Virginia Child Support

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Virginia child support laws are based upon Federal law. The Federal Government has implemented a series of laws and regulations over the past fifteen plus years that compel certain state support laws. Virginia, and all other states have complied with the Federal mandates. Had they not done so, they would have lost funding under certain Federal programs. The Federal mandates encompass support, and support collection and enforcement.

Virginia child support is based upon official guidelines for the calculation of child support. The guidelines require that a percentage of annual income be paid toward child support depending on the number of child entitled to receive support. Any parent may file for child support, regardless of whether the parties were ever married. Virginia child support orders will only be issued after temporary custody has been decided. As such, if you do not yet have an Order of Custody, you should request such an Order at the same time as you request an Order of Virginia child support.

The Virginia child support guidelines are based on the parent’s respective income. If one of the parents has remarried, the income of the new spouse will not be considered for child support because he or she does not have a legal obligation to provide child support to the child.

The amount of support arrived at under the guidelines is presumed to be correct unless there is showing that the amount would be unjust or inappropriate. The Court will determine if the amount for support is unjust or inappropriate by considering several different factors. Virginia child support may deviate away from the guidelines after the Court considers certain financial circumstances such as, the financial resources, needs and obligations of the child and each parent, the earning capacity of each parent, the standard of living the child would have enjoyed if the marriage had not been dissolved, the monetary or non-monetary contributions of the parents to the family's well-being, any income tax consequences of child support, support provided for other children or family members, debt incurred during the marriage for the benefit of the child or for the purpose of producing income, court-ordered payments for health insurance or educational expenses of the child, and any extraordinary capital gains, such as gains form the sale of the marital home. Virginia child support may also deviate from the guidelines after the Court examines additional factors such as, the physical and emotional conditions and educational needs of the child, the age and health of the child, the division of marital property, the education of the parents, the ability of the parents to secure education and training, the custody arrangement, and voluntary unemployment or under-employment, unless it is the custodial parent and the child is not in school and child care services are not available and the cost of child care services are not included in the computations for child support.

Virginia child support orders may be modified if the party requesting the modification can establish that a substantial change in circumstances has occurred. To qualify for a modification, the change in circumstances must be something that has not been previously addressed by the Court.

Once a Virginia child support order has been issued, it is subject to enforcement. Courts are growing increasingly concerned with the non-payment of child support and all states have taken steps to assist in enforcement of child support orders. Wage deduction programs have been established which immediately deduct the support payment from the support payor’s paycheck. The Division of Child Support Enforcement will then receive the payment and distribute it to the custodial parent. If such enforcement devices are insufficient, the party owed support may also file a Violation with the Court. Once this petition is filed, the support payor will be required to appear in Court to address his or her non-compliance with the Virginia child support order.

In Virginia, child support is paid until the child reaches the age of 18. If the child is still a full time high school student living primarily with the custodial parent, child support may be extended until the child reaches the age of 19.