What You Need to Know About Imputing Income for Child Support
Child Support forms and requirements can be challenging to navigate. Here’s everything you need to know about imputing income for child support.
What is Child Support?
Child support is a court-ordered, ongoing payment a noncustodial parent makes to their former spouse due to a divorce or other domestic separation.
A court can base child support on the parties’ financial situation and supports a minor child in their former spouses’ primary care.
Related: Child Support FAQs in California
Why is Income Important?
Judges will consider income one of the most important factors when determining child support
payment.
Income Imputation
A judge will sometimes “income impute” if the spouse can and should be earning more than they are reporting. In this instance, a judge will utilize the income amount the spouse should be making rather than their reported amount.
A judge will not income impute if they think the spouse should earn more. Income imputation occurs when a spouse quits a higher-paying job to pursue a lower-paid position or is laid off and refuses to look for another occupation. Essentially, income imputation accounts for spouses purposefully receiving a lesser child support payment plan.
Related: Imputing Income for Child Support in Virginia
How Does a Judge Impute Income?
If a spouse has a reasonable belief or evidence the other party is purposefully earning less income, they can provide previous tax returns, employment history, educational records, or any evidence proving the spouse has more income than they initially reported.
Contact Us
If you or a loved one would like to learn more about imputing income for child support, get your free consultation with one of our child support attorneys today!