Calculating Child Support If You Are Self-Employed

Question:

How do I calculate child support payments if I am a self-employed contractor?

Answer:

I am unable to give you legal advice on divorce. I can only give general divorce help for men, though, my knowledge is based on Missouri child support laws where I am temporarily permitted to practice.

Where I practice, the state analyzes a person’s potential child support payments through a state child support formula (known as a Form 14 in Missouri), which requires asks for each party’s gross monthly income and associated child rearing expenses, such as daycare, medical and dental insurance costs, other child support orders, etc.

If you are a subcontractor/sole proprietor, you will need to calculate your potential gross monthly income in order to complete the child support form. Doing so would require a review of your 1099 to make this initial determination.

Your gross monthly income, for purposes of calculating child support, may be reduced by certain qualifying business expenses, since you are a sole proprietor. Once you complete your monthly income calculation and determine your additional child rearing expenses, input those figures into your state’s child support formula, which then calculates what your potential payment may be.

Keep in mind that in my state your total monthly child support amount may be decreased by the amount of overnight visits you have with your children each week.

Remember, I am unable to provide you with anything more than divorce tips for men. Consult with a local divorce lawyer for specific legal advice on divorce.

To arrange an initial consultation to discuss divorce rights for men with a Cordell & Cordell attorney, including Jennifer de Lyon Stralka, a St. Louis divorce lawyer, contact Cordell & Cordell Law Firm.