If you are separating or divorcing in Michigan and you have children together with your spouse, it is likely one party or the other may be required to pay child support. How much will they have to pay and how is this determined? Both are great questions and can be answered by Lansing family law attorney Stuart R. Shafer. If you would like to get a consultation scheduled where this can be discussed in more depth, contact The Law Offices of Stuart R. Shafer P.C. by calling 517-487-6603.
Now, if you are looking to just get an idea as to how much child support you or your partner is going to have to pay, you can use Michigan’s child support calculator to obtain this information. The calculator uses Michigan’s Child Support Formula to determine these amounts as federal law requires the use of a statewide guideline, or formula, to be used for calculating child support amounts. However, it is very important that you remain cognizant of the fact that the support calculation provided by this calculator is “not a support recommendation or a support order,” according to Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services.
You can access the MiChildCupport Calculator now by clicking here and it will take you approximately 30 minutes to obtain a calculation result. Some of the information you are going to need before actually beginning the calculation includes:
- Income information for both parents. The calculator will use both of the parent’s net income to help establish as accurately as possible how much a parent will have available for support. The net income is all income minus the deductions and adjustments permitted in the Michigan Child Support Formula Manual. The following are considered to be forms of income: wages, overtime pay, commissions, bonuses, or other monies from all employers or as a result of employment, distributed profits or payments from profit-sharing, a pension or retirement, an insurance contract, an annuity, trust fund, deferred compensation, retirement account, etc. You can read through the manual to find out what else is considered to be income and how a business owner’s income is used to determine child support payments. When you take your case before a judge, remember that “all relevant aspects of a parent’s financial status are open for consideration when determining support.”
- The number of overnights with each child for both parents.
- Health care and child care information for both parents and/or a custodian.
You have to remember that every family has different circumstances which will have an impact on how much child support each parent is expected to provide so that their child is financially taken care of. While some child support orders require a parent to pay a large amount of money, your child support order will likely differ as it is based on your own personal circumstances.
Now, if you are interested in learning more about child support, the process you must follow to obtain it, or even how to enforce an order that has already been established by the courts, contact our firm today and we will be happy to help you. The Law Offices of Stuart R. Shafer, P.C. provides our services to those residing in Lansing, East Lansing, Okemos, DeWitt, St. Johns, Charlotte, or Grand Ledge and are ready to provide you with the information, advice, and even guidance you might be seeking.
You can reach The Law Offices of Stuart R. Shafer, P.C. at:
1223 Turner Street, #333
Lansing, Michigan 48906
517-487-6603
