Raising a child is costly and parents must continuously address several costs. When parents live together after marriage, they can often cover such costs while they handle their household budget. But once they get divorced, they must determine ways to share childcare costs. Often, child support orders are put in place in such circumstances and parents must understand what these will cover and how they can share various kinds of expenses. They usually need to seek legal assistance to better understand things related to child support. The following are important items that must be considered when calculating child support in Wisconsin:
The Basic Needs of a Child
Under Wisconsin law, there are guidelines to follow when calculating a parent’s child support obligations. Every income of each parent may be taken into account and they must put a certain percentage of what they make toward child support. The calculation will factor into the amount of time a child lives with every parent and the number of kids involved.
The amount of child support calculated with such methods covers expenses associated with the basic needs of a child including food, shelter, and clothing. If needed, the court may deviate from the state guidelines when evidence shows that the results of such calculations would not be fair to the child or either parent. Child support payments for kids with extraordinary needs may be decreased or increased. This can also happen if some issues impact the ability of a parent to pay child support while they address their needs.
Covering Medical Expenses
Parents should cover medical care costs for their children. Often, they must have a health insurance plan for their kids. The costs of offering such coverage may be shared between parents. Also, parents may need to share other medical expenses like co-pays, treatment costs, medical products, and medications.
Variable Costs
Child support orders may include other kinds of expenses that are often shared between parents based on the time percentage every child spends with each parent. These variable costs include the following:
- Childcare. If a child will attend daycare or get other childcare services while their parent attends school or goes to work, both parents may need to contribute to these costs.
- Educational expenses. Child support orders may include education costs such as school fees, tuition, and supplies.
- Miscellaneous expenses. Every parent may need to address costs associated with the special needs of a child, the activities they take part in, or other matters that other kinds of child support do not cover.
