Child Support

Florida law sees child support as a right of the child and that child support cannot be waived. It is essential to ensure this is done correctly and carried through.

​Under Florida law, both parents are responsible for supporting their children. Florida law provides a formula for how that is determined, regardless of whether the parents are married. Support is based on each parent’s net income, the number of children, and the number of overnights the child spends with each parent, all of which is inserted into the child support guidelines worksheet. Also included in the calculation are the costs of health insurance, dental insurance, and childcare expenses.

Calculation

The amount of each parent’s obligation is based on their percentage of the combined income. Additionally, there must be consideration of healthcare coverage if reasonably available, as well as responsibility for the cost of non-covered medical, dental, and prescription expenses.

Obligation

Child support obligations continue until the child reaches the age of 18 or up to 19 if still in high school, or if the child becomes emancipated. In some instances, child support can extend past the age of 18 (or 19) if the child has a mental or physical disability.

Education

There is no obligation to pay for college tuition or expenses. However, parents can agree to do so. RDS has helped craft workable economic solutions for parents to undertake these expenses to save their children later experiencing the crushing debt of obtaining their own loans.