What Counts As Income For Child Support In Nc
Child support is based on the incomes of the parents, although there are other factors used to arrive at the amount of support to be paid. The term income is subject to interpretation, especially when you are self-employed or receive irregular income. Still, the definition is very broad and the courts usually err on the side of caution to define something as income unless there is a reason it should not be counted.
Start with Gross Income
In North Carolina, the court uses gross income to calculate child support. Using the gross income to determine child support means parents cannot manipulate their incomes by rearranging payroll deductions. For wage earners who receive W-2 statements, gross income is the amount paid to you before any payroll deductions are made, even when they are mandatory payroll deductions such as state and federal taxes, Medicare tax, Social Security tax and unemployment tax. There are mandatory pension contributions payroll deducted for certain state employees. Frequently, state employees make credit union payments for personal or vehicle loans via payroll deductions. Gross income also stays the same regardless of voluntary payroll deductions chosen by the employee, such as pre-tax 401 contributions, life insurance or medical, vision or dental insurance.
What Kind of Income Counts?
What Kind of Income Doesnt Count?
State Law Versus Federal Law
Does state laws take precedence over federal law. Are my VA benefits immune from any consideration or garnishment in domestic court?
While part of the statement is correct that state laws are subordinate to federal laws the rest of the statement is incorrect. In general, all sources of income must be considered by the court in determining support, whether the income is taxable or tax-free, whether the source is wages, rents, royalties, VA benefits, military retired pay, Combat-Related Special Compensation, Social Security Disability payments or even an inheritance. And the provisions of Title 38 make it clear that Congress intended that VA benefits may be considered as a source of income for support purposes. Not only are there graduated benefit schedules, based on how many dependents a veteran has, but there is an apportionment procedure to use when a veteran is not discharging his or her responsibility for support. The apportionment procedures are found at 38 U.S.C. § 5307.
Additional Resources For Veterans
- Veterans in the Child Support Caseload » Child support fact sheet focused on veterans who are noncustodial parents and in the child support caseload, and how the program can help them.
- Military Services and Child Support Partnerships » Child support fact sheet focused on how the child support program, and military and veterans organizations, can work together to help parents.
- Ending Homelessness Among Veterans: OCSE, VA, ABA Project » Child support fact sheet focused on collaboration that helps homeless veterans with child support obligations to gain permanent housing.
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Why Apportionment Could Get Denied By Va
Apportionment will not be granted if it is going to cause undue financial hardship to the veteran. Again, VA does not want to take away the veterans livelihood if they do not have any other income on which they can survive.
Furthermore, if a veterans former spouse remarried and the veterans child was legally adopted by their former spouses new partner, that child would not be eligible for apportionment. The veteran would no longer be financially responsible for the child. Finally, a child of a veteran would not be eligible for apportionment if they are under the age of 18, but currently in active military service.
If My Ex Does Not Make A Claim For An Apportionment Do I Still Have To Worry About Paying Child Support From My Veteran’s Benefits
Yes. Even if your ex does not ask the VA for an apportionment, he or she can use all the tools that state law allows to try to collect court-ordered child support. Most states can suspend your driver’s license or other state licenses , if you do not pay child support. Your ex can also bring you to court for contempt if you do not pay your child support. If you are found to be in contempt, a court could order you to surrender valuable property or belongings , and a court could order that you serve time in jail for non-payment of child support. In addition, state departments of human services can keep your tax refund and apply it to child support debt.
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Can A Court Garnish Your Wages For Child Support
If a court orders that your wages be garnished to satisfy any debt except child support or alimony, a maximum of roughly 25% of your net wages can be taken. For unpaid child support, however, up to 50% of your net wages can be garnished, and up to 60% if you are not currently supporting another dependent.
Apportionment Of Va Benefits
Apportionment is a process by which the VA assigns a certain portion of a veterans benefits to a family member. Basically, the VA will pay the eligible family member part of the veteran’s monthly cash benefit directly, thus reducing the amount of benefits the veteran will receive.
