Does Shared Custody Mean No Child Support?

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Does Shared Custody Mean No Child Support?

In Canada, child support obligations are usually dictated by the federal child support guidelines.  The guidelines work on the principle that both parents should share the same portion of their income with their children as if they lived together.  The guidelines set out monthly child support amounts in a table that uses the paying parent’s level of income and the number of children eligible for child support.

In almost all cases, judges are required to follow the guidelines when determining the amount of child support.  There are however exceptions one of which is when the parents have split or shared custody of the children.

Split custody refers to a child custody arrangement in which one parent has sole custody of one or more children while the other parent has sole custody of the remaining siblings.

In split custody situations the child support is guided by s.8 of the guidelines which states:

Where each spouse has custody of one or more children, the amount of a child support order is the difference between the amount that each spouse would otherwise pay if a child support order were sought against each of the spouses.

In other words, if parent A’s obligation to parent B for the children in B’s care is $1,000 per month, and that parent B’s obligation to parent A for the children in A’s care is $250 per month, A would pay $750 per month in child support, the difference between A’s obligation and B’s obligation, and B would pay nothing.

Shared custody refers to a child custody arrangement where a child spends about an equal amount of time in the care and home of each of the two separated parents, and the parents share the legal rights in regards to the child.

In shared custody situations the child support is guided by s.9 of the guidelines which states:

Child support must be determined by taking into account the amounts set out in the applicable tables for each of the spouses, the increased costs of shared custody arrangements and the conditions, means, needs and other circumstances of each spouse and of any child for whom support is sought.

The analysis starts by determining each parent’s income, finding each parent’s support obligation amount under the applicable Guidelines tables then offsetting the two numbers to come up with a figure that the higher earning parent owes the other. If parent A would pay $940 per month under the guidelines, and parent B would pay $1,040 per month under the guidelines, then the set-off amount is $100.

Shared or split custody does not mean no child support but a different formula is used to determine what the child support obligation should be.