Child support, or payments given that help provide food, clothing, shelter, and other aspects of a healthy life to your children, can be one of the largest expenses to consider following a separation from the other parent of your child. Understanding how these payments are calculated can help you plan ahead, as well as understand what your financial options are.
Calculating Child Support in Indiana
Child support calculations can differ depending on the state of residence, so it’s important to look specifically at Indiana child support calculations. In Indiana, the guidelines regulating child support payment amounts are factored using the weekly gross income of each parent.
Weekly gross income is defined as actual weekly gross income of the parent if employed to full capacity, potential income if unemployed or underemployed, and the value of “in kind” benefits received by the parent. This includes income from any source except benefits from means tested public assistance programs, including, but not limited to, Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Security Income, and Food Stamps. Also excluded are survivor benefits received by or for other children residing in either parent’s home..
Weekly Gross Income can include:
- Wages or salaries from a job including commissions, bonuses, and overtime
- Partnership distributions
- Income from rental properties
- Social Security, disability, unemployment, worker’s compensation, or Veteran’s benefits
- Pensions, interest, trust income, annuities, or royalties
- Imputed income, which refers to company perks such as housing, stipends, or use of a corporate car
Once weekly gross income is determined, the next step of calculations is determining the parent’s weekly child-related expenses. These expenses include things like support for prior born children, work-related childcare expenses, and health insurance premiums for the child.
It’s important to note that if a parent is making a low income, or has no job, then their weekly gross income may be determined by calculating their earning potential. This is to ensure that someone isn’t avoiding working solely to avoid having to pay child support.
How Much Is Child Support?
Once weekly gross income and expenses are entered, the number of overnights each parent exercises will determine the final calculation. The more a parent makes, and the more children they have, then the larger their payments will be.
For example, if your gross weekly income, after expenses, was $2,000, then your payments could be:
- One child: $304 per week
- Two children: $446 per week
- Three children: $570 per week
However, note that there are caps on the amount of child support that a parent will have to pay. Generally, a maximum payment cannot exceed 50% of their gross weekly income, after expenses, no matter how many children they have. In the above example, if you have 6 children, your payment would likely be capped at $1,000 per week.
Are There Other Costs in Addition to Child Support?
In addition to child support, the supporting parent must also consider a child’s medical expenses. The obligated parent must provide medical insurance for their child, as long as it is available at what is deemed a reasonable cost. Reasonable cost is set at 6% or less of the weekly adjusted gross income. If the parent is unable to provide insurance, they must pay a child’s medical bills out of pocket.
When Do Child Support Payments End?
Generally, child support payments end when a child is deemed legally an adult. In Indiana, this is typically when a child turns 19 years of age.
Instances when child support may also stop include:
When a child is emancipated- They are on active duty in the military
- If a child is 18 and has not attended an educational institution in the preceding 4 months, a parent can apply to terminate child support payments
- When a child is adopted
When a child is Note that if a child is physically or mentally incapacitated, then child support payments may continue indefinitely.
When Should You Contact a Child Custody Lawyer to Help?
Child custody support lawyers can help parents on both sides of child support. If you are the parent of a child and the obligated parent has missed child support payments, you are entitled to those missing payments and a child custody and support attorney can help.
Additionally, if you are the obligated parent, a child custody and support lawyer can help you understand the support payments that you owe, help you petition the court if support payments are no longer feasible, and help you in cases where child support and custody have not yet been determined.
The caring and experienced team at Zentz & Roberts will bring their years of working in the child custody and support system to support you and represent your legal parental rights. For a free initial consultation, call our Indianapolis law office at 317-220-6056.