Essential Info

Child Support

• While financial support is part of caring for children, it's not about punishing the other parent. It's about what is best for the children. Understanding the Arizona child support laws should be your first very important step:
• Arizona child support is based upon the income of both parents.
• Debts such as automobile loans, mortgages and outstanding credit card balances will not be considered in calculating your child support.
• The income from the parent's new spouses, if they have remarried, will also not be considered in calculating child support under most normal circumstances - unless a parent is paying or receiving child support as ordered by another court.
• The cost of supporting other children may or may not be factored into the calculation for ordering Arizona child support. Many times, adjustments are calculated to reflect medical insurance, special needs, and child care expenses.
• Adjustments will be made to calculating child support if the child is a teenager, due to added expenses in raising a teen.
• When calculating child support, added expenses in raising a child will be considered, including expenses for raising a special needs child.
• Arizona child support can be adjusted based upon the amount of parenting time the child receives.
• You can estimate your monthly child support by visiting the Arizona Supreme Court Child Support website. See the link below.
  
  www.supreme.state.az.us/childsup