My son's mother is receiving undeclared child support

Thank you for using JustAnswer.

I'm sorry to hear about your situation. IF she was otherwise ineligible for these payments when taking into account your support of the child, she could be liable for welfare fraud. There are a number of possible degrees that this can take, and each one has a different penalty:

Welfare Fraud in the First Degree is codified in New York Penal Code Section 158.25. It is a class B felony. If a person with no prior felony convictions is convicted of a class B felony, the minimum period of incarceration is an indeterminate sentence of 1-3 years in prison and the maximum is 8 1/3 - 25 years. An indeterminate sentence is one in which the person is sentenced to a range and the department of corrections determines how much of that range the person must serve before he is eligible for release. If the person has been previously convicted of a prior felony within 10 years of the new conviction, excluding time spent in prison, the minimum period of incarceration is 4 1/2 - 9 years and the maximum is 12 1/2 - 25 years. In all circumstances, the person is forced to be on parole between 1 to 3 years after his release.

For the government to sustain a conviction for Welfare Fraud in the First Degree, the government must prove the following three elements beyond a reasonable doubt. It must prove:
the person committed a "fraudulent welfare act;"
the person did so knowingly and with the intent to defraud; and
the person thereby took or obtained "public assistance benefits" with a value in excess of $1,000,000.

Welfare Fraud in the Second Degree
Welfare Fraud in the Second Degree is codified in New York Penal Code Section 158.20. It is a class C felony. There is no minimum period of mandatory incarceration if a person with no prior felony convictions is convicted of a class C (non-violent and non-drug) felony, however, the maximum period of incarceration is an indeterminate sentence of 5 - 15 years. An indeterminate sentence is one in which the person is sentenced to a range and the department of corrections determines how much of that range the person must serve before he is eligible for release. If the person has been previously convicted of a prior felony within 10 years of the new conviction, excluding time spent in prison, the minimum period of incarceration is 3 - 6 years and the maximum is 7 1/2 - 15 years. There is no period of mandatory parole after the person is released from custody.

For the government to sustain a conviction for Welfare Fraud in the Second Degree, the government must prove the following three elements beyond a reasonable doubt. It must prove:
the person committed a "fraudulent welfare act;"
the person did so knowingly and with the intent to defraud; and
the person thereby took or obtained "public assistance benefits" with a value in excess of $50,000.

Welfare Fraud in the Third Degree
Welfare Fraud in the Third Degree is codified in New York Penal Code Section 158.15. It is a class D felony. There is no minimum period of mandatory incarceration if a person with no prior felony convictions is convicted of a class D (non-violent and non-drug) felony, however, the maximum period of incarceration is an indeterminate sentence of 2 1/3 - 7 years. An indeterminate sentence is one in which the person is sentenced to a range and the department of corrections determines how much of that range the person must serve before he is eligible for release. If the person has been previously convicted of a prior felony within 10 years of the new conviction, excluding time spent in prison, the minimum period of incarceration is 2 - 4 years and the maximum is 3 1/2 - 7 years. There is no period of mandatory parole after the person is released from custody.

For the government to sustain a conviction for Welfare Fraud in the Third Degree, the government must prove the following three elements beyond a reasonable doubt. It must prove:
the person committed a "fraudulent welfare act;"
the person did so knowingly and with the intent to defraud; and
the person thereby took or obtained "public assistance benefits" with a value in excess of $3,000.

Welfare Fraud in the Fourth Degree
Welfare Fraud in the Fourth Degree is codified in New York Penal Code Section 158.10. It is a class D felony. There is no minimum period of mandatory incarceration if a person with no prior felony convictions is convicted of a class D (non-violent and non-drug) felony, however, the maximum period of incarceration is an indeterminate sentence of 2 1/3 - 7 years. An indeterminate sentence is one in which the person is sentenced to a range and the department of corrections determines how much of that range the person must serve before he is eligible for release. If the person has been previously convicted of a prior felony within 10 years of the new conviction, excluding time spent in prison, the minimum period of incarceration is 2 - 4 years and the maximum is 3 1/2 - 7 years. There is no period of mandatory parole after the person is released from custody.

For the government to sustain a conviction for Welfare Fraud in the Fourth Degree, the government must prove the following three elements beyond a reasonable doubt. It must prove:
the person committed a "fraudulent welfare act;"
the person did so knowingly and with the intent to defraud; and
the person thereby took or obtained "public assistance benefits" with a value in excess of $1,000.

Welfare Fraud in the Fifth Degree
Welfare Fraud in the Fifth Degree is codified in New York Penal Code Section 158.05. It is a class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail.

For the government to sustain a conviction for Welfare Fraud in the Fifth Degree, the government must prove the following two elements beyond a reasonable doubt. It must prove:
the person committed a "fraudulent welfare act;" and
the person did so knowingly and with the intent to defraud.
Accusations of Welfare Fraud are serious. Feel free to contact John Buza, an experienced New York criminal defense attorney and former Manhattan prosecutor, for a free consultation if you, or a loved one, is accused of this crime.

As far as you're concerned, so long as you were not actively assisting her in committing fraud (even if you knew that she was filing) you're not going to have any culpability. Your obligation is to support your child, and that's what you were doing. A court is not going to throw you under the bus, damned if you do or don't. You're not helping her or otherwise complicit in the fraud itself by doing what you have a legal obligation to do anyway.

Hope that clears things up a bit. If you have any other questions, please let me know. If not, and you have not yet, please rate my answer AND press the "submit" button, if applicable. Please note that I don't get any credit for my answer unless and until you rate it a 3, 4, 5 (good or better). Thank you, ***** ***** luck to you!