in Washington. (WA Rev Code § 26.19.045) The court will look at your total monthly income from both sources. If you’re the primary or equal custodian, your income affects what you pay. If the mother has primary custody, her income affects what she receives. The auxiliary benefit your son gets is separate and typically doesn’t reduce your obligation, though it can be considered in the overall financial picture. (WA Rev Code § 26.19.071)

Custody as the real hurdle:
You’re identifying the real issue here. Custody determines so much: who pays support, how much, whether you can be the payee, and how the auxiliary benefit flows. The mother wants to keep the current four-days-with-you arrangement, but you want week-on/week-off. That’s a meaningful difference in Washington law. Week-on/week-off is closer to equal custody, which changes everything about support calculations and your standing to be the payee.

Strategic approach:

1. Focus on custody agreement first, or at least a parenting plan that moves closer to what you want.
2. File parenting plan and child support together once documented.
3. Apply to be payee after those are filed and approved, armed with custody documentation.
4. Keep all three processes coordinated but in the right order.

The payee application will be much stronger once you have official custody documentation showing a more equal arrangement. Right now, without that, you’re fighting an uphill battle.

Does this give you a clearer picture of how to sequence these steps, or would you like me to sketch out a timeline of filings and applications so you can see the order visually?

TJ, Esq.

Filing on your own does change things. Once you file with the court, it becomes an official proceeding. The mother will be served with your proposal, and she’ll have a set time to respond. From there, you’re in the court system. It doesn’t necessarily complicate things, but it does formalize everything and remove the informal back-and-forth. The court will then work toward a resolution based on what both of you propose and what serves the child’s best interests.

If you’re stuck on compromise right now, filing might actually help move things forward by getting the court involved. But it also means you’re committed to the process.

TJ, Esq.

I'm really glad I could help you work through this. Yes, just come back to the website and ask your question whenever you need it. Someone will be there to help you out. Thanks again for letting me assist you with this. Take care.