Wisconsin Child Support
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Wisconsin child support law has been implemented in
response to Federal mandates that have been issued over
the past fifteen plus years. In short, the Federal
Government compels the states to issue support
guidelines, including laws pertaining to support
enforcement and support collection, or lose Federal
funding. Every state has complied.
Wisconsin child support is based upon
official guidelines and percentage standards for the
calculation of support. A Court will also consider
certain factors and circumstances when determining the
appropriate amount for child support. The Child Support
guidelines are based on the parents’ income, how much
time a child spends with each parent and whether a parent
is supporting other children. The basic child support
guidelines are 17% of gross income for 1 child, 25% of
gross income for 2 children, 29% of gross income for 3
children, 31% of gross income for 4 children and 34% of
gross income for 5 or more children.
"Gross income" for purposes of applying the
Wisconsin child support
guidelines is not merely income that is reported by a support payor on
his or her income tax returns. Rather, it is defined as all income from
any source. This income may or may not be taxable. Income can be in the
form of money, property or services. Gross income includes: (1) wages,
salaries, earnings, tips, interest, capital gains, commissions and
bonuses, (2) worker’’s compensation or other personal injury awards
intended to replace income, (3) unemployment insurance, (4) income
continuation benefits and Social Security Disability Income (SSDI)
payments, (5) voluntary contributions to retirement and cafeteria
plans, (6) undistributed income of a corporation and (7) military
allowances and veterans benefits.
Gross income does not include child support received by
the support payor or public assistance payments such as Supplemental
Security Income (SSI), W-2 cash payments or food stamps.
In assessing Wisconsin child support, the Court will examine factors such as, the standard
of living the child would have enjoyed if the marriage had not been
dissolved, the financial resources, earning capacity, needs, and
obligations of the child and each parent, the cost of day care to the
parent having custody (if that parent works outside the home, or the
value of the child care services performed by the parent), any tax
consequences to each parent, any extraordinary travel expenses incurred
in exercising the right to periods of physical placement.
Wisconsin child support awards may also be
determined after the Court examines factors of a non-financial nature.
Those factors may include, the age and health of the child, the
physical and emotional conditions and educational needs of the child,
the desirability of the parent having custody remaining in the home as
a full-time parent, the award of substantial periods of physical
placement to both parents (otherwise known as joint custody), and the
best interest of the child as well as any other relevant factors the
Court deems necessary to utilize in determining the appropriate amount
of child support.
If the support payor does not have an income or is
underemployed, the Court is not bound to use that parties actual income
in calculating Wisconsin child support. Rather, the court may also use the amount of
income that a parent has the "ability to earn." In determining a
parent’s ability to earn, the court can consider that parent’s past
earnings, current physical and mental health, education, training and
recent work experience and local job openings. The Court can also
consider the history of child care responsibilities of the parent with
primary placement.
Wisconsin child support must be
withheld from all income. Income withholding became mandatory in
Wisconsin because it is convenient to both parents and greatly reduces
the possibility of late payments or arrearages. Generally, only
self-employed paying parents do not participate in immediate income
withholding. They may be required to arrange for periodic payments of
support from a bank account.
Once a Wisconsin child support Order has been issued, it can be
changed, either by a Review or by Modification. Every three years after
a support Order has been issued, the Bureau of Child Support will
notify both parents of their right to ask for a review of their child
support order. If a review is requested, the Bureau will look at the
Order to determine whether the ordered amount of support follows the
Wisconsin support guidelines and whether the Order includes a provision
for health insurance for the children, if health insurance is available
at a reasonable cost. If the Order does not comply with either
requirement, the Bureau may ask the Court to change the Order.
A modification of a Wisconsin child support order (also known as an
"adjustment") is a legal change in the child support order. An Order
will be modified if a substantial change in circumstances is shown
requiring that the amount of support be increased or decreased. A
modification may also keep the amount of basic support the same but
require one of the parents to provide health insurance for the child. A
modification will not always occur following a review. If, however, the
change in child support would be more than 10% of the current order or
if the difference is more than $40.00 each month, the Support Order may
be modified following the review.
Wisconsin utilizes a Tax Intercept Program to help
collect past due Wisconsin child support. To intercept a Federal tax refund, the
support payer must owe $500.00 or more in past due child support and
the children owed the support must have been under the age of 18 on
December 31st of the tax year. Additionally, the support
recipient must know the social security number of the parent owing
past-due support and must be receiving his or her support by
enforcement services from the local child support agency. To intercept
a State tax refund, the support case must be a Wisconsin child support
case and the support payer must owe $150.00 or more in past-due child
support. As with Federal tax intercept, the social security number of
the support payer must be known and the support recipient must be
receiving enforcement services from his or her local child support
agency.
If you are owed past due support, you should be
aware that Wisconsin has a statute of limitations. Twenty years after
the last child has become emancipated, you will be prevented from
collecting any past due child support. If you are owed back support and
fear that you might have a statute of limitations problem, you should
check the laws for the state that issued the order of support and those
of the state where the noncustodial parent resides. The statute of
limitations will be the longer of the two.
There is a State of Wisconsin Child Support Program
that can offer parents with assistance with various child support
related issues. The Wisconsin Child Support Program can help you find a missing parent , establish paternity, obtain
an Order of child support, enforce existing support orders, contact the
support payer’s employer to set up an income deduction, collect child
support from out of state parents, review support orders to see if the
amount should be increased or decreased.
Under Wisconsin law, a parent’s child support
obligation will continue until the child reaches the age of 18 or until
19 if the child is still in high school or pursuing a high school
equivalency degree.
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