Types of Child Support

There are three different types of child support in Minnesota for a minor child:

1. Basic Support. Basic support includes a dollar amount ordered for a child’s housing, food, clothing, transportation, education costs, and other expenses relating to the child’s care. Generally, basic support does not include extra-curricular activities or private school tuition.
2. Medical support. Medical support is defined as providing health care coverage for a joint child by carrying health care coverage or by contributing to the cost or health care coverage, public health care coverage (i.e. Medical Assistance or Minnesota Care), unreimbursed medical expenses, and uninsured medical expenses for a minor child.
3. Child Care Support. Child care support is based on actual child care costs or daycare costs associated with a custodial parent’s work-related or education-related child care expenses.

Minnesota Child Support Obligations

In Minnesota, courts use the Minnesota Child Support Guidelines, Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 518A, to determine child support. The Minnesota Department of Human Services created an online child support calculator based on these Statutes, which can be found here: http://childsupportcalculator.dhs.state.mn.us/.

The amount of child support under the calculator is a rebuttable presumption, which means that the Court will likely order the child support amount under the guidelines except in extreme cases.

Child support is based on an “income shares model,” which means that the court will consider both parents’ incomes when determining a child support order. In Minnesota, a parent’s child support obligation is determined by referencing the guideline for the appropriate number of joint children and the combined parental income for both parents.

If you have any questions about the child support calculator or your custody case, don’t hesitate to contact our Minnesota divorce attorneys today at 612-294-2200