In Florida, child support is not set by a judge's hunch — it is produced by a formula written into state law. Both parents owe a duty to support their child, and the numbers flow from each parent's income, the parenting schedule, and a handful of required add-ons.
Three statutes do most of the work. Knowing where the rules live makes the calculation far less mysterious.
The master formula: how income is defined, the support schedule, the timesharing adjustment, and grounds for deviation.
Authorizes the support order, sets the termination rules, and ties support to the parenting plan.
States the policy that both parents share responsibility and the child's standard of living is the priority.
The Florida guideline calculation is a sequence of defined steps. A judge fills in each parent's real numbers, but the structure itself is fixed by statute.
| Included as gross income | Deducted to reach net income |
|---|---|
| Wages, salary, overtime, bonuses, commissions, tips | Federal income tax (filing-status appropriate) |
| Self-employment / business income (receipts minus ordinary expenses) | FICA / Social Security & Medicare (or self-employment tax) |
| Disability, workers' comp, unemployment benefits | Mandatory union dues |
| Pension, retirement, and annuity payments | Mandatory retirement contributions |
| Social Security benefits | Health insurance premiums for the parent |
| Spousal support received | Court-ordered support for other children actually paid |
When the parent with less time reaches at least 20% of the year's overnights — 73 nights — Florida applies the “gross-up” timesharing adjustment under §61.30(11)(b). Because two households cost more than one, the basic obligation is first multiplied by 1.5, then re-divided based on both income share and each parent's exact percentage of overnights.
The threshold is sharp: 72 overnights and 73 overnights produce noticeably different results. If your parenting plan sits near that line, the precise overnight count is worth getting right.
“We split custody 50/50, so nobody pays.” — This is the most common myth, and it's wrong. Equal timesharing does not automatically zero out support. The formula still combines both incomes and divides by income share, so when one parent earns more than the other, that parent usually still owes support even with an exactly equal schedule. The amount may be smaller than with a standard schedule, but it is rarely zero.
Child support orders entered in Florida must terminate on the child's 18th birthday, with one common exception: if the child is still in high school, performing in good faith, and reasonably expected to graduate before turning 19, support can continue until graduation. Support may also continue for an adult child who is dependent in fact because of a disability that began before adulthood.
Either parent can ask the court to recalculate support, but Florida sets a floor: the new guideline amount must differ from the existing order by at least 15% or $50 — whichever is greater — before a court will treat it as a substantial change in circumstances. A genuine change in income, the parenting schedule, child-care costs, or insurance can all be grounds.
Most support is collected through an income deduction order sent to the paying parent's employer. The Florida Department of Revenue can also enforce support through license suspension, tax-refund interception, liens, and contempt proceedings when payments fall behind.
Parents can agree, but the judge still measures the agreement against the §61.30 guidelines. A court can approve a figure that differs from the guideline amount, but it generally must explain why the deviation is in the child's best interest. The guideline number is the starting point, not merely a suggestion.
If a court finds a parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, it can impute income — assigning income based on recent work history, qualifications, and prevailing local earnings — rather than using the parent's artificially low actual income. The goal is to prevent a parent from dodging the obligation by choosing to earn less.
Generally no. Florida does not require the parent who receives support to itemize expenses. The law presumes the support is used for the child's overall benefit — housing, food, clothing, and the many shared costs of raising a child.
The guidelines recognize a limit: a calculation that would require a parent to pay more than 55% of gross income for a single current-support order is a recognized basis for the court to deviate from the guideline amount.
No. Florida treats support and timesharing as separate legal issues. Withholding support because of a timesharing dispute does not excuse the obligation and can lead to enforcement against you. The correct route is to take the timesharing problem back to court, not to stop paying.