How Is Child Support Calculated When Parents Have 50/50 Custody?

 Posted on December 10, 2021 in Child Support

Parents have the obligation to provide financial support for their children. To ensure that children will have the resources that will fully address their ongoing needs, child support will usually be ordered in cases where married parents choose to divorce or when unmarried parents are separated. In many of these cases, one parent will have primary physical custody, meaning that children will live with them the majority of the time, and this parent will usually receive child support payments from the other parent. However, there are some situations where parents may have equal or 50/50 custody, and determining the parents’ child support obligations in these cases can be more complex.

Child Support and Shared Physical Care

In Illinois, child support obligations are calculated by taking the income earned by both parents into account. These obligations are determined by considering the amount that married parents would usually be expected to spend on child-related expenses. The state of Illinois uses tables that detail the appropriate amount of support based on parents’ combined income and their number of children.

In most cases, the amount of child support determined using these tables will be divided between parents, with each parent being responsible for a percentage of the amount of child support based on the income they earn. That is, if a parent earns 30 percent of the couple’s combined income, they will be responsible for 30 percent of the child support obligation, and the other parent will be responsible for 70 percent of the obligation. When one parent is the custodial parent, the other parent will make child support payments to them.

When parents share equal custody, additional calculations will be necessary. Illinois law states that “shared physical care” applies in cases where children have overnight parenting time with each parent at least 146 days in a year. In any situation where a parent has between 40 and 50 percent of the parenting time, child support obligations will be calculated as follows:

1. The basic child support obligation will be determined based on the parents' combined income and their number of children, and each parent’s portion of this obligation will be determined based on the percentage of the combined income they earn.

2. Each parent’s child support obligation will be multiplied by 1.5 to address the duplication of certain expenses when children are living in each parent’s home.

3. Each parent’s child support obligation will be multiplied by the other parent’s percentage of yearly overnight parenting time. That is, if parents have 50/50 custody, each parent’s obligation will be multiplied by .5.

4. The resulting amounts will be offset, with the lower amount being subtracted from the higher amount. The result will be the amount of child support that one parent will pay to the other.

Contact Our St. Charles Child Support Lawyers

If you expect to share equal custody of your children with the other parent, you will want to make sure all relevant factors are considered when calculating child support obligations. In addition to the amount determined using the calculations described above, you will also need to divide medical and extracurricular expenses, as well as certain other types of child-related costs. At Goostree Law Group, we can work with you to make sure these issues are addressed correctly, and we will make sure your child’s best interests are protected in the decisions made during your case. Contact our Kane County child support attorneys at 630-584-4800 to schedule your free consultation today.

Source:

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/documents/075000050k505.htm