Calculating Child Support When Parents Live Apart
By Brenda Waugh
When families live in two houses, the parents will adopt a parenting plan that includes how they make decisions and share custodial time with the children. The best practice is for parents to develop detailed plans that serve as a guide and set expectations for scheduling holidays, vacations, and making decisions about extracurricular activities, religious involvement, and medical care.
In addition to creating a parenting plan, parents must also consider child support, which most states require to be established when the parents are divorced or go to court to address custody. It is also usually required if a child receives Medicaid. The amount of support is generally determined by state guidelines designed to ensure children’s basic needs are met and to minimize financial disparities between households. These guidelines consider several factors, with the most critical being the number of nights the children spend with each parent, the parents’ gross monthly income, the amount a parent pays for the child’s portion of health insurance, and out-of-pocket medical expenses. They may also consider spousal support payments and whether a parent supports another child.
Both Virginia and West Virginia use income-shares-based guidelines, meaning that parents contribute to child
support in proportion to their income. In both states, parents can review the statutes on the guidelines and use worksheets to manually calculate their child support obligations.
In Virginia, the relevant statute is Virginia Code § 20-108.2, which provides the guidelines for determining child support. The corresponding worksheet can be found at www.vacourts.gov/static/forms/district/dc637.pdf.
In West Virginia, the pertinent statute is West Virginia Code § 48-13-403, which includes the worksheet for calculating basic child support obligations in shared parenting cases. The worksheet is available dhhr.wv.gov/bcse/parents/Pages/Income-Shares-Support-Formula.aspx.
Many states provide free online calculators so that parents do not need to manually use these worksheets, or rely on the courts or DHS to provide even an estimated calculation. However, neither Virginia nor West Virginia offers an official online calculator. Some commercial websites provide estimated payment amounts, but these often only apply to cases where one parent has most of the custodial time and so do not provide reliable calculations for shared custody arrangements.
In 2010, I met a fellow mediator at the Virginia Mediation Conference, Danny Burk. Danny had extensive experience beyond his work as a lawyer in the tech industry and used his knowledge to create a free online calculator,
vasupportcalc.com, for Virginia parents. Last spring, I met with Danny and complimented him on the tool, mentioning that I wished West Virginia had a similar resource. Danny got to work, and he recently launched wvasupportcalc.com.
This is a valuable resource because parents can now calculate their child support on their own. When a parent gets a raise or experiences job loss, they can estimate whether support might be reduced or increased. However, it is important to note that once a court issues a support order, parents must obtain a new order to officially modify their obligation and avoid falling into arrears.
While the online calculator does not replace legal advice and may not account for complexities such as bonuses or temporary jobs, it is a helpful starting point for parents seeking clarity on their child support obligations. Having access to these tools empowers parents to make informed decisions and better prepare for their financial responsibilities. Brenda Waugh is a lawyer/mediator with Waugh Law & Mediation, serving clients in the Blue Ridge region of Virginia and Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia.
