If you’re like most people in a separation, divorce, or family law case, you’re probably wondering about the issue of child support in Ontario.
You are entitled to get child support if your children live with you most of the time or on a full-time basis. On the other hand, you must pay child support to the other parent when the children do not live with you the majority of the time.
I don’t have to tell you that you need the advice of a veteran family law and divorce lawyer to help make sure the right amount of child support is paid in your particular case.
When you come to consultation with Thomas O’Malley, an experienced family lawyer, you will find out exactly what amount of child support should be paid in your situation. He will help sort out your family law problems so that you can get some peace of mind and move on with your life.
Call Thomas O’Malley now at (905) 434-8837 to set up your initial consultation. You can breathe easier with his solid family law advice.
How Do You Calculate the Amount of Child Support
in a Family Law Case?
How is child support calculated or determined in Ontario? The Ontario government in 1997 brought in the Child Support Guidelines. These are not really just guidelines since the Ontario courts and family law lawyers must follow these guidelines; these Guidelines are not optional.
The Child Support Guidelines represent the law of Ontario respecting the payment of child support in this province.
The Child Support Guidelines set out the amount of child support to be paid when you have one or more children based on a parent’s gross yearly income. For example, if you have two children living with you on a full-time basis and your spouse earns a gross income of $60,000 a year, your spouse must pay you $915 a month in child support for your two children.
Make sure you find out your spouse’s ongoing gross income without any tax and employment insurance deductions so that you can determine the proper amount of child support that your spouse must pay to you.
When you are obligated to pay child support, you also want to ensure that you are paying the right amount of child support.
A Typical Example of Child Support Payments
When your children live with your spouse on a full-time basis, you will pay the full amount of child support to the other parent based on the Child Support Guidelines. If you earn a gross income of $72,000 per year and your two children live with your former spouse on a full-time basis, you must pay $1,097 a month in child support to your former spouse.
How Access To Your Children Affects Your Child Support
However, increasingly, parents are sharing children on a more equal basis. This certainly affects the amount of child support that a parent must pay to the other spouse.
For example, parents will often have the children on a “week-about” basis. This means that a parent will have the children for one week and then the other parent will have the children the following week and this pattern continues on a regular basis.
In this “week-about” situation, the parent who earns a higher gross income will pay child support to the lower-income parent on a set-off basis. For example, if one parent would pay $1036 in child support for two children based on an annual gross income of $68,000 and the other parent would pay $674 a month in child support for two children based on an annual gross income of $45,000, the higher-earning parent would pay a set-off amount of $362 ($1036-$674= $362) a month in child support to the other parent.
Are you beginning to see how child support can cost you thousands of dollars if you don’t properly figure out the right amount of child support to be paid in your separation or divorce?
Here’s a fact for you: You can quickly and easily figure out the right amount of child support in your separation or family law case when you meet with experienced family law and divorce lawyer Thomas O’Malley.
The important thing is you know your family law rights before you go to court or sign a separation agreement.
Call Thomas O’Malley today at (905) 434-8837 to protect your legal rights and determine the right amount of child support in your situation. There is no time like now.
Another Example of a Child Support Scenario
Children have traditionally lived with one parent most of the time. For example, in one common situation, one parent will have access to his children every second weekend from Friday night to Sunday night and some access during the week. The parent who does not have his children reside with him-the non-custodial parent- must pay child support to the other spouse with whom the children reside.
The purpose of child support is to pay for the normal living expenses for a child, including a place to live-rent, clothing, and food.
The provincial and federal governments introduced Child Support Guidelines in 1997. The federal government introduced specific Child Support Guidelines for divorces under the federal Divorce Act. The Province of Ontario introduced in 1997 identical Child Support Guidelines for parents who pursued their separation under the Ontario Family Law Act.
A non-custodial parent must pay child support to the custodial parent pursuant to the Child Support Guidelines. The Child Support Guidelines are mandatory. The court will order a non-custodial parent to pay the appropriate amount of child support pursuant to the Child Support Guidelines based on their income if a non-custodial parent does not consent to pay the appropriate amount of child support.
The Child Support Guidelines apply to a non-custodial parent regardless whether the non-custodial parent was married to custodial parent, lived common-law with the custodial parent, or simply had a short-term relationship with the custodial parent.
