Learn More>>Child Support>>How To Calculate

In the new 2007 Georgia Child Support Guidelines, "gross income" is a key part in determining what custodial parent and non-custodial parent's child support payments and obligations will be.

The first step that the Court looks to in deciding child support payments is to identify each parent's gross income. Then, gross income can be adjusted if a parent is self-employed and pays both sides of the self-employment tax or if either parent is currently paying child support for another child. In a Georgia child support modification petition, the income of a spouse or cohabitant of a parent is not considered for purposes of calculating the Georgia Child Support Guidelines.

Once gross income is adusted, the next step in determing child support payments under the new Georgia Child Support guidelines is to combine the two adjusted gross incomes of each parent to obtain the combined adjusted income. The Georgia Legislature has developed a table that states the total amount of money that should be devoted from the combined adjusted income for the child(ren). For instance, if the parents combined gross income is $5,000.00 and there is one child, the total child support obligation would be $917.00 before accounting for any other facts that would alter the child support obligation.

After a child support obligation is decided using the Georgia Child support tables, the next step in calculating the non-custodial's child support obligations is to determine the percentage that each parent contributes toward the combined adjusted income. For instance, if the non-custodial parent in the above example makes $36,000.00 per year and the custodial parent makes $24,000.00 per year, the percentages are 60 percent for the non-custodial parent and 40 percent for the custodial parent.

Find the adjusted child support obligation amount by adding the additional expenses of the costs of health insurance and work related child care costs, prorating such expenses in accordance with each parent's pro rata share of the obligation and adding such expenses to the pro rata share of the obligation.

The monthly cost of health insurance premiums and work related child care costs are also considered when calculating Georgia child support obligations. The pro rata share of the basic child support obligation and the pro rata share of the combined additional expenses shall be added together to create the adjusted child support obligation. Adjustments are made by assigning or deducting credit for actual payments for health insurance and work related child care costs.

 The Georgia Child Support Guidelines are just that--guidelines. For every rule, there is an exception (or ten) that complicate matters. Below is a list of certain facts, that if exist, would provide the basis for requesting that the final child support obligation be altered.

       (A) High income;

       (B) Low income;

       (C) Other health related insurance;

       (D) Child and dependent care tax credit;

       (E) Travel expenses;

       (F) Alimony;

       (G) Mortgage;

       (H) Permanency plan or foster care plan;

       (I) Extraordinary expenses;

       (J) Nonspecific deviations; and

       (K) Parenting time;

The final child support order shall be the presumptive amount of child support as increased or decreased by deviations. The final child support amount for each parent shall be entered on the child support worksheet, together with the information from each of the utilized schedules;

In addition, the parents shall allocate the uninsured health care expenses which shall be based on the pro rata responsibility of the parents or as otherwise ordered by the court. Each parent's pro rata responsibility for uninsured health care expenses shall be entered on the child support worksheet.


Request a consultation now. Contact Atlanta Family Lawyer Now