Child Support Provisions

The section of the Illinois code which deals with child support is 750 ILCS 5/505. This report outlines factors in determining child support, penalties for non-payment of child support, and notification procedures for changes to those paying and receiving child support.

I. Child Support Determination

(A) Child support is awarded for children who are under the age of 18 or children who are 19 but are still in high school.
(B) Standard Guidelines on child support percentage amounts of net income on child support:

• 1 child 20%,
• 2 children 28%,
• 3 children 32%,
• 4 children 40%,
• 5 children 45%,
• 6 children 50%.

(C) “Net income” is defined as the total of all income from all sources, minus the following deductions:

• Federal income tax;
• State income tax;
• Social Security;
• Mandatory retirement contributions required by payor’s employer;
• Union dues;
• Health insurance premiums for payor and children; Previous obligations of support or maintenance paid pursuant to a Court order; Expenditures for repayment of debts that represent reasonable and necessary expenses for the production of income, medical expenditures necessary to preserve life or health, reasonable expenditures for the benefit of the child and the other parent, exclusive of gifts. The court shall reduce net income in determining the minimum amount of support to be ordered only for the period that such payments are due and shall enter an order containing provisions for its self-executing modification upon termination of such payment period.

(D) Examples of allowed deductions which may be partially or fully deductible when determining net income:

• Belief of increase of income as a result of expense: Courts will allow for a decrease in income from a business for a time period if that decrease will bring about a higher income in the future.
• Student Loans deductible for net income purposes: courts have found that student loans can be deductible because it is does bring with it an increase in income, however the courts will look to see if taking the amount of student loans was reasonable and could reduce the percentage of deductibility of student loans (i.e. Could the payor have gone to a cheaper school, could the payor have worked during school etc.)
• General Expenses for the Benefit of the Child: Money the payor spends on the children (gifts are not included in this determination).
• Day care contribution can be used as a deduction from net income due to the fact that it is a reasonable expenditure for the benefit of the child and the other parent.

(E) Undeterminable income: The final order in all cases shall state the support level in dollar amounts. However, if the court finds that the child support amount cannot be expressed exclusively as a dollar amount because all or a portion of the payor’s net income is uncertain as to source, time of payment, or amount, the court may order a percentage amount of support in addition to a specific dollar amount and enter such other orders as may be necessary to determine and enforce, on a timely basis, the applicable support ordered.

• Income Averaging: Where there is a fluctuating income amount
  the courts can average income of previous consecutive years.