The Child Support Guidelines specifically establish how much money a non-custodial parent must pay for child support based on his income and the number of children. For example, if a non-custodial parent earns $92,500 per year and he has 3 children, he must pay $1802 per month for child support to the custodial parent. In another example, if a non-custodial parent earns $80,000 per year and he has 2 children, he must pay $1211 per month for child support.
In many cases, the parents have joint custody of the children. However, the primary residence of the children is with one of the parents. In this case, the parent who does not have primary residence of the children must pay child support to the primary residence parent.
In other words, whether the parents have joint custody or one parent has sole custody of the children, the parent who does not have primary residence of the children must pay child support to the other parent.
What happens if one parent has one child living with him and the other parent has another child living with her? Where each parent has one or more children living with him or her, the amount of child support is the difference between the amount that each parent would otherwise pay if a child support order were made against each of the parents.
For example, if the father earns $85,000 and he has his son living with him and the mother earns $35,000 and she has her daughter living with her, the husband would pay $488 per month to his wife for child support. The father would have to pay $792 per month in child support for his daughter based on his $85,000 annual income and the mother would have to pay $304 per month in child support for her son based on her $35,000 annual income. The difference between these two child support figures is $488-the amount of child support that the father must pay to the mother in this case.
Shared Custody and Payment of Child Support
Joint parenting arrangements in which children spend half of their time with one parent and half of their time with the other parent are increasingly common in today’s society. This definitely affects the amount of child support that a parent must pay to the other parent.
Section 9 of the Child Support Guidelines specifically deals with the payment of child support in a joint parenting arrangement:
Where a spouse exercises a right of access to, or has physical custody of, a child for not less than 40 per cent of the time over the course of a year, the amount of the child support order must be determined by taking into account
- the amounts set out in the applicable child support tables for each of the spouses;
- the increased costs of shared custody arrangements; and
- the conditions, means, needs and other circumstances of each spouse and of any child for whom support is sought.
Section 9 requires a two-part determination: first, establishing that the 40 per cent threshold has been met; and second, where it has been met, determining the appropriate amount of child support.
Does A Parent Have Physical Custody Of A Child For 40 Per Cent Of
The Time Or More During The Course Of A Year?
A parent will often want to reduce the amount of child support that they have to pay for child support when they have physical custody of the child for a significant amount of time during the course of a year.
Section 9 of the Child Support Guidelines requires a parent to have physical custody of the child for 40 per cent of the time or more during the course of a year. How does a parent figure out whether they have a child living with them for 40 per cent of the time or more? Proof of 40 per cent physical custody lies on the parent who is paying child support to the other parent. Generally, a parent should count days as opposed to hours to determine whether they have physical custody of the child for 40 per cent of the time or more.
The actual calculation of the amount of time that a parent had physical custody of her son in a recent case provides helpful guidance for parents in determining the 40 per cent threshold question.
The son’s summer vacation period lasted for nine weeks. The parents split each week with their son during the summer vacation period so that the mother’s share of physical custody for the summer was four and a half weeks. The mother had the son for one week during the two-week Christmas vacation and half the week during the March break.
During a 20-week period, the mother had physical custody of her son from Friday after school until 8:30 or 9:00 a.m. on Monday when school started. The mother had the son for approximately 65 ½ hours during these weeks. The trial judge credited the mother with three days of physical custody of the son although the total number of hours was slightly less than 72 hours.
During the other 20-week period, the mother had physical custody of her son from after school on Friday until Saturday at 4:00 p.m. The trial judge credited the mother with one day of physical custody of her son during these weeks.
The mother had physical custody of her son on Tuesday of every week from after school until she returned her son to school the next morning during a 40-week period. The trial judge credited the mother with one full day although the actual 17 ½ hours was less than 24 hours.
In summary, the mother had physical custody of her son for these number of days:
| Summer, Christmas and March Break | 42 days |
| Long weekends at 3 days | 60 days |
| Short weekends at 1 day | 20 days |
| Tuesdays at 1 day | 40 days |
| 162 days |
The trial judge concluded that the mother had physical custody of her son for over 44 per cent of the time during the course of the year so that the mother satisfied the 40 per cent threshold test.
The next question is the calculation of the actual amount of child support payable in shared custody arrangements.
