Under Virginia law, parents have not only a duty, but an obligation to support their children. Courts have routinely held that this obligation is for the benefit of the child and, therefore, there is a presumption in favor of awarding child support.

The presumptive amount of child support is determined using “child support guidelines” contained in Code § 20-108.2, using the parents’ gross incomes, work-related child care expenses, cost of health insurance, and extraordinary medical expenses.

In addition to the guidelines, when determining an amount of child support, Virginia law sets forth in Code § 20-108.1 the various factors that the judge will consider in setting an amount of child support.  These factors are as follows:

1. Actual monetary support for other family members or former family members;
2. Arrangements regarding custody of the children, including the cost of      visitation travel;
3. Imputed income to a party who is voluntarily unemployed or voluntarily under-employed; provided that income may not be imputed to the custodial parent when a child is not in school, child care services are not available and the cost of such child care services are not included in the computation and provided further, that any consideration of imputed income based on a change in a party’s employment shall be evaluated with consideration of the good faith and reasonableness of employment decisions made by the party;
4. Debts of either party arising during the marriage for the benefit of the child;
5. Direct payments ordered by the court for maintaining life insurance coverage, education expenses, or other court-ordered direct payments for the benefit of the child;
6. Extraordinary capital gains such as capital gains resulting from the sale of the marital abode;
7. Any special needs of a child resulting from any physical, emotional, or medical condition;
8. Independent financial resources of the child or children;
9. Standard of living for the child or children established during the marriage;
10. Earning capacity, obligations, financial resources, and special needs of each parent;
11. Provisions made with regard to the marital property under § 20-107.3, where said property earns income or has an income-earning potential;
12. Tax consequences to the parties including claims for exemptions, child tax credit, and child care credit for dependent children;
13. A written agreement, stipulation, consent order, or decree between the parties which includes the amount of child support; and
14. Such other factors as are necessary to consider the equities for the parents and children.

Child support, like child custody or visitation, is modifiable upon a material change in circumstances.

Contact Dave

If you need the assistance of a Fairfax divorce attorney or Fairfax child support attorney, send an email to David J. Marquardt at dmarquardt@dufflawfirm.com; or call (703) 591-7475 for an appointment.