How Child Support Is Organized in New Hampshire

New Hampshire runs child support through one state agency, the Division of Child Support Services (DCSS), which sits inside the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). The state has no separate county child support agencies. One division opens cases, locates parents, establishes and enforces orders, and processes payments for families in every part of the state.

The in-person offices in our directory are DHHS district offices. Each is listed as a "District Office & NH Employment Program," and each serves as a local DHHS access point for families. Examples include the Concord District Office & NH Employment Program at 40 Terrill Park Drive and the Manchester District Office & NH Employment Program at 195 McGregor Street. Many child support tasks happen by phone, mail, or online with the state division. Call your district office before you drive in, and ask what can be handled at that counter.

Two bodies of state law shape the system. RSA 161-C covers the child support enforcement system run by DHHS. RSA 458-C sets the child support guidelines used to calculate how much a parent should pay. Knowing which law governs which step helps you read your paperwork and ask better questions.

The Ten District Offices Serving New Hampshire Families

The ten offices in our database cover nine of the state's counties. Hillsborough County is the only one with two listings, because it holds the state's two largest cities. Here is where each office sits:

Notice the name on the Nashua listing. It is called the Southern District Office, not the Nashua office, and the Portsmouth office is the Seacoast District Office. If you search by city name alone, you may miss them. The district name often reflects the region an office covers rather than the town it sits in.

City Offices and Rural Offices: What Changes Across the State

New Hampshire has a small population spread over very different terrain. That affects how easy it is to reach an office and how busy it is when you arrive.

Southern New Hampshire: Manchester, Nashua, and Portsmouth

The densest caseloads are in Hillsborough County, where the Manchester and Southern District offices are about 17 miles apart along the Everett Turnpike corridor. Many parents here commute to jobs in Massachusetts. That makes employer income withholding and out-of-state cases common. Nashua sits directly on the Massachusetts line, so interstate paperwork is routine.

The Seacoast District Office in Portsmouth, in Rockingham County, serves a coastal area where Maine is just across the Piscataqua River. Parents who live or work on opposite sides of a state line can have a case that involves two states' agencies. The Rochester District Office in Strafford County, at 150 Wakefield Street, covers the Route 16 corridor north of the Seacoast.

The North Country and White Mountains

Distances matter much more up north. The Berlin office in Coos County is the main DHHS location in the state's northernmost county. A resident of a small town nearby may face a long drive in winter. The Littleton District Office in Grafton County serves a wide area of mountain and valley towns, and the Conway office in Carroll County handles the Mount Washington Valley.

If you live in a remote area, phone and mail are usually the better first choice. Save the trip for something that truly needs a face-to-face meeting, such as showing original identification or documents. Allow extra time in winter, when mountain roads can slow travel.

The Capital, Lakes Region, and Upper Valley Edge

Concord holds the Merrimack County office and sits near the center of the state, which makes it reachable from many towns. Laconia serves the Lakes Region in Belknap County, where seasonal population swings can change local employment patterns. Claremont, on the Connecticut River in Sullivan County, serves the western edge of the state and neighbors Vermont.

Preparing for a Child Support Visit or Call in New Hampshire

Preparation saves you a second trip. Child support staff work from documents and details, and missing information is the most common cause of delay. Gather what you can before you call or visit:

Bring copies, not your only originals. If you do not know where the other parent lives or works, say so. Locating a parent is part of what the state division does, and you do not need to have that information in hand to apply.

Opening, Changing, or Enforcing a Case in New Hampshire

Services are open to both custodial parents and caregivers, and to parents who pay support. Eligibility does not depend on income. Some families come to child support after applying for public assistance through the same district offices, and in that situation a referral may be made as part of the benefits process. Other families apply on their own.

A typical case moves through a few stages. First, the state confirms who the parents are. If paternity has not been legally established, that step comes first. Next, an order for support is put in place, either through DCSS or through the Circuit Court Family Division. The amount follows the guidelines in RSA 458-C. Then payments begin, often through income withholding from the paying parent's employer.

If payments stop, the state has enforcement tools. These can include wage withholding, tax refund intercepts, and license-related actions. If your finances change a lot, such as a job loss or a new child, you can ask for a review of the order. Do not simply stop paying, because an unpaid balance generally stays on the books until a proper change is made.