How To Determine The Actual Amount Of Child Support
In Shared Custody Arrangements
When a parent has established that they have the child for 40 per cent of the time or more over the course of the year, the factors set out in section 9 of the Child Support Guidelines must be applied to determine the amount of child support that one parent must pay to the other parent. The court will first use the set off approach in section 9(a) of the Child Support Guidelines.
The set-off approach involves setting off the amount of child support that one parent has to pay for one child pursuant to the Child Support Guidelines based on their annual income against the amount of child support that the other spouse must pay for one child based on their annual income in accordance with the Child Support Guidelines.
For example, if one parent earns $120,000 per year and they have one child, they must pay $1068 per month in child support for this child based on the Child Support Guidelines. The other parent has an annual income $65,000 per year. This parent must pay $605 per month in child support for one child pursuant to the Child Support Guidelines. The child support amount of $1068 per month is set off against the child support amount of $605 per month so that the higher-earning parent must pay $463 per month for child support to the other parent.
This set-off amount of child support can be modified when there is a big difference in the standard of living that a child experiences in one parent’s household compared to the standard of living that he or she experiences in the other parent’s household. As far as possible, the courts will not permit a child to suffer a noticeable decline in his or her standard of living.
Then you must look at the actual budgets and expenses of each parent in dealing with the needs of the child. These expenses will be apportioned between the parties in accordance with their respective incomes.
The final factor involves looking at the resources and needs of both the parents and the children. The key point is to figure out how to maintain a reasonable standard of living of the children in each separate household and the ability of each parent to pay for and maintain a reasonable standard of living.
The Supreme Court of Canada applied this formula in a shared custody case. The father in this case had an income of $87,315. He would have to pay $688 per month for child support for his son pursuant to the Child Support Guidelines. The mother would have to pay $560 per month for child support for her son based on her annual income of $68,802. The set off amount was $128 per month pursuant to section 9(a) of the Child Support Guidelines.
The next step under section 9(b) of the Child Support Guidelines requires using the ratio of income between the parents. In this case, the ratio of income was 56:44 so that the father was responsible for 56 percent of the total child related expenses and the mother was responsible for 44 percent of the total child related expenses.
The father’s monthly expenses for his son was $1,814 based on his child expense budget and the mother’s monthly expense for her son was $1,916 based on her child expense budget. The total child related expenses for both parents combined was $3,730 so that the father would be responsible for $2089 per month (56% of the total child related expenses) and the mother would be responsible for $1,641 per month (44% of the total child related expenses).
The father was already contributing $1,814 per month towards his son’s expenses. He would be required to pay the mother an additional sum of $275. The father would have to pay this additional $275 per month to the mother based only on the sharing of child-related expenses apportioned against the income of the parents.
You must next look at section 9(c) of the Child Support Guidelines which involves the conditions, means, needs and other circumstances of each spouse and of any child for whom support is sought. The Supreme Court looked at the individual circumstances of the mother and father pursuant to section 9(c) of the Child Support Guidelines.
In this same case, the father was paying over $500 per month in child support to the mother for a number of years. The mother moved to a new house in 2000 in the reasonable expectation that she would continue to receive $563 per month or more from the father.
The Supreme Court explained that the mother “was legitimately relying on the [child] support payment she was receiving from the father pursuant to the earlier arrangements made between them. [The father] could not have ignored that.” As a result of this situation, the Supreme Court concluded that the father must pay $500 per month for child support.
How To Find Out and Protect Your Legal Rights
in Your Separation, Divorce or Family Law Case
Everyday starting now you’ll feel the relief and peace of mind you have come to the right place to discover everything you need to know to protect your legal rights and get a settlement in your separation or divorce.
Imagine feeling totally relaxed and prepared since you now have the help of an experienced family law and divorce lawyer on your side to solve your legal issues.
Here’s a fact for you:When you call Thomas O’Malley, an experienced family law and divorce lawyer, today at (905) 434-8837, you are taking the first important step to start solving your family law issues.
Just feel that sense of frustration disappearing because you understand how to protect your family law rights after you come to your initial consultation with Mr. O’Malley.
What could be more important than protecting your legal rights in this difficult time in your life?
Call (905) 434-8837now to start enjoying some peace of mind knowing that you are doing the right thing to defend your family law rights.