One of the hardest things to understand when you are a single parent is how child support works. Depending on your relationship with your former partner, this can either be an incredibly stressful proposition or something you work through together on amicable terms. In some cases, getting a keep from a former partner that no one wants to deal with can be an ugly struggle. If you are already struggling to navigate the child support bureaucracy or need to brush up on the details for a friend or family member who is involved, we are here to help.
The first and foremost point is that child support varies across the country. While we can give you some general guidelines on what to know, it is important that you check with your own state to see what rules apply. Each state has its own rules for calculating child support (and how everything is monitored). So make sure you comply with the laws of your home state.
However, here is general information about child support, what to do if your partner doesn’t pay, how to know how much to pay, and more.
How do you know how much child benefit to pay?
Just as each state has its own mandates for the functioning of child support, each state (and each court) has its own way of determining how much child support is owed. It is generally determined by income and expenses, but a court may determine a final number at its own discretion. If you are not the custodial parent and have to pay child support, it is in your best interest to speak to the court about your income, expenses, and all other factors when the conversation begins.
What determines who pays child support?
There are likely to be two parties involved in a child support talk. One is the custodial parent and the other is the child support. The custodial parent, as the name suggests, is the parent who has primary custody of the child or children. Marriage has nothing to do with child support – it comes down to the child’s parents, regardless of their relationship, past or present.
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In most cases, the parent with no custody pays child support. This is determined either by openly acknowledging that they are the parents or, in some cases, by taking a paternity test. The courts decide on custody and child support.
Does a new partner affect child support?
If you remarry, most of your child support will not be affected. The courts will assume that only the parents of the child or children are responsible for them, regardless of whether there are new partners or spouses in the picture. However, sometimes household income changes with a new marriage. Although the court will most likely not include this in child support, in some cases it will. Therefore, if either the custodial or non-custodial parent remarries, your payments may be impacted. This is a matter for the court dealing with your case.
Another factor is whether the new spouse wants to adopt the child. In most cases, this will be the new spouse of the parent with custody. However, the new spouse can only adopt the child if the non-custodial parent waives his or her parental rights. If they do, they are no longer obliged to pay child support.
What to do if the other parent does not pay child support
If you run into an issue where the other parent is not paying child support for one reason or another, you need to bring the court to court. While it may be tempting to take it into your own hands, it really is a legal matter and you should bring it to a judge.
If someone doesn’t pay child support, it can get expensive. Failure to pay can result in jail terms, forfeited wages, property seizures, and more. Also, not paying child support looks bad in the eyes of the law and can create further problems down the line, especially if that parent wants to seek more custody of the children or file a complaint with the custodial parent.
Can the amount of child support owed be changed?
It is possible to adjust the amount of money owed if you have extenuating circumstances. While not all courts make adjustments to child support due to a change of job, this can happen. If you are the parent paying child support and have a drastic change in finances, you can go to the court to see if the amount you owe the custodial parent can be reduced.
See the original article on ScaryMommy.com
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