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Michigan
Child Support Laws
Michigan Child Support Guide :: Table of Contents
What Is Child Support?
Child support is an ongoing payment by a non-custodial parent to assist with the financial support of their children. Child support payments are often determined during the process of dissolution of a marriage through divorce, though the only requirements for requesting child support payments are establishment of paternity and maternity.
Child support is handled on a state level, and Michigan has a set of specific child support guidelines. On this page you can learn about how child support is calculated in Michigan, how custody split and extraordinary costs affect child support payments, and more.
Michigan Child Support Court Considerations Table
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Michigan Child Support Law Summary
Michigan uses the "income share" method for calculating child support payments, which is designed to ensure that both the custodial and non-custodial parents contribute to their child's upkeep.
Michigan's child support formula directly accounts for parents who share custody of a child, and support payment amounts are connected to the custody split. Other special situations accounted for under Michigan's child support law include childcare costs and extraordinary medical costs. These costs may be additions to the basic Michigan child support order.
What are Criteria Considered in Deviating from a Child Support Ruling?
If a motion for change of custody is filed while a parent is active duty, the court shall not consider a parent's absence due to that active duty status in a best interest of the child determination.- Utilize a guardian ad litem or the community resources in behavioral sciences and other professions in the investigation and study of custody disputes and consider their recommendations for the resolution of the disputes.
- Take any other action considered to be necessary in a particular child custody dispute.
- Upon petition consider the reasonable grandparenting time of maternal or paternal grandparents as provided in section 7b and, if denied, make a record of the denial.
A judgment/order entered under this act providing for the support of a child is governed and enforceable as provided in the support and parenting time enforcement act (1982 PA 295, MCL 552.601 to 552.650). If this act contains specific provisions regarding the contents/enforcement of a support order that conflicts with a provision in the support/parenting time enforcement act (1982 PA 295, MCL 552.601 to 552.650), this act controls in regard to that provision.
As provided in the servicemembers civil relief act, (50 USC 501 to 597b), if a motion for change of custody is filed during the time a parent is on deployment, a parent can file and the court shall entertain an application for stay.
722.27 Child custody disputes; powers of court; support order; enforcement of judgment or order; child custody while parent on deployment.
If a child custody dispute has been submitted to the circuit court as an original action under this act or has arisen incidentally from another action in the circuit court or an order or judgment of the circuit court, for the best interests of the child the court may do 1 or more of the following:
- Award the custody of the child to 1 or more of the parties involved or to others and provide for payment of support for the child, until the child reaches 18 years of age.
The court shall not enter an order modifying or amending a previous judgment or order, or issue a new order, that changes the child's placement that existed on the date the parent was called to deployment, except that the court may enter a temporary custody order if there is clear and convincing evidence that it is in the best interests of the child.
If a motion for change of custody is filed after a parent returns from deployment, the court shall not consider a parent's absence due to that deployment in making a best interest of the child determination.
Michigan Child Support Calculation Formula Methods
Child support can be arranged out of court by a mutual support agreement between the parents, or can be decided in Michigan family court through a child support order. In Michigan, a number of factors are taken into account when determining the amount of child support to be paid in court. Here is an explanation of the two most common methods used to calculate basic child support amounts.
Income Share Method
Under the income share model, the court uses economic tables to estimate the total monthly cost of raising the children. The non-custodial parent pays a percentage of the calculated cost that is based on their proportional share of both parents' combined income.
Example: The non-custodial parent of one child has an income of $2,000 per month, and the custodial parent has an income of $1,000 per month. The court estimates that the cost of raising one child is $1,000 a month. The non-custodial parent's income is 66.6% of the parent's total combined income. Therefore, the non-custodial parent pays $666 per month in child support, or 66.6% of the total child support obligation.
Percentage Of Income Method
This method of calculating child support is simple - a set percentage of the non-custodial parent's income is paid monthly to the custodial parent to cover basic child support expenses. The percentage paid may stay the same, or vary if the non-custodial parent's income changes.
Example: The non-custodial parent of one child has an income of $2,000 per month. The court orders a flat percentage of 25% of the non-custodial parent's income to be paid in child support to the custodial parent. Therefore, the non-custodial parent pays $500 per month in child support. If the non-custodial parent's monthly income changes, the dollar amount they pay in child support will change as well.
Michigan Child Support Frequently Asked Questions
Michigan Child Support FAQ
- How does having shared custody of the child affect child support in Michigan?
- How are extraordinary medical costs treated by child support in Michigan?
- How are child care costs treated by child support in Michigan?
- Does child support cover college education expenses in Michigan?
- How is child support enforced in Michigan?
- What are child support arrears?
- How are child support payments taxed in Michigan?
How does having shared custody of the child affect child support in Michigan?
All states have a method of modifying the amount of child support owed in cases where the custody agreement provides for joint or shared custody of a child between both parents.
Michigan law accounts for shared custody of a child directly in the child support formula used to calculate payment amounts. This means that, in cases where custody is shared, the amount of child support paid by the paying parent will be reduced according to the amount of time they have custody of the child.
How are extraordinary medical costs treated by child support in Michigan?
Michigan has specialized guidelines for the sharing of a child's extraordinary medical care costs that are separate from, and in addition to, basic child support payments. Extraordinary medical costs are generally costs generated by things such as illness, hospital visits, or costly procedures such as getting braces.
Michigan treats extraordinary medical care costs as a "mandatory deduction" for basic child support. This means that if the non-custodial parent pays child care costs, the portion of the total monthly child care costs attributed to the custodial partner are deducted from the noncustodial partner's monthly child support payment. If the custodial parent pays for child care, the non-custodial parent must pay their share in addition to basic child support.
How are child care costs treated by child support in Michigan?
Due to the high costs of child care for a single payment, Michigan has specialized guidelines that consider child care costs separately from the general costs of raising a child for the purposes of calculating child support payments.
Michigan treats child care costs as a "mandatory deduction" for basic child support. This means that if the non-custodial parent pays child care costs, the portion of the total monthly child care costs attributed to the custodial partner are deducted from the noncustodial partner's monthly child support payment. If the custodial parent pays for child care, the non-custodial parent must pay their share in addition to basic child support.
Does child support cover college education expenses in Michigan?
While the state of Michigan has no explicit requirement for college expenses to be covered under child support, support for college expense by the non-custodial parent may be voluntarily agreed to by both parties, after which it is contractually enforceable.
How is child support enforced in Michigan?
In the state of Michigan, child support is enforced by the state child support agency. The state agency handles the location of non-custodial parents, enforcement of support orders, and the handling of unpaid child support arrears.
What are child support arrears?
Child support arrears are the amount of child support that is delinquent, or unpaid, by the noncustodial parent to the custodial parent. Child support arrears may be collected by the state through wage garnishment, bank levy. withholding of Michigan welfare benefits, or other collection methods.
How are child support payments taxed in Michigan?
Under IRS guidelines, the recepient of child support does not need to pay federal tax on child support payments, and the payer of child support cannot deduct their child support payments. This differs from the federal taxation of alimony payments, which are treated as taxable income by the receiver and are deductible by the payor. Michigan tax law may vary on tax treatment of child support.