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Law Office of Richard Roman Shum, Esq., PLLC.
Manhattan Child Support Lawyer
Child custody and support are two major family law concerns that go hand in hand. Once the matter of child custody has been determined, the question of whether child support should be provided must be addressed. Under New York law, there are specific rules that govern how much support should be provided and how often. While parents can and do sometimes create their own agreements, the court will still evaluate their agreement to determine if it is in the best interests of the child or children involved.
Although you and your spouse only want what’s best for your child, financial discussions can often turn an amicable divorce or separation into one full of contention and strife. Getting the help of an experienced Manhattan child support lawyer who can negotiate the terms of your child’s financial support can prevent additional heartache. At the Law Office of Richard Roman Shum, skilled New York City divorce attorney Richard Shum has assisted families through the legal processes involved with divorce, including child support.
“I was very impressed with how astute, detail oriented and methodical Richard is with his work. He is experienced, technically proficient, highly effective and an excellent negotiator, who is proactive and knows the law inside and out. Richard kept me informed regularly and was responsive to all my requests and queries. All the traits that any good lawyer worth his salt should possess.”
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In New York, parents are required to continue supporting their children financially until the child reaches age 21. Support may continue until age 26 for an adult dependent with a qualifying developmental disability who meets the statutory requirements.
The Child Support Standards Act (CSSA) provides the presumptive framework for calculating child support in New York. A court may deviate from the guideline amount when the statutory factors support a finding that it would be unjust or inappropriate.
New York courts identify each parent’s statutory income, subtract the deductions the law allows, combine the adjusted incomes, apply the child support percentage up to the current cap, and allocate the result in proportion to income. Certain child-related expenses are addressed separately as add-ons, and the court may deviate when the guideline result would be unjust or inappropriate.
Income begins with amounts reported or required to be reported on tax returns, together with other statutory benefits and resources the court may impute. Permitted deductions are limited and can include FICA and New York City or Yonkers taxes actually paid, qualifying maintenance, and child support actually paid under a court order or written agreement for a child outside the case.
The following counts as income under the CSSA:
Gifts from relatives and friends as well as employee benefits can also be included as income as determined by a judge. SSI and Public Assistance do not count as income; certain deductions can also be allowed.
After the deductions have been calculated from each parent’s income, they should be added to determine their combined total income.
The CSSA applies the following percentages based on the number of children:
| Number of Children | CSSA Percentage |
|---|---|
| One child | 17% |
| Two children | 25% |
| Three children | 29% |
| Four children | 31% |
| Five children or more | At least 35% |
To get each parent’s share of the child support obligation, their total income should be divided by the amount of their combined total income. This is the parent’s percentage of combined income, which should be multiplied by the value of their combined child support obligation. The resulting value would be the individual parent’s child support obligation.
This calculation determines each parent’s share of the child support obligation based on their proportion of the combined parental income.
For the purpose of clarity in determining who pays child support, New York courts determine that the parent who has the children for more than 50 percent of the time is considered the custodial parent.
Effective March 1, 2026, the combined parental income cap is $193,000. For income above that cap, the law permits, but does not require, the court to apply the statutory percentage; the court may instead consider the statutory factors, or use both approaches.
Equal parenting time does not automatically eliminate child support. When neither parent has the child for a majority of the time, New York courts treat the parent with the higher income as the noncustodial parent for child support purposes and apply the CSSA. The court may deviate if the guideline result would be unjust or inappropriate after considering the statutory factors.
The basic support calculation is separate from statutory add-ons. The court states each parent’s share according to the governing rules and the facts proved.
When health coverage is available, the court prorates the cost between the parents according to income. It also prorates reasonable health care expenses that insurance or public coverage does not reimburse.
Reasonable childcare caused by a custodial parent’s work or qualifying education is prorated by income. Childcare while seeking work may be apportioned in the court’s discretion, and appropriate educational expenses may be awarded after considering the parties’ circumstances and the child’s best interests.
Private schooling is a discretionary educational expense that may be allocated based on the parties’ circumstances and the child’s best interests. The court can also require a parent to contribute to college expenses based on the circumstances of the case.
In New York, Supreme Court or Family Court can issue a temporary child support order without a showing of immediate or emergency need. To make sure that the child’s needs are met, the court can order the non-custodial parent to pay child support to ensure that the child’s needs are met. If the parents’ financial disclosures have not yet been filed, the court can issue a statutory order until the disclosures have been provided.
The final child support order will either reflect the agreement made by the parents or reflect the child support obligation calculated through the CSSA.
Your child’s support order should hinge on your child’s quality of life. It’s important to seek the help of a Manhattan child support attorney who has the necessary experience and knowledge to defend your best interests and who can see you through the most rigorous of cases.
Richard Roman Shum, a top-rated New York family law attorney, has helped many families navigate through the process of divorce and discussions of child support. He understands the importance of ensuring amicable communication between spouses when negotiating, but also knows how to provide aggressive representation when necessary.
Be Informed
When determining child support payments, the court will make a comprehensive evaluation of the parents’ circumstances. If the court finds that a parent is earning less than the amount they are capable of earning or has become voluntarily unemployed so as to avoid paying financial support after the divorce to their spouse or their child, the court can assign them an imputed income.
Imputed income is assigned income based on a person’s employment and wage history, as well as their educational background. If the non-custodial parent does not have an employment history, the court can impute income based on minimum wage.
Imputed income is a means to avoid bad faith or fraud in instances when a parent willfully quits a well-paying job to avoid the responsibility of paying financial support. Imputed income can also be calculated from assets that do not provide income by themselves but appreciate in value such as real estate. Comparisons between a person with the same educational background and potential income-generating capacity as the non-custodial parent can also be used as a basis to impute income.
A payor or non-custodial parent is allowed to provide justification as to why they have a reduced income, are unemployed, or are