As Toronto Family Lawyers, our clients often ask us about child support. The most common question we get is “how much child support do I have to pay?”. This is not always a simple question for our child support lawyers to answer. In Ontario, the amount of child support someone pays depends on many factors. Where are the children primarily living? Does the paying parent earn over $150,000 per year? Are there any special or extraordinary expenses to consider? Does the paying parent have other financial obligations such as other children that could affect his or her ability to pay child support?
The Child Support Guidelines offer a starting point in calculating the basic amount of child support the paying parent is to pay. A link to the online calculator tool can be found here https://www.amglaw.ca/links/. Child support is based on gross annual income. The first exercise is therefore determining the paying parent’s annual income. This could be difficult if that parent is self-employed or working in a “cash” based industry. It is advisable to speak with a Toronto Divorce Lawyer as they are experienced in investigating these sorts of incomes. A good child support lawyer will be able to investigate the paying parent’s lifestyle and spending habits in order to determine his or her proper income for child support purposes.
If you know the paying parent’s annual income, and the children are primarily living with one parent, the online calculator tool will give you a good idea of how much monthly child support the paying parent should pay. This child support amount is meant to provide a contribution towards the children’s “necessities”, including food, clothing, and shelter. It is referred to as the “Table amount” of child support.
What happens when the children spend substantial time with both parents? This could affect the amount of child support paid from one parent to the other. If the children spend close to equal time with both parents, there could be a set-off of child support, with each parent paying support to the other based on their income and the Child Support Guidelines. For example, assume there is one child who spends equal time with both parents. The mother earns $75,000 per year and the father earns $60,000 per year. In this scenario, the mother would pay Table child support to the father in the amount of $700 per month and the father would Table pay child support to the mother in the amount of $556 per month. This results in a payment of $144 per month from the mother to the father.
The monthly child support prescribed by the Child Support Guidelines does not consider some additional expenses associated with raising children. These expenses, such as childcare, medical costs not otherwise covered by insurance, dental and orthodontic fees, extracurricular activities, university tuition, and many others, are referred to as Section 7 expenses (as they fall under Section 7 of the Child Support Guidelines). These expenses are generally shared proportionately between the parents, in addition to the Table child support amount. What is considered a Section 7 expense varies from family to family, just as the financial means of every family is varied. In order to properly determine what is and is not a Section 7 expense for your family, you should consider speaking with one of our affordable family lawyers, as this can be a very complex issue.
There are some scenarios when the court will not follow the Child Support Guidelines. If the paying parent has other significant financial obligations, such as other children to support, or if paying child support pursuant to the Child Support Guidelines would put the paying parent in financial hardship, a court may order a lower monthly child support amount to be paid. If the paying parent’s income is higher than $150,000 per year, a court may order a higher monthly child support amount to be paid. If the paying parent is intentionally underemployed, child support lawyers can make a case to impute income to that parent so that a proper child support amount can be ordered.
Determining the proper amount of Table child support and Section 7 expenses is not the end of this process. The amount of child support paid should be revisited every year, with the paying parent providing financial disclosure to the other parent. If there is a significant change in the paying parent’s income, child support should be adjusted.
When does child support end? It is often thought that child support terminates when a child reaches the age of 18. This is not necessarily the case. There is no rule setting out when child support ends. It is different for every family. Generally speaking, child support terminates when a child is no longer considered at law to be a “child of the marriage”. This could be when a child is 16 and leaves home. It could be when a child graduates from high school and starts working full-time and is able to support themselves. It could be when a child completes their first university degree. Like everything else, the end date for child support depends on your family situation. Experienced family lawyers will be able to provide you with guidance on this issue.
If there is an order for child support, and you believe that your child support obligation has ended, you will need to take steps to have the child support order terminated. If you do not take this important step, it could result in you continuing to pay child support for many months or years, as orders in Ontario do not usually expire. Our team of experienced child support lawyers can help you determine if your child support obligation has ended. If you need assistance from some of the best family lawyers in Toronto regarding the issue of child support (or any other issue), then please contact us at 416-519-5552 or at info@amglaw.ca and one of our lawyers will get back to you immediately.