Child Support

Child support

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Both parents have a legal obligation to support their children. When the parents are living together, they provide that support directly. But when the parents are separated, divorced, or never married, state courts may order them to pay child support.

Illinois has child support guidelines for calculating how much parents must pay. Parents can agree on an amount of child support, but those agreements will almost always need to meet the guidelines; otherwise the courts may not approve of the order. That's because the right to receive support belongs to the child—not the parents—and the court’s job is to protect the child.

How Is Child Support Calculated in Illinois?

Before 2017, Illinois courts used a "percentage based" formula for child support. There would usually be a calculation based upon a straight percentage of the paying parent's income, depending on the number of children. That's not how it works now. The Illinois child support guidelines use what is known as the "income shares" model, which considers both parents' incomes when calculating the amount of support.

Basic Steps to Compute Illinois Child Support Amounts

You may use the Illinois Child Support Estimator (Illinois Child Support Estimator | HFS )to calculate an estimated amount of support that would apply in your case. However, as the name indicates, this is not an actual "calculator." Instead, it's meant to give you a general idea of the support amount based on the numbers you enter. For a more precise calculation of child support, you can use the worksheet and tables provided on the Illinois Child Support Guidelines-Income Shares webpage. Here are the basic steps:

Calculate each parent's net income. After calculating gross income from all sources, you'll either use the conversion table for standardized net income (which is updated annually, based on standard tax deductions) or calculate individualized net income based on your deductions (but this will require an agreement with the other parent or a court order).

Adjustments to the parents' net incomes. The formula allows for an adjustment when one or both parents are also supporting children from other relationships. There might also be an adjustment for spousal maintenance (alimony) payments.

Child support obligation. Based on the parents' combined adjusted net income, the Income Shares Schedule shows the total basic amount of child support. Each parent's contribution toward that total amount is then based on their share (as a percentage) of the combined net income.

Expenses in Addition to Basic Child Support in Illinois

The judge may also require - or the parents may agree to – a parent to contribute to children’s expenses over and above child support for :

health insurance coverage
unreimbursed health care expenses
childcare, babysitting
camps
field trips
tutoring
extraordinary medical or educational expenses
college applications
extraordinary extracurricular activities, and
life insurance to ensure that there will be money for the child if one of the parents dies.

Which Parent Pays Child Support?

The calculation of child support under the Illinois guidelines results in an amount that each parent is obligated to provide for the child or children. Usually, the parent whose children reside with them the majority of the time will receive support. However, because the support guidelines are based upon the parties’ respective income, it is possible that a parent with more parenting time could actually be required to pay support to the other parent if his income is substantially more.

How Does Shared Custody Affect the Calculation of Child Support in Illinois?

The Illinois child support guidelines account for the fact that shared physical custody—when each parent has the kids for a significant amount of time—can result in increased costs. Among other things, both parents need to provide bedrooms (or at least sleeping areas) and other basics for the children. Illinois provides a separate worksheet for calculating child support when each parent has the child for at least 146 nights during the year. In these situations, the total basic support obligation is multiplied by 1.5 (or 150%). Each parent's share of the total obligation is based on their percentage of the combined incomes, as well as the percentage of time the child spends with the other parent.

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How Does the Number of Children Affect the Amount of Child Support?

Under the Illinois child support guidelines, the basic support obligation for one child isn't simply multiplied by the number of children. Instead, the schedule shows a step-by-step increase for each additional child.

When Child Support May Be Different Than the Guideline Amount

A judge may order an amount of child support that’s different than what it would be under the Illinois child support guidelines, but only if the judge explains why applying the guidelines would be unfair or inappropriate. The judge must consider the child's best interests and the circumstances, including:

--the standard of living that the child would have had if the parents had stayed married

--the child's special needs, and

--the parents' financial resources and needs, including extraordinary medical expenses.

These requirements also apply when the parents agree to an amount of support that departs from the guidelines. The judge may approve their agreement only if they've provided adequate, acceptable reasons why the guideline amount would be inappropriate.

Does a Parent Have to Use the Support Money for the Child?

While a parent should use child support for the support of the child and not on personal expenses or extravagances, a paying parent has no right to force the other parent to account for the use of support. While that is frustrating to a parent who sees his/her money going to pay for things that do not benefit their child, the courts do not get involved in accounting for expenditures.

Imputing Income for Child Support

When judges believe that parents are voluntarily unemployed or underemployed (working at lower-paying jobs than they're qualified for, or working fewer hours than they could), the judges will look carefully at the reasons for the reduced income. Parents need to have a good reason why they aren't earning as much as the judge believes they could, such as a medical condition or disability. And if they simply haven't been able to find a better-paying job, they'll need to provide evidence that they've been seriously trying. Otherwise, the judge may calculate child support based on "imputed" (potential) income. Imputed income may be based on:

--the parent's employment history, including earnings in previous jobs

--local job opportunities for someone with that parent's qualifications, training and experience

--prevailing wages in the local community, and

--any substantial assets that the parent owns.

If an unemployed parent doesn't have enough of a work history to determine the potential for employment and earnings, the judge will usually impute income at 75% of the current federal poverty guidelines for a single-person household. The maximum child support obligation for that parent would be a total of $120 a month, to be divided equally among the parent's children.

Termination or Modification of Child Support in Illinois

Either parent may ask the court to change the amount of child support—or end support payments entirely. Usually, however, a judge will only modify support if there's evidence of a "substantial" change in circumstances. Typically, that means a significant change in the child's needs, a parent's ability to pay, or both.

Generally, child support in Illinois ends:

--when the child turns 18 or is emancipated before then, or

--if the child is still in high school, when the child graduates or turns 19 (whichever happens first).

Notes: Court can order that parents contribute to the post high school educational expenses of their children. See our website “Contribution to College Expenses.”

Also, judges may order support for adult children who are mentally or physically disabled and are not able to support themselves. In those cases, judges may order that the support be paid from either or both parents' income, property, or their estates.