There are four adjustments that can have an impact on the amount of child support owed by a parent: preexisting child support obligations and responsibility for other children, payments for health insurance premiums, work-related child care costs, and extraordinary expenses for a child’s medical bills, education, transportation and the like.
- The deduction from gross income for preexisting obligations refers to the amount an individual is bound to pay pursuant to an existing court order or separation agreement.
- The deduction for responsibility for other children refers to the money paid to support other minor children from either the current marriage or a previous one.
- The health insurance deduction takes into account the employee’s cost to insure the minor child. Work-related child care costs are deducted at a rate of only 75%, thus taking into account the 25% federal tax credit for child care. “Work-related” daycare costs include not only those costs related to the parent’s working but also to the parent’s looking for work.
- Finally, extraordinary expenses encompass a child’s out of the ordinary medical, educational, and transportation expenses, whether permanent or temporary. If the expenses are short-term, this should be noted on both the worksheet and within any court order.
