How Is Child Support Determined When Parents Share Placement?

 Posted on October 22, 2021 in Family Law

By: Attorney Max Stephenson

In cases where parents are no longer in a relationship, both parents will be required to support their children financially. While child support is a factor in situations where married parents get divorced, it may also need to be established in other cases, such as when unmarried parents end their relationship. The laws in Wisconsin use a “percentage of income” standard to determine the amount of child support obligations, and the amount paid by the paying parent is calculated by taking a percentage of their gross monthly income based on the number of children being supported. However, this may not address situations where children will spend significant amounts of time in both parents’ homes. In these cases, some additional calculations will need to be performed to determine the parents’ child support obligations.

Child Support in Shared Placement Situations

If a child custody order states that both parents will have physical placement of their children at least 25% of the time, meaning that children stay with each parent for at least 92 days per year, child support obligations will be determined for both parents using the percentage of income standard. Each parent’s obligation will be multiplied by 150 percent to account for the duplication of certain expenses in both parents’ homes. Each parent’s amount will then be multiplied by the percentage of time the children spend with the other parent. The amounts will be offset to determine the amount that one parent will pay to the other.

For example, consider a situation where Parent A makes $1,000 per month, Parent B makes $2,500 per month, the couple has two children, and the children will live with each parent 50 percent of the time. Under the percentage of income standard, child support obligations are 25% of a parent’s gross income. Parent A’s obligation is $250, and Parent B’s obligation is $625. After multiplying each parent’s income by 150 percent and then by 50 percent, Parent A’s obligation is $187.50, and Parent B’s obligation is $468.75. After subtracting $187.50 from $468.75, the result is $281.25, which is the amount that Parent B would pay to Parent A.

Contact Our Milwaukee, WI Child Support Lawyers

Determining child support obligations can be complicated. In addition to making calculations based on parents’ incomes, there are multiple other factors that may need to be considered, including whether deductions may apply or how parents will share other costs of raising their children, such as medical care or child care. At Gimbel, Reilly, Guerin & Brown, LLP, we can make sure all of these factors will be addressed properly, ensuring that your child will have the necessary financial support and that you will also have the resources that will allow you to meet your needs. Contact our Milwaukee family law attorneys at 414-271-1440 to arrange a free consultation and learn more about how we can help with your case.

Source:

https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/code/admin_code/dcf/101_199/150