In no case will be benefits be garnished for alimony until the former spouse first elects to receive the “apportioned” share of the veteran’s benefits. Similarly, claims for each child’s right to an apportioned share must be filed before child support garnishment can occur. The family member must apply for apportionment by filing VA Form 21-0788, Information Regarding Apportionment of Beneficiary’s Award, before a garnishment for spousal or child support will be considered.
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Will Va Benefits Reduce My Unemployment
Another question many veterans have about their benefits is whether unemployment benefits are reduced or otherwise impacted by VA benefits.
The answer is that disability compensation payments from the VA do not reduce the amount of your unemployment benefits. Veterans can receive full unemployment compensation along with full disability payments from the VA.
Does The Disabled Parent Have Disability Insurance
The parent may have disability insurance benefits that are automatically provided by their employer. If this is the case, then it’s reasonable to expect the parent with a disability to continue to pay child support. However, the child support formula is based on parental income, and the parent may be able to seek a modification of child support for the duration of the disability.
If approved, this would mean that even though child support payments would continue, the amount would be less than you’ve grown used to receiving, and you must adjust to receiving less financial support. While unfortunate, this may be a reality for the duration of the paying parent’s disability.
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Who Are The Dependents For Va Disability Benefits
A dependent is: A spouse A parent, if youre directly caring for them and their income and net worth are below a certain amount An unmarried child who meets one of the eligibility requirements listed below
However, VA disability benefits can count when a court calculates a veterans income for child support purposes. VA disability benefits are compensation for the veterans impaired earning capacity and are intended to provide reasonable and adequate compensation for disabled veterans and their families.
In other words, VA disability compensation is not an asset that a judge can divide as marital or community property. It is important to note that this is different than the treatment of military retirement benefits, which can be a marital asset subject to division by a family court.
What Do I Do After My Va Disability Benefits Are Applied For Child Support
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Are Va Survivors Benefits Taxable
A VA Survivors Pension offers monthly payments to qualified surviving spouses and unmarried dependent children of deceased wartime veterans who meet certain income and net worth limits set by Congress.
The VA Survivors Pension, which was formerly referred to as the Death Pension, is a tax-free benefit.
Can A Disability Payment Be Garnished For Child Support
In other words, if you waived part of your taxable military retirement to receive nontaxable disability compensation, your disability benefits can be garnished to meet child support obligations. Only the amount of the disability compensation you were paid in place of retirement pay can be garnished.
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Is The Parent’s Disability Temporary Or Permanent
Typically, the court will order a temporary modification of child support if the disability isn’t expected to be permanent. For example, the court may decrease the child support amount for a specific number of weeks or months, depending on the anticipated duration of the disability. If the disability lasts longer than expected, the parent with a disability may go back to court and request that the modification of child support payments continue for a longer period or even indefinitely.
The court may be able to order a permanent modification of child support and close the case if a parent’s disability is medically considered permanent and the parent has no income or assets which could be levied for the support. If the parent did have some sort of income, the court would base the ongoing child support payments on the disability benefit, as well as any additional income the disabled parent may receive. In some cases, this may result in significantly less child support being owed or received by you.
How To Challenge An Apportionment Decision
After VA issues a decision, either the veteran or the family member filing for apportionment can appeal the decision. For example, the person requesting apportionment can argue that the monthly amount is too low to support their family. The veteran can also appeal for a hardship reduction on the grounds that the apportionment will create financial strain.
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Oklahomas New Law Adds In Va Disability Benefits
Video Transcribed: Veterans disability benefits received by your child now count towards your child support obligation. My name is James Wirth, I am an Attorney in Tulsa, Okla. Were talking about a change in the law starting November 1st of 2021.
Its a minor change to the Oklahoma child support guidelines and what it provides is that if you have a disability, VA disability benefits, and that your child is a recipient of those benefits through you because of your service and your disability, then that amount is included as your income when determining the amount of child support, but that amount counts toward your child support obligation.
If your child is receiving due to your service, $500 a month in VA disability benefits, that $500 counts towards your income when determining the amount of child support. But then that $500 is credited towards your monthly payment of child support every month, which may zero out the amount of child support that you pay.
