top of page
Mother and Baby on Floor

Child Support

The duty of a parent to support his or her child exists while the child is an unemancipated minor and continues as long as the child is fully enrolled in an accredited secondary school in a program leading toward a high school diploma until the end of

the school year in which the child graduates. The establishment of the amount of child support the non-custodial parent must pay for the support of his or her children is rather straightforward in Texas for parents whose net resources are $9,200.00 per month or less.

​

Resources include:

  1. 100 percent of all wage and salary income and other compensation for personal services (including commissions, overtime pay, tips, and bonuses);

  2. interest, dividends, and royalty income;

  3. self-employment income;

  4. net rental income (defined as rent after deducting operating expenses and mortgage payments, but not including noncash items such as depreciation); and

  5. all other income actually being received, including severance pay, retirement benefits, pensions, trust income, annuities, capital gains, social security benefits, unemployment benefits, disability and workers’ compensation benefits, interest income from notes regardless of the source, gifts and prizes, spousal maintenance, and alimony.

​

Resources do not include:

  1. return of principal or capital;

  2. accounts receivable; or

  3. benefits paid in accordance with the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program or another federal public assistance program; or

  4. payments for foster care of a child.

​

To determine the net resources available for child support, the Court will deduct the following amounts from the parent’s resources:

  1. social security taxes;

  2. federal income tax based on the tax rate for a single person claiming one personal exemption and the standard deduction;

  3. state income tax;

  4. union dues; and

  5. expenses for health insurance coverage for the obligor’s child or cash medical support for the obligor’s child ordered by the court.

​

Once the amount of net resources is determined, the appropriate percentage is applied to the net resources to calculate the amount of child support. Those percentages are as follows:

  • 1 child 20% of Net Resources

  • 2 children 25% of Net Resources

  • 3 children 30% of Net Resources

  • 4 children 35% of Net Resources

  • 5 children 40% of Net Resources

  • 6+ children Not less than the amount for 5 children

​

Credit will however be given if the non-custodial parent has other children for whom he or she has a legal duty to support. There are other factors which a judge can also consider in setting the amount of child support which we can discuss with you during a consultation.

bottom of page