Me and my ex-wife have been trying to renegotiate our child support amount. We are divorced. She has not been working for two years. She recently started working as a waitress on the advice of her lawyer. Is there a good way to determine a good child support amount for the calculator? The children are ages 13, 12, 8 and 8. She is suggesting $1,800 child care expenses per month. I suggested we base it on actual cost as we go. Is there a best way? Is child care expense always paid based on percentage of income? Thank you
Child support uses each parent’s actual income, so income that can be verified by pay stubs, W-2s, 1099s, tax returns, etc.
Work-related childcare costs can be entered in the child support calculator as the actual cost to the parent incurring the expense. You should not use projected costs or speculative costs. Many times parents will leave work-related childcare costs out of the child support worksheet but agree to divide the costs separately from the monthly child support obligation. These costs can be divided equally or they can be divided according to each parent’s percentage of the combined monthly gross income according to the child support worksheet.
Anna Ayscue
Attorney with Rosen Law Firm Cary • Chapel Hill • Durham • Raleigh • Wake Forest
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