Child Support
When couples separate, it is important to have a plan in place for co-parenting, custody, and visitation. These plans are not limited to married couples beginning the divorce process; they are for couples, regardless of their marital status, who share a child. A formal agreement can provide various benefits, including enforcement of child support and other obligations.
A parent makes child support payments on a weekly or monthly basis. In Pennsylvania, for example, payments continue until the youngest child reaches age 18.
What is Child Support?
Child support is the money the parent without physical custody must pay the parent with custody. The support money helps pay for the child’s needs, such as:
- Food, clothing, and shelter,
- Medical and dental expenses,
- Costs for education, such as school supplies,
- Childcare expenses, and
- Basic travel expenses.
Your child support arrangement will depend on your unique situation. Each state’s rules differ, and the court may also make unique specifications in the child support agreement.
How the Courts Calculate Child Support in Pennsylvania
In the 1980s, Congress passed federal laws regarding child support. For example, they ordered states to establish guidelines for determining the base amount of support. These laws came into effect due to beliefs that child support payments were too low. The government also recognized that payments varied too much for similar circumstances, which caused confusion and complaints.
Today, Pennsylvania calculates the final amount using a complex equation. The formula factors in things like:
- Each parent’s income,
- The number of children,
- The children’s needs,
- The parent’s ability to help pay for these needs, and
- The children’s standard of living before divorce.
Most family law attorneys have and frequently use software to assist in computing the guideline child support amount. The formulas are based on studies on the normal costs for a family to raise children. However, each case is unique, so it is often difficult to predict an amount with absolute certainty.
Payment guidelines attempt to approximate how much a parent would have spent on a child if the divorce had never taken place. After plugging their estimates into the guideline formula, the courts find the final amount. The guidelines also apply equally to children born to married parents and to children born out of wedlock.
If you’re working through a divorce and have kids, you may be curious to know how much your child support payments might be. The Pennsylvania Child Support Program offers a child support tool. You can plug in your information online to estimate the amount of your monthly child support payments.
Common Questions about Child Support
If my ex and I have joint custody of our children, do I still have to pay child support?
How is child support calculated?
In Pennsylvania, courts calculate child support using a complex algebraic equation based on the relevant average cost for a family to raise a child. The equation also factors in parent income, the number of children, and more. The determined payment is the approximate amount the parent would have theoretically spent to care for the child, had the divorce never taken place. While many family law firms can use software to estimate the amount a parent will likely owe, it is often difficult to predict the final amount with absolute certainty.
Who Pays Child Support?
All across the United States, it is legally upheld that biological or adoptive parents need to pay for their children’s upbringing. This includes times when the parents are not married. Child support payments are usually granted to the parent who will have the most physical custody of the children. They typically do not pay child support themselves as their provision of custody serves that purpose. Child support is supposed to be for the benefit of the child, allowing them to live comfortably as if their parents were still under one roof. When a child support order is in place, the paying parent must make regular on-time payments for the support of their children. These monies are supposed to cover mainly housing, food, and clothing. While it is natural for the paying parent to want to know how the money is being spent, the receiving parent is not legally required to give such an accounting. Our attorneys cannot guarantee what your child support payments will be used for or that you will receive the amount of child support you believe is fair, we can help you negotiate a child support agreement with your spouse or we can work with the judge in your case to show them why you deserve what you do.
Sometimes the court will allow child support add-ons. These add-ons are increases in the amount of child support usually done as a percentage of the regular amount that meant for the purpose of paying additional costs. These costs could include:
- Healthcare
- Medical insurance
- Childcare
- Extracurricular activities
- Educational expenses
You may feel burdened by how much child support your spouse or the courts believe you should pay, or you may be worried about making ends meet while receiving a low child support amount. Whatever your child support concerns may be now or even in the future, we can help you address them confidently to increase your chances of getting your financial wants and needs met.
When Would I Need Child Support Amendments?
Typical circumstances in which the court will grant a child support modification include:
- The needs of the child have changed (for instance, the child develops special medical or educational needs)
- One parent gets a different job with a higher income
- One parent involuntarily loses a job or experiences a decrease in their income
- One parent has become responsible for the support of a new child
- A marked change in how much time the child stays with each parent
- One parent has become disabled
- One parent has been incarcerated
- There have been notable changes in any of the other factors the court took into consideration when setting the existing order
If you have kids and you’ve decided to divorce your spouse, you likely have many questions about the months and years to come. Feel free to call 866-465-5395 to discuss your situation or to get help determining a child support estimate. The lawyers at Petrelli Previtera, LLC can answer all your questions regarding your family legal matter and help you get on the right track to a great resolution.
What is Child Support Mediation, and how can it help families meet their educational needs?
Child support mediation services can help structure an education plan for your family. Not all children have identical educational needs. You might find that your child requires a deeper financial investment for education for any number of reasons, such as:
- Private school
- Boarding school
- Special classes and enhancement opportunities to develop an extraordinary talent
- Tutoring or remedial instruction
- Compensatory education or early vocational classes for children with learning disabilities or other special needs
- College or post-college study
Wealthy families can accommodate their children’s educational needs through financial planning tools such as trusts. But what of the family with middle-class incomes and assets?
It turns out that family mediation techniques that work so well for households in crisis can also be turned to more positive ends. An adaptive form of child support mediation allows parents to work out between themselves a plan for educational support for their children. This deal then becomes the heart of a postnuptial agreement.
Mediation for educational expenses can meet several needs within the family at the same time. Because the agreement is anchored in a legal contract, it binds the parties with obligations that they cannot arbitrarily break. Such agreements can:
- Clarify and record the couple’s values and priorities in a formal way.
- Establish an obligation for parents to support their child’s education after he has reached legal adulthood.
- Guarantee a mutual commitment from both parents with regard to saving and budgeting for education.
- Prove to teenage children how seriously their parents value educational achievement.
- Commit a stepparent to support a stepchild’s schooling needs after remarriage.
Call (866) 337-4448 today to make an appointment at one of our offices in Pennsylvania.
Contact Our Child Support Lawyers for Assistance
Need more information? Feel free to contact our office if you have questions about child support in Pennsylvania. We can also help you estimate possible payments. Our firm uses the same software the courts use to determine guideline support amounts, and we can crunch some numbers for you.