NEW YORK CHILD SUPPORT

New York Child Support Guidelines state that children are entitled to receive financial support from their parents. All parents, whether divorced, never married, or parents whose children have been placed in Foster Care are liable to pay support for their children.

The Federal Government requires each state to establish “child support guidelines.” By doing so, the federal government has maintained a goal of increasing the consistency and predictability of child support awards and also insuring that amount of support paid is adequate. Both the states and the federal government believe that in establishing “child support guidelines”, the level of compliance in paying support will increase because the amounts awarded will be much more fair to the parent paying the support.

While the guidelines vary from state to state, but they are all generally based on the parents' incomes, expenses and the needs of the children. Often, the guidelines calculate the child support amount as a percentage of the paying parent's income that increases with the number of children being supported. In some instances, the amount can deviate from the guidelines, if there are very good reasons for the deviation.

While each state may calculate the amount of support to be paid, each states guidelines should take into consideration:

* The present and future needs of the child,

* A parent's other dependents, and

* The ability of the other non-custodial parent to pay


Written by Becky L. Caruso, Esq.

NEW YORK CHILD SUPPORT