Start with the district office nearest you. Ask which services they handle on site and which go to the state division, and write down the name of whoever helps you. That one habit makes later follow-up much easier.

The child support program in New Hampshire is administered by the state's child support enforcement agency, which operates through a network of county-level offices that handle case intake, order establishment, payment processing, and enforcement across the state under the authority of Title IV-D of the Social Security Act.

Child Support Offices locations are available in 10 cities across New Hampshire. They are spread across 9 counties.

Cities with the highest concentration include Concord, Littleton, Rochester, which serve as regional hubs for child support case processing and interstate enforcement coordination for cases involving parents in multiple states.

Non-custodial parents in New Hampshire who are current on their support obligation and experiencing a significant change in income — such as job loss or medical disability — may be eligible to request a formal modification review through the state child support agency without having to hire an attorney.

Child Support Offices by Counties

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Custodial parents in New Hampshire who receive public assistance are automatically enrolled in child support services as a condition of TANF or Medicaid eligibility. Parents not receiving public assistance can still apply for child support services voluntarily and typically receive the same level of enforcement assistance at little or no cost.

Browse Child Support Offices by county across New Hampshire to find the nearest location.

Planning Your Visit to a District Office in New Hampshire

New Hampshire district offices work best when you treat them as the start of a process, not the whole process. A short phone call to the Concord District Office & NH Employment Program at 603-271-6200, or to the office nearest you, can tell you the current hours, whether you need an appointment, and which documents to bring.

Residents of Merrimack County will find Concord convenient. Families in western New Hampshire can look at the Claremont office in Sullivan County. Keep a folder with your case number, court orders, and notes from every contact. If you cannot reach someone, try again at a different time of day and leave a clear message with your case number and a callback number. Staff in a busy office handle many families, so a precise request gets a faster answer than a general one.

The Division of Child Support Services, part of the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, runs the state's child support program. It works under RSA 161-C for enforcement and uses the guidelines in RSA 458-C to calculate support. The ten district offices in our directory are local DHHS access points, such as the Manchester District Office & NH Employment Program on McGregor Street. Because the program is run by the state, your case is not tied to one county. You can often handle questions by phone or mail instead of traveling, so call first to confirm what your nearest office does on site.

Residents of the far north can start with the Berlin District Office & NH Employment Program at 650 Main Street, 603-752-7800. The Littleton District Office & NH Employment Program, at 80 North Littleton Road, serves Grafton County at 603-444-6786, and the Conway office at 73 Hobbs Street, 603-447-3841, covers Carroll County. Winter weather can make these drives long, so phone ahead. Ask whether your issue can be handled by mail or phone. Reserve an in-person trip for tasks that need original documents or a signature.

Bring a photo ID, the child's name, birth date, and Social Security number, and everything you know about the other parent, including full name, address, and employer. If a court order, divorce decree, or parenting plan exists, bring a copy. Payment records, pay stubs, and health insurance details for the child also help. You do not need a complete file to start. If you do not know where the other parent works or lives, tell the staff, because locating parents is part of what the state division does.

The amount is set using the child support guidelines in RSA 458-C, which take into account the parents' incomes and other factors the statute lists. The order may come from the state division's administrative process or from the Circuit Court Family Division, but both look to the same guidelines. A judge or hearing officer can depart from the standard figure when the law allows it and the reasons are stated. Bring accurate income documents, because the calculation depends on them. If you disagree with a proposed amount, ask how to request a hearing and what the deadline is.

Yes, you can ask for a review when circumstances change in a meaningful way, such as a job loss, a major change in income, or a change in the child's living arrangements. Contact your district office or the state division and ask how to request a review of your order. Until a new order is in place, the existing one stays in effect and unpaid amounts can keep building. Do not simply stop paying or assume an informal agreement with the other parent changes the legal order. Keep written proof of the change, like termination letters or new pay records.

Cross-border cases are common in southern and coastal New Hampshire. The Southern District Office & NH Employment Program in Nashua, 603-883-7726, and the Seacoast District Office & NH Employment Program in Portsmouth, 603-433-8300, see them regularly. States cooperate on interstate child support cases, so New Hampshire can work with the other state's agency to establish, enforce, or collect an order. Give staff the other parent's most recent address and employer, even if you are unsure it is current. An employer in another state can still be required to withhold wages under a valid order.