Needing to make changes to a divorce order comes with the territory of life changes following a divorce. One possible change parents may wonder about is a change to a child support order. There are certain circumstances when child support may be modified and divorcing and divorced parents should be familiar with when those are.
Changes to child support
There are certain circumstances when it may be possible to modify child support including:
- If the income of one or both of the parents has changed;
- If one parent has lost their job;
- If one parent has become incarcerated;
- If one parent has another child from another relationship;
- If there has been a significant change in how much time the child spends with each parent;
- The needs of the child has changed causing a change in childcare, healthcare or education costs; or
- There have been changes to other factors that are used to determine child support.
Establishing the change in circumstances
The parent requesting the change to child support will need to demonstrate that there has been a change in circumstances warranting an accompanying change in child support. The parents can also agree to a child support change but it must be approved by the family law court to be considered changed. Parents should not make any adjustments to child support, such as paying a lower amount even if agreed to, until the change has been approved and signed by the family law judge. It is important that any change remains what is best for the child which is why there are family law resources in place to help parents make changes they feel are necessary to a child support order.