Confused about Child Support

timewilltell

The lawyer I spoke with said that CS is based off what they made on average in the last 3 years. Is this true or did i misunderstand him?

My husband is about to be discharged from the military in the next 2 months or so. He doesn't have a job on the outside yet so I have no idea how much he will make compared to what he's been making the last 5 years.

There are pros and cons to remaining married until he is OUT of the military and i'm trying to make the best choice for me and the boys. If CS is based off the last 3 years then it won't matter WHEN i file. If CS is based off the "right now" and he gets a job at mcdonalds then i need to file NOW and not wait.

Thanks

kayladay

My child support was based on right now NOT the past 3 years!

BMenz

It CAN be based on past income if he's staying in the position/has a continuing job (in the same field) that he held while in the military after he's done. It can also be based on POTENTIAL income: using the skills that he has combined with the availability of those types of jobs in his area. 

 In regards to the 3 year time period, it depends on the judge/magistrate that you have overseeing your court case. For me, because BD was not fully employed at the time of our CS court case (he changed jobs to a lesser paying one, right after we broke up, to get out of paying so much in CS) and it backfired.....the magistrate based his court ordered amount on his POTENTIAL earnings for his skills that he had and the jobs available to him in his area.  

eta: either way, whether or not he has a job or not after he gets out, file now. It can take months to even get a court date and the sooner you get information in, the sooner you can get the ball rolling 

supermansmommy

In my state it's based off of current pre-tax income.

FyreFlyeRush

Every state is different. Google child support for your state and choose the OFFICIAL website. Not About, Wikipedia, Ask, etc. 

Here, it's based off net income from all resources with single/1 withholding. 20% for 1, 25% for 2 up to 40% for 5 and a flat assessment beyond 5 kids. Plus, medical insurance reimbursement or coverage. Marriage, cohabitation, visitation and mediation all affect it. 

NDSalesGirl

It depends not only on the state but the job. example: H works in the oil field, ss BM has seen all the news articles saying that in the oil field you can make $100,000+ per year, and she feels she deserves more child support than she is getting. She had an investigation done into his income, and they asked for the last 3 pay stubs. she was not happy to see that he didnt make what she thought and said we were hiding some of his income, as he has a new vehicle, I have a new vehicle, and we own our own home. We then had to submit W2's from 2011 to prove that yes, this is what DH is making for the year. BM failed to take into account that I have a high paying job as well, and my income does not go to pay her living expenses.