Previously that was not the case. It was only the case for certain social security disability benefits. Now, with this change in the law, it adds in VA disability benefits. So if that is applicable to your circumstances, youre going to want to talk to an attorney about that.
Oregon Department Of Justice
The Oregon DOJ/Child Support site has been redesigned to offer a better user experience, while retaining the information and resources our visitors rely on.
As with any transition, it may take a little extra time to find what you’re looking for. For your convenience, here are links to some important pages on the Child Support section of the new website.
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Federal Law Not Preclude States Treating Va Disability As Income
The Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act prohibits, upon divorce, state courts from dividing Veterans Administration disability payments as marital property. See our VA Disability article in the Military Divorce Guide.
The father in M.E.R.-L. argued that the same federal statute precludes state courts from considering VA disability payments at all, including as income for purposes of child support or maintenance. The Court of Appeals was not persuaded:
But father misses a very important distinction. Howell discusses only the treatment of disability benefits as community property. Nothing in Howell, or in the USFSPA itself for that matter, addresses whether a state through statute or judicial decision may treat disability benefits as income for calculating a child support obligation.
M.E.R.-L.In re: Parental Responsibilities of M.E.R-L and D.L.R-L, 2020 COA 173, ¶ 28 .
Fathers position was not helped by the fact that every reported decision on this point actually went against him, with states routinely including VA disability payments as income:
Father cites to no case that holds that the USFSPA prohibits states from including veterans disability benefits in a veteran-parents income when calculating a child support obligation. Nor are we aware of any such case. To the contrary, every court we have found that faced this issue rejected the preemption argument.
M.E.R.-L.In re: Parental Responsibilities of M.E.R-L and D.L.R-L, 2020 COA 173, ¶ 29.
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What Is Gross Income For Ohio Child Support Purposes
child support, CSEA, definitions, income, worksheet
For the first time in about 25, years, there is an updated version of the Ohio Child Support Guidelines. There have been a number of changes intended, quite literally, to bring the guidelines into the 21st century. The cost of living increased nearly 42% in the ten years from 1982 to 1992 from 1992 to 2016, it has increased 99.5%! Clearly, it was necessary to bring the child support guidelines in line with economic reality. In Ohio, child support is calculated using an income shares model, starting with gross income. What is gross income for Ohio child support purposes?
Gross income includes the total of all earned and unearned income from all sources in a calendar year. This includes income that is not taxable. As you would probably expect, gross income includes income from salaries, wages, overtime pay, and bonuses. It also includes tips, commissions, royalties, and dividends.
Other types of income included in gross income are:
- Severance pay
- Unemployment insurance benefits
- Disability insurance benefits
- Service-connected veterans benefits that are not means-tested and that have been received by and are in the possession of the veteran
- Spousal support that was actually received
As you can see, gross income encompasses many things. At this point, you may be wondering if there is any type of income that does not count toward gross income for Ohio child support purposes.
Parental Disability And Child Support
Parental disability is a serious threat to families who depend on regular child support payments. If you or your ex-partner experiences a physical disability, and child support can no longer be paid on time or in full, can child support be taken from disability payments?
In general, the obligation to provide child support does not cease if a parent becomes disabled. However, it’s easy to see how the inability to work will negatively impact one’s ability to provide reliable financial support.
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Can A Veterans Disability Benefits Be Garnished By The State
There are certain circumstances in which VA disability benefits can be garnished. Specifically, if a veteran fails to make alimony and child support payments, the state can sometimes order their VA benefits to be garnished. However, this garnishment typically depends on the veterans military retirement pay status.
Why Do Va Disability Payments Count As Income
VA disability payments count as income for purposes of calculating child support and maintenance the fact that they are tax-free payments means they are invisible to the IRS, but not invisible to other agencies or for other purposes.
A dependent is: A spouse A parent, if youre directly caring for them and their income and net worth are below a certain amount An unmarried child who meets one of the eligibility requirements listed below
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