The Child Support Standard provides guidelines to Wisconsin courts for setting payment amounts for child support and medical support. These guidelines are based on the belief that both parents are responsible for supporting their children, whether they live together or not.
The child support guidelines are based on:
- the parent’s income
- the time a child spends with each parent
- whether a parent is supporting other children
Income Used to Set Child Support Orders
Below are some of the factors a court considers to determine how much income a payer has to pay support with:
Gross income is defined as all income and earnings from all sources. The income may or may not be taxable. Income can be in the form of money, property, or services.
Gross income includes:
- wages, salaries, earnings, tips, interest, capital gains, commissions, and bonuses
- worker’s compensation or other personal injury awards intended to replace income
- unemployment insurance
- income continuation benefits and Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) payments
- contributions to retirement and cafeteria plans and undistributed income of a corporation
- military allowances and veterans disability benefits
Gross income does not include:
- child support
- public assistance payments, such as W-2 cash payments or FoodShare payments
The court can consider a parent’s ability to earn based on:
- past earnings
- current physical and mental health
- history of child care responsibilities and periods of physical placement
- education and training
- local job openings
Income may be based on assets, such as:
- Life insurance
- Cash and deposit accounts
- Stocks and Bonds
- Business interests
Want To Learn More?
For more information on child support payments, please visit the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families.
If you’re looking for support, O’Brien & Associates offers Skip Locate Services that allow NCP individuals (non-custodial parents), to be held accountable for child support obligations.
Source: Wisconsin Department of Children and Families.
