What Is Child Support?
If you and your partner recently separated and you share one or more children, you may be wondering about child support. Under Florida law, both parents are obligated to provide support for their minor children, regardless of whether they were married or not.
Child support is intended to pay for the children’s necessities, such as housing, water, electricity, food, and clothing. Child support is not dependent on visitation, and vice versa—the paying parent can’t withhold support because he or she isn’t being allowed to see the children, and the receiving parent can’t withhold visitation because he or she isn’t being paid the proper amount of support.
How Is Child Support Calculated?
When calculating how much child support each parent is required to provide, Florida courts rely on the Florida Child Support Guidelines. These guidelines take a number of factors into consideration, including:
- Each parent’s income
- The time-sharing schedule
- Childcare costs
- Health insurance costs
Although courts will sometimes deviate from the child support guidelines, it’s rare for them to do so, and they must have a legal basis for the deviation.
Tampa Bay’s Premier Family Law Attorneys
If you require assistance with a child support matter, you can turn to the Law Offices of Audrey A. Jefferis, P.A., a trusted family law firm that serves clients throughout Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Hernando Counties. Our skilled attorneys have extensive experience handling child support cases and will help you navigate this sometimes-confusing area of the law. We also provide assistance with child support modifications. Contact us today to schedule a consultation—we have offices in New Port Richey and Palm Harbor.