Child support and visitation are not always distinct and separate issues. State laws determine the amount of child support you pay or receive based on factors you cannot control and can change only with a court order. Some states also consider visitation, or the amount of time the noncustodial parent has physical placement of the child or children, when creating a child support order.
Child Visitation Laws
Child visitation laws in each state recognize physical, legal and joint custody arrangements. Most state laws require mediation as part of the divorce process, giving you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse a chance to work out and agree on visitation arrangements. If you cannot agree, state laws allow a judge to set child visitation based on the “best interest principle.” This principle requires the judge to base visitation on the best interests of your child or children. This can result in anything from shared parenting to no visitation at all.
Sole Physical Placement and Child Support
In cases where you have physical placement and your ex-spouse or partner has visitation rights, laws in individual states use one of two methods to calculate child support payments. The first method, called income share, uses a formula that considers the adjusted gross income, or AGI, of both parents. If you do not work outside the home or are temporarily unemployed, courts can use past earnings statements, the current minimum wage or a standard minimum amount set by state law in place of the AGI. Some states, such as Minnesota, also consider court ordered visitation in determining child support and provide percentage reductions to the noncustodial parent based on how many overnight visits your child has with you.
Percent of income is the second method and involves calculating child support using only the AGI of the noncustodial parent. Payments are a flat percentage of the AGI and depend on the number of children for which you provide support. Percentage of income does not consider visitation in determining payment amounts. For example, in Texas, percentages range from 20 percent of your AGI for one child to 40 percent for seven children.
Joint Custody and Child Support
Some state laws make additional allowances for shared parenting, also called joint custody, in determining child support. Shared parenting offset laws usually base a reduction in child support on a minimum time your child spends with you. For example, in West Virginia, to qualify for a shared parenting time offset, your child must live with you a minimum of 127 days, or 35 percent, of each year. Child support laws then calculate basic support based on the AGI of both parents and the percentage of time your child lives with you. Who pays who depends on which parent owes more according to the results obtained using this formula.
