Calculating Child Support

Answer:

I get a lot of questions from clients regarding child support. One of the most popular questions is, “What am I going to pay in child support?” What I tell them is that child support is governed by the Child Support Standards Act in New York. The Child Support Standards is a set of guidelines for attorneys and the courts, as well as litigants that may not be represented, to figure out what the child support number will be. The way that it works is there are two parts. Part one is the basic child support obligation, which is based on your income. This is usually paid bi-weekly or monthly, depending on what the two parties agree on.

There’s a second part that a lot of people are not aware of, and that is the add-on expenses. Add-on expenses are child care expenses, health insurance premium expenses, and unreimbursed medical expenses. Not all these expenses are going to be applicable to a specific family. In any event, the act sets forth how these things will get paid above and beyond what the child support basic obligation is. I would really encourage you to seek the help and guidance of a local attorney that really knows what they’re doing and understands the Child Support Standards Act, and is experienced in family law and divorce litigation, to guide you through this process.