What Factors Can Lead to a Child Support Modification?

State courts and state child support agencies issue child support orders based on the most current financial statements and custodial arrangements of parents. These orders typically remain static until formal, legal modifications are made. Loss of income, loss of earning ability, changes in parenting time, and the birth or adoption of new children are some of the many factors that could lead to a child support modification.

Changes in Income, Cost of Living, and Needs

According to federal law, every parent has the right to request a child support review every three years or 36 months. There’s no need to prove significant changes in your personal circumstances to request a cyclic review. These reviews acknowledge that time has passed, and that even minor changes in time spent with children, childcare costs, and other factors could bear weight on order amounts.

Several factors might cause temporary changes in income that affect a person’s ability to pay or the amount they can pay in between cyclic reviews. For instance, a person recovering from a serious auto accident might not be physically able to work for several months or more. But when their recovery is complete and they resume full- or part-time employment, a child support modification will accurately reflect their ability to contribute.

Whether their effects are short or long-term, disabling events and debilitating illnesses frequently lead to lower support amounts or no ongoing support requirements. But even in extreme cases of illness or injury, under federal law (the Bradley Amendment), states cannot retroactively erase child support arrears that build up before motions are filed. Whenever changes in a person’s ability to pay occur, it’s best to report them right away.

Job loss, demotion, and promotion are all causes to request child support modifications even if three years haven’t passed since the last cyclic review. Each of these things can affect how much obligors can reasonably pay while still covering their own basic living expenses.

Changes in the overall cost of living affect both parents equally. When local gas prices, food prices, and rent rise for obligees, they rise for obligors as well. For this reason, increases in the general cost of living rarely trigger child support order modifications on their own, even when they’re significant. However, certain factors relating to cost of living increases could result in order modifications if reported. These include dramatic increases in essential childcare costs, and any drastic, involuntary changes in rent or other housing costs.

To account for the impacts of cost of living increases on childcare, medical coverage, and basic housing costs, some states build cost of living adjustments (COLAs) directly into child support orders. When these COLA clauses exist, child support amounts automatically increase or decrease based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or other economic trackers. If you currently have a child support order and want to incorporate a COLA clause, consult with an experienced family law attorney like those at Davis & Associates.

There are also changes in personal cost of living due to adjustments in household size that can impact order amounts. Having or adopting a new child or taking on an adult dependent is also a good reason to request an order modification.

Changes in a child’s needs are another reason to request a child support modification. If your work schedule or work location changes and you need childcare or no longer need it, you can request to have your order modified. States can modify orders when school-age children no longer require afterschool care, when the costs of caring for growing children decline, and when children within multi-child child support orders naturally age out (upon reaching the age of 18 or graduating high school).

Unfortunately, just like adults, children can experience disabling or debilitating injuries and events that greatly impact their care requirements. Parents can request changes in child support when their children develop medical or care needs that aren’t covered by personal injury claims. The courts can determine obligors’ fair share of the resulting out-of-pocket costs.

Changes in Custody or Parenting Time

Contrary to popular belief, sharing custody equally does not eliminate the need for child support orders. Income disparities could cause a child to experience a drastically different quality of life when spending time with a low-earning parent. With a 50/50 split of custodial time and one parent earning far more than the other, the courts use a shared custody cross-credit to determine the support amount.

Along with income and expenses, time spent actively parenting children is one of the top factors that determines order amounts. This is especially true when parents don’t have dramatic differences in income. If an order is established when the obligee has custody of the child 80% of the time, the obligor should request an order modification if they now have custody of the child 60% of the time. When a child consistently spends more time with the person who pays child support, the order amount should go down.

In most states, children naturally age out and no longer require child support upon turning 18 and completing high school. The age cap for completing high school in many states is 19. States typically end child support obligations based on whichever comes last: graduation or the child’s 18th birthday. For instance, if a child turns 18 in April but graduates in June of that same year, the requirement to pay child support will end in June. But for multi-child child support orders, order amounts don’t automatically drop by precise fractions when one child ages out. Instead, obligors must file administrative requests for child support modifications. A formal child support modification will recalculate support for the remaining minor children.

Automatic/Cyclic Reviews

Changes in a parent’s income, expenses, time spent with minor children, or health don’t automatically trigger child support modifications. Parents must submit requests for modification themselves. Failing to do so following job loss, injury, demotion, or other negative events could lead to mounting child support debt. Overlooking the need for child support modification can also leave minor children with less support than they’re entitled to when obligors experience significant increases in earnings or when the costs of caring for minor children dramatically rise.

Some states automatically request cyclic reviews every 36 months. Even if yours does not, you’re legally entitled to request a review whenever significant changes occur on either side.