Child Support is Mandatory
There are significant misunderstandings about Tennessee child support law that need to be cleared up. Clients often want to do things like waive child support, pick a specific number they can afford, or otherwise avoid doing what Tennessee law requires, so let’s be clear: child support in Tennessee is mandatory and there is very little you can do about it.
Who Owes Child Support?
Child support is owed for all children under 18 or still in high school except those whose parents are married and living together. This means if you are not married, then child support is owed no matter what. Even if you are married but no longer live in the same household, then child support is owed. I know what you might be thinking: “I’ve got this friend who has a child and doesn’t owe child support because the mother never put him on child support.” Your friend owes child support but doesn’t know it. It’s the same thing as if he said he didn’t owe taxes because he never files a return. He owes taxes, but they haven’t yet been assessed. There is really no getting around the issue that anyone who is not married and living with the other parent owes child support in Tennessee no matter what.
Who Pays Who How Much?
The issue of which parent pays and how much they pay is determined by the Tennessee Child Support Guidelines. Tennessee has created a child support calculator program that anyone can download and use. We use the Excel spreadsheet version to calculate child support at court so that is what I will be referring to. In the overwhelming majority of cases, the primary residential parent will receive child support from the other parent, so the household where the child lives most of the time will receive the money. That is not always the case, but it is rare for child support to go the other way.
The primary factors in the calculation of child support are:
Days spent per year with each parent
Gross monthly income of each parent
Child’s health insurance premium
Work-related child care
Other recurring medical expenses
Other minor children living in your home or for whom you pay child support
We input this information and the calculator tells us who pays who how much money. That is basically all there is to it.
Can We Decide on a Different Amount?
No, not really. Tennessee law requires that divorces with children include a printout of the child support worksheet that follows the guidelines. It is legally permissible to do what’s called a deviation, where the court allows a different amount. However, this is rarely done and unlikely to be approved unless the amount is larger than the guidelines amount. For example, if the guidelines set child support at $750 per month and instead of you agree to pay private school tuition in the amount of $1250 per month, that will nearly always be approved. If, on the other hand, you want to reduce the monthly amount just because you don’t think you can afford it, then that excuse is going nowhere and will be denied. The judge will tell you your children come first and you need to arrange your other bills accordingly.
Can Child Support be Changed later?
Yes, it is common for child support to be modified at least once or twice after it is set. It is important to remember that child support is only modified by another court order, so you and the other parent cannot just agree to pay less. Also, child support is not automatically reduced if one child ages out. Whenever there is a change to the children covered, either parents’ gross income, or the parenting schedule, there needs to be a new child support order entered to update the amount. All we do is run the worksheet program again based on the current information and determine if there is a “significant variance” from the previous order. That means the new amount has to be 15% higher or lower than the old amount for it to be modified. This means that if one child ages out, your child support could actually go up because the other factors changed more than that one. If your income went up and you stopped exercising your parenting time, then it could easily go up even if there are less children included. This is why you should check with a lawyer before filing for a modification.
What Happens if I Don’t Pay?
Bad things happen. The receiving parent may assign their collection and enforcement rights to the State of Tennessee through a law known as Title IV-D. In Memphis that office is known as Shelby County Child Support Services while in other counties it is often run through the district attorney’s office. IV-D enforcement often entails administrative actions like suspending your driver’s license (or any license, even a law license), seizing tax refunds, seizing bank accounts, garnishing paychecks, and even issuing arrest warrants.
If the receiving parent has not applied for IV-D services, then the remedy for non-payment is filing a Petition for Contempt in your divorce court and asking for a judgment, garnishments, and possible incarceration. If you ever go to jail for nonpayment of child support, you will have to post bond in the form of a child support payment set by the judge in order to be released.
Can I Get Rid of Arrears?
Not really. The primary way to get rid of child support arrears is to pay them. If you were not married or had been separated for a while before the child support was assessed against you, then you very likely owe arrears retroactively back to a maximum of five years before the order. If you then missed payments as the child aged, then those will add up. There is a program for arrears forgiveness in certain circumstances, but it is rare to qualify for relief. In order for arrears to be forgiven, you have to have paid your monthly court ordered payment in full and on time every month for twelve months straight. Then the receiving parent has to voluntarily agree to let you off the hook, and the state has to approve it as well. This doesn’t happen very often at all.
The bottom line for child support is this: unless you and the other parent are married and living together, then child support is owed. You owe what the state says you owe. It won’t be modified unless you apply to modify it. You must pay it all in full and there’s almost no way out of it.
You can review the Tennessee Child Support Guidelines and the download the worksheet here:
