When a Dallas couple chooses to part ways and there are children from the relationship, one of the issues that will frequently arise is how much child support must be paid. This is true when the couple was married or was simply in a relationship without marrying. Having an understanding as to how child support is determined, issues that might be in dispute and what circumstances are important when making post-divorce modifications to an order is key to both the custodial and noncustodial parent.
In Texas, the amount of child support will be contingent on how much the noncustodial parent earns. The net income, after taxes, will be used to come to a conclusion on the child support order. For parents who have one child, the noncustodial parent will have to pay 20 percent of the net income. With two children, it will be 25 percent. If there are three children, it will be 30 percent. Four children will require 35 percent. And those with five or more children will pay 40 percent of their net income.
The court does not care whether or not the noncustodial parent is working when making this order. The parent will still be ordered to pay child support. Parents are advised to be as upfront as possible about their income when dealing with the court. In some instances, noncustodial parents who are ordered to pay child support also have other children who reside with them. Children who are living in separate households will mean that the guidelines are altered depending on the number of children the parent has. Informing the Office of the Attorney General about this situation is imperative as it will affect the order.
Often, child support is part of a marriage that has come undone. Whether the case hinges around divorce legal issues and post-divorce modifications in an effort to change an order or the couple was unmarried and has a child or children, there is one key that both noncustodial and custodial parents must remember: it is highly beneficial to have an experienced divorce attorney when moving forward with a child support case.
Source: texasattorneygeneral.gov, “Handbook For Noncustodial Parents – pages 6-7,” accessed on March 24, 2016
