Let’s Talk Child Support

If you are involved in a divorce with children or a “child custody” suit you will talk about child support. In Texas we base support on the income of the person who would be paying child support. Below is a table to illustrate the percentages that are used based on the number of children:

So how do we determine who pays child support? The typical scenario is one parent designates the primary residence of the children and receives child support from the other parent. Then we look at the paying parent’s income and determine their net income. Net income is not the same as the net income you receive on your paycheck because the only deductions allowed for purposes of child support are Social Security taxes, Medicare taxes, and Federal Income Tax. If you provide health insurance for the child, a deduction for the cost of the insurance of the child is allowed. After determining net income we determine the number of children involved and apply the percentage in the table above to the net income.