Child support

North Carolina Divorce Law Divorce and Separation Answers
1

My exwife wants us to look at modifying our current child cupport order, so I need clarification on a couple of items.

  1. When entering our incomes into the state calculator, I know that bonuses can be considered as income. We have a separation agreement and I have been paying the amount we agreed on for 6 years now. When we add in bonuses, can we take an average over the last couple of years or is it last years amount only? I do get bonuses but they vary greatly. She wants to add last years only, and that seems unfair since it is not guaranteed income and I could get nothing next year. I think we should average the last 3 years and add that number to our income.
  2. When entering numbers into the child support calculator it asks for existing ordered or agreed upon child support. I am putting in the amount that I am currently paying. She indicates that we do not do this. Seems to me that if we don’t do that we are starting from day one and we should be looking at just an increase amount.
    What are your thoughts?
2

Bonuses are included income. An average of the last year, or last few years can be used. If bonuses are sporadic and uncertain, you can structure child support to state that the same percentage of your income that is paid in support shall apply to bonuses received at the time they are received.

Existing or agreed upon support does is for another child (not born of the relationship between the two of you) there should be nothing included here.

3

Thank you - one last question. If I am currently paying $600/month and the new numbers we put in come to $720, it that considered substantial and a court would order it? Everything I am reading says it must be substantial or there must be a significnat change in the child’s expenses. Everything has remained the same for us since the separation agreement.

4

Child support can be modified after three years have passed, and if there is a 15% change in support, which there is in this case.