Florida child support guidelines and the overnight adjustment

Florida uses an income shares model, which means the guideline starts from what the two of you earn together rather than from one parent's paycheck. Then it splits that number by income share and adjusts it for overnights.

Two things drive almost every Florida support fight: what counts as income, and how many overnights each parent actually has.

How is child support calculated in Florida?

Four steps, all set out in section 61.30:

1. Compute each parent's monthly gross income.

2. Subtract the allowable deductions to get net income.

3. Add both net incomes together and read the combined figure against the statutory guideline schedule, which gives a minimum child support need for that income and that number of children.

4. Split the obligation by each parent's share of the combined net income, then adjust for child care, health insurance, and overnights.

The result is presumptively what the court orders. Under section 61.30(1)(a), the trier of fact may order support that varies plus or minus 5 percent from the guideline after considering all relevant factors, and may go beyond 5 percent only with a written finding explaining why the guideline amount would be unjust or inappropriate.

What counts as income for Florida child support?

More than a salary. Section 61.30(2)(a) lists gross income as including, and not limited to:

• Salary or wages

• Bonuses, commissions, allowances, overtime, tips, and similar payments

• Business income from self-employment, partnerships, close corporations, and independent contracts, meaning gross receipts minus the ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce income

• Disability benefits

• All workers' compensation benefits and settlements

• Reemployment assistance or unemployment compensation

• Pension, retirement, or annuity payments

• Social security benefits

• Spousal support received from a previous marriage, or ordered in this case

• Interest and dividends

• Rental income, again net of the ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce it

• Royalties, trust, or estate income

• Reimbursed expenses and in-kind payments, to the extent they reduce living expenses

• Gains from dealings in property, unless the gain is nonrecurring

That thirteenth item is the one people miss. A company car, a paid phone, or an employer-paid apartment counts to the extent it reduces what you would otherwise spend.

What deductions are allowed in Florida child support?

A short, closed list in section 61.30(3):

• Federal, state, and local income taxes, adjusted for actual filing status and allowable dependents

• FICA or self-employment tax

• Mandatory union dues

• Mandatory retirement payments

• Health insurance payments, excluding coverage for the child

• Court-ordered support for other children that is actually paid

• Spousal support paid under a court order from a previous marriage or from this case

Your mortgage, car payment, and credit cards are not on that list.

What happens if a parent quits their job in Florida?

The court imputes income. Section 61.30(2)(b) says monthly income shall be imputed to an unemployed or underemployed parent if the court finds the unemployment or underemployment is voluntary, absent physical or mental incapacity or other circumstances beyond the parent's control.

The imputed figure is based on that parent's recent work history, occupational qualifications, and prevailing earnings in the community.

There is a sharper rule for people who simply do not participate. If income information is unavailable, a parent fails to take part in the proceeding, or a parent fails to supply adequate financial information, income is automatically imputed and there is a rebuttable presumption that the parent earns the median income of year-round full-time workers from current Census Bureau reports.

So ignoring the case does not produce a low number. It produces a default number.

The court may still decline to impute if it finds it necessary for a parent to stay home with the child who is the subject of the calculation.

How do overnights change Florida child support?

Substantially, and there is a bright line. Under section 61.30(11)(b), whenever a parenting plan, a court-ordered schedule, or an arrangement the parties actually follow gives each child a substantial amount of time with each parent, the court must adjust support using the gross-up method. Section 61.30(11)(b)8. defines "substantial amount of time" as exercising time-sharing at least 20 percent of the overnights of the year, which is 73 nights.

The gross-up works like this:

1. Calculate each parent's share of the support obligation without day care and health insurance, then multiply by 1.5

2. Calculate the percentage of overnights each parent has

3. Multiply each parent's obligation by the percentage of the other parent's overnights

4. The difference between those two numbers is the transfer between the parents

5. Add or subtract each parent's net share of day care and health insurance costs

6. The result is what changes hands

Notice the 1.5 multiplier. Two households cost more than one, and the statute builds that in. Notice also what happens near the line: moving from 70 overnights to 73 flips the calculation method entirely.

The court can deviate from the gross-up result based on the standard deviation factors, plus the receiving parent's low income and ability to keep the basics in the home, the likelihood that a parent will actually exercise the schedule they asked for, and whether all the children are on the same schedule. That last set exists because a schedule requested only to lower support is a real pattern, and judges know it.

When can a Florida court order more or less than the guideline?

On any of the factors in section 61.30(11)(a), which include the child's age and needs, independent income of the child, seasonal or fluctuating income, extraordinary medical or educational expenses, the impact of tax credits and the dependency exemption, and a catch-all for adjustments needed to reach an equitable result.

Two are worth naming:

• The 55 percent ceiling. A guideline application that would require a parent to pay more than 55 percent of their gross income for current support under a single order is itself a deviation factor.

• The under-20 percent adjustment. Where a parent has significant time but less than 20 percent of overnights, reducing the other parent's expenditures, the court can adjust for it without triggering the full gross-up.

How does self-employment change Florida child support?

It moves the whole case to one question. Business income is gross receipts minus the ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce income, and the argument is always about which expenses are genuinely necessary.

A vehicle, a phone, travel, meals, a family member on payroll, and a home office all sit on that line. Depreciation deducted on a tax return costs no cash, and it is routinely added back.

Proving it means going through the business and personal accounts transaction by transaction and separating operating costs from personal spending, usually across two or three years. That is exactly what Florida's mandatory disclosure hands you: three years of corporate, partnership, and trust returns plus 12 months of statements for every account. The production is the raw material, and reading it carefully is what turns a suspicion into a number.

How long does child support last in Florida?

To the child's 18th birthday, with one common extension. Section 61.13(1)(a)1.a. requires every support order to provide that support terminates at 18, unless the court finds the child is still in high school between 18 and 19 and performing in good faith with a reasonable expectation of graduating before turning 19, or the parties agree otherwise.

Every order also has to include a schedule showing what the obligation is now and what it becomes as each child ages out, with the exact month, day, and year of each step-down. That requirement exists so nobody has to go back to court just to drop one child off the order.

How do you change Florida child support?

By showing a substantial change in circumstances, and the guideline itself can supply it. Section 61.30(1)(b) says the guidelines may provide the basis for proving a substantial change, but the difference between the existing monthly obligation and the current guideline amount has to be at least 15 percent or $50, whichever is greater.

If the Department of Revenue reviews an order in a Title IV-D case and the amount differs by at least 10 percent and not less than $25 from the current guideline, the department seeks a modification without anyone proving a change in circumstances.

Support keeps accruing under the existing order until a court changes it, and unpaid support becomes a judgment. If your income drops, file the motion that month. The timeline chapter covers how long a modification takes to get heard.

Health insurance rides along with support. Every order has to address it, and it is presumed reasonable in cost when adding the child costs no more than 5 percent of the responsible parent's gross income. The court apportions that cost, and any uncovered medical, dental, and prescription expenses, between the parents.