Child support guidelines in Florida exist to give some regularity when the court determines financial child support as a guide for out of court payments by separated parents.
A Guide To Understanding The Florida Child Support Calculator
Florida Child Support
For parents in the middle of a divorce, or if you do not live together with the father of your child, you may require Florida child support guidelines. Both parents must support their child/children through the Florida “Income Shares Model.”
It means that courts will use a Florida child support calculator to estimate the amount to be spent on the children for child care costs based on both parents’ income.
Florida child support guidelines demand that the children receive support until they turn 18 years. Florida law also suggests disabled children may continue receiving child support payments. Children still in high school and above 18 years are also entitled to child support from both parents.
At the age of nineteen, a child support award is not mandatory except where the child is disabled.
Child Support Regulation In Florida
The Department of Revenue manages the Florida Child Support services. These services include:
DETERMINING PATERNITY
Children born out of wedlock need to determine legal paternity, either through marriage, acknowledgment of the child, genetic testing, court order, and legitimacy.
CHILD SUPPORT LAWS
The Florida Child Support program can help you with a court-order application for child support if you do not have one in place; this is an essential requirement from the courts to legalize the alimony payment obligation.
IMPOSING CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES
Some parents may prove difficult with following the court orders on child support agreements. The Florida Child Support authorities may help enforce alimony payments by blocking the offender’s government requirements such as; licenses, passport issuance, scrutinizing tax refunds and freezing accounts /insurance settlement payments.
When a neglectful parent becomes adamant, he may face arrest.
AMENDING CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES
Over time, circumstances change financially, and child support guidelines require modification. Either parent may call for a review of an existing child support order. In such a case, either parent’s economic situation must show sufficient evidence to produce at least a 10% change in monthly child support.
Usually, a parent must wait three years minimum to seek a child support modification.
Florida Child Support Payments
EXPENSES
Raising children in Florida necessitates the payment of additional monthly costs, like health care premiums, educational costs, deductibles, and child care costs. Both parents should split these costs with each parent taking up his or her share of responsibility.
INSURANCE
Typically, if the supported partner is unable to purchase insurance or to obtain medical insurance through her job, the supporting spouse will have to pay for the required health coverage or pay out of pocket.
The case is admissible in an alimony settlement case since the paying partner must support the lifestyle offered before the divorce occurred. However, if your job provides group health insurance, you may have to provide continuing health benefits under Florida Statutes to support your spouse and children.
How It’s Calculated
The Florida child support calculator determines the number of payments, the majority parent, and the non-majority partner. After this resolve, child support attorneys help to calculate child support and both parent’s net income based on their gross earnings, less the deductibles.
Total revenue for both parents includes salary/wages, self –employment income, overtime pay, bonuses, social security benefits; passive revenue from corporations and partnerships, alimony from a previous marriage, unemployment benefits, retirement pension, annuity payments, interest and dividends and rental income.
If one parent is underemployed or unemployed, the court may assign a monthly income for them. The allowed parents’ deductions in the computation of child support include:
CHILD HEALTH INSURANCE PREMIUM
- Daycare costs
- Income tax deductions
- Previous marriage Child/spousal support
- Union deduction
- Federal insurance costs
- fixed retirement expenses
- Number of Children
After arriving at a partner’s gross monthly income, next, you should factor the number of children. The court subsequently allocates a proportion of the net income to be contributed by each parent.
Adjustments of child support amount form the basis of the non-majority parental visiting rights i.e. at least 73 nights every year. In a nutshell, the noncustodial parent is authorized to pay the custodial parent monthly child support ranging 40%-60% based on their income calculations, as per family law of Florida.
Factors That Affect Child Support Amount
EXPENSES
The courts scrutinize the standard of living and the needs for the child/ren before the separation/divorce. Child support courts guidelines ensure that the child obtains the same lifestyle even after the divorce. It also ensures that the child does not suffer extreme child care distress.
THE PARENT’S ABILITY TO PAY
Parents must prove they will proportionally provide sufficient child support. The court ensures that the payments are fair to the paying partner’s income. If the payments cannot help child care according to the laws in Florida, the court allows the modification of the child support payment.
NEEDS OF THE CHILD
The first essentials divorced parents must provide for their child include food, decent housing, day care, education, health care, and special needs.
FLORIDA’S BASIC SUPPORT AMOUNT
The courts may order child support payment in amounts varying with more than 5 percent upon a written order explaining why such guideline payments would be insufficient or inappropriate.
Child support guidelines may grant the basis for proving a modification where circumstances have changed. The basic child support amount for a single child in Florida is $74 where the supporting parent earns a minimum wage/salary of $650.
FATHER’S NUMBER OF DAYS WITH THE CHILD
If the mother of the child is the custodial parent, the father has visitation rights of the recommended 73 overnights each year. The basic computation provides alimony payments to the custodial parent, depending on the agreed parenting plan.
If the laid out parenting plan includes a significant amount of time-sharing where both parents take care of the child in equal amounts of time; it necessitates for additional calculations for the partial child custody Average child support.
THE NUMBER OF CHILDREN TO SUPPORT
If there’s a requirement for alimony, the court must determine if the other partner can facilitate child care support payments. In exceptional circumstances, a court may decline to award alimony if the paying spouse cannot afford the required amounts where two or more children are involved.
Florida abides by the “Income Shares Model.” courts approximate the total cash parents would use on their child or children’s welfare if they still lived together as a family. Both parents contribute child support payments, according to their incomes.
For instance, for income over $10,000, the guidelines stipulate the lowest amount based on the following percentages: One child – 5%, two children – 7.5%, 3 children -9.5%, four children – 11%, five children -12% and 6 children up to 12.5%.
Is Child Support All-Inclusive?
In Florida, both parents have a legal duty to support their child within their financial capability to do so. The amount paid for child support is inclusive of all expenses incurred in the custodial parent’s household including the child’s daily food and upkeep expenses, health insurance and the total overnight visitations will factor in the total amount of child support.
What It Means To You
We all know that raising children is costly; the financial obligations may press in on a parent authorized by the courts to fulfill the Florida child support payments. It is unfortunate that a family undergoing financial constraints cannot co-exist together.
Divorce isn’t cheap, and the financial implications leave deep dents with the noncustodial parent. The living standards are lowered after a divorce, leaving courts the full authority to divide the existing scarce resources.
Although many divorced couples learn to adjust to their children’s pressing obligations, these changes require numerous court trips for child support adjustments. Some parents feel too burdened and skip the whole process, despite receiving many court orders.
Florida family courts remain overwhelmingly busy with family law cases, so you need a lawyer to speed up your child support payments.
How A Qualified Florida Family Lawyer Can Help
Although the Florida child support calculator isn’t as mysterious as many believe, it is beneficial for you to ask for professional assistance from our child support lawyers. We help you in filing all the necessary paperwork and ensure that you accurately reveal your gross income as per the legal requirements.
We also help with child support modifications in cases where you received a salary upgrade, or you changed jobs, or if you lost your job. Let us help you manage your child support financial calculations the right way. We are available to fix all your income compilation as well as your tax deductibles as required in any child support payments.
