How is child support calculated?
Child support is usually made up of a basic monthly amount and an amount for other expenses, called special or extraordinary expenses.
Table amount
Each province and territory has a Child Support Table. The Table shows the basic monthly amounts of child support to cover expenses like clothes, food, and school supplies. The basic amount is also called the table amount.
The table amount is based on the gross annual income of the payor parent and the number of children they have to support.
Gross annual income is the total income a person earns in the year before subtracting taxes and other deductions. It is usually the amount on line 150 on your income tax return.
To find out what a parent in Ontario has to pay in child support, visit justice.gc.ca/eng/fl-df and click on “Child Support”, then click on “2017 Child Support Table Look-up”. Enter the annual gross income of the payor parent, the number of children, and select “Ontario” for province of residence.
Special or extraordinary expenses
Parents may also have to share other expenses like:
- child-care fees
- medical and dental insurance premiums and expenses
- extracurricular activities
These types of expenses are special or extraordinary only if they are both:
- reasonable, which means that the parents can afford it, and
- necessary for the child’s best interests
Parents usually share these expenses based on their income.
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