What Can Affect Your Eligibility To Receive Child Support?
As your child's custodial parent, you generally expect to receive child support from the other parent. After all, you live with the child and are principally responsible for their day-to-day care.
Sadly, there is no guarantee that you will receive child support. The courts consider several things when assessing your eligibility to receive child support.
Here are some common factors that are considered when determining how much support, if any, the non-custodial parent must pay to the parent with custody.
1. The Child's Needs
When awarding child support, judges often consider expenses related to the child's needs, including food, accommodation, education, healthcare, and social well-being.
If you cannot meet the financial needs of your child, you may be entitled to receive support on behalf of the child. The goal is to maintain the standard of living that the child could have enjoyed before the parents parted ways.
2. Your Income and Income-Earning Potential
The court will not automatically award you child support solely on the basis of your status as a custodial parent. If you earn an income, it may be used to determine your eligibility to receive child support.
The court will also consider if you have education, training, skills, or work experience that increases your ability to make money. A high income-earning potential may disqualify you from demanding child support, especially if the other parent is struggling financially or not doing so well.
3. The Existing Custodial Arrangements
If you share joint custody of the child, neither you nor the other parent may be required to pay child support to the other, especially if you have equal incomes.
But if significant income disparities exist, the parent that makes more money may be ordered to pay support to the other.
4. Other Children Born To The Other Parent
If the other parent is responsible for supporting other children, the court will consider how many they are in determining the child support you should receive.
Each state has its own ways of determining child support cases and this will affect your eligibility to receive financial support for your child's upkeep. Without a deep understanding of your state-specific child custody and support laws, determining your eligibility to receive child support can be difficult and confusing.
Talk to a child support attorney today to get started on your child support case. They will advise and guide you depending on the specific circumstances of the case.