FAQs Written By Professionals in Florida

"Who decides how much child support is enough? What if the other parent and I cannot agree on the amount of child support?"

The court determines the amount of child support based upon the Florida Child Support Guidelines pursuant to Florida Statutes § 61.30. Under the Florida Child Support Guidelines, the steps for determining the amount of child support are:

1. Each parent's gross monthly net income (gross income minus the allowable deductions, which are detailed in the statute). Gross income includes all income earned by the parent, including benefits received that reduce the parent's living expenses;

2. The parent's net incomes are added together to produced a combined net income. Each parent's net income is then divided by the combined net income to determine a percentage obligation for each parent;

3. The schedule under Florida Statutes $61.30 provides the minimum child support obligation based on the parents’ combined net income and the number of children. The amount is multiplied by the percentage obligation to obtain an actual dollar amount of support for each parent;

4. To this basic support amount are added:
      a. 75% of monthly care costs;
      b. health insurance costs for the children and expenses for non covered medical and dental care and prescription drugs for the children.

5. The court may adjust the child support amount, up or down, taking into consideration the time sharing arrangement, the cost of exercising visitation, the independent income of the child, seasonable variations in income, etc.