4 Child Support Tips

Are you trying to determine child support payments? Check out these 4 child support tips for guidance, then contact our Buffalo lawyers today.

1. Extracurricular Activities

  • 4 Child Support TipsBasic child support is the only obligatory requirement.
  • Parents are responsible for medical expenses – including health insurance, out-of-pocket expenses and certain daycare expenses.
  • There’s no legal requirement that directs either party to pay for extracurricular activities such as dance lessons or hockey fees.

2. Non-Reimbursed Medical Bills

  • Expenses that insurance does not cover are called non-reimbursed medical expenses. They may include co-pays for doctor visits and prescriptions.
  • In New York State, the law dictates a pro rata division of such expenses based on the parents’ income.
  • If the parents make the same amount, the pro rata distribution is 50/50. If it’s not equal, it’s based on the respective incomes of the parents.

3. Taxable Child Support

  • The simple answer is no, it’s not tax deductible.
  • Spousal support is tax deductible, but support paid for your children is not.

4. Ex Not Paying Child Support

When someone – whether they’re divorced or were never married – asserts that an obligation for payment of child support has been set, but the other person refuses to pay, their question to me as a Buffalo Child Support Lawyer is,  “What can I do now?”

  • Refusal to pay child support shifts enforcement of the obligation back onto them and they must file an application in family court, or the Supreme Court, to enforce that obligation whether it was established by agreement between the parties or court order.
  • If you take no action, you will not be able to collect anything, but by application for enforcement, you ask a court to enforce the existing obligation.
  • The judge will enter an order to enforce payment through child support collection – which might impose a wage deduction.
  • The onus is on the person who is not receiving that court-ordered child support to file an enforcement petition to enforce the legal rights you’ve been granted.

Have you or a loved one been considering divorce and have questions about child support? After reading these 4 child support tips, contact Buffalo Child Support Lawyers Michael Ranzenhofer to fight for you and your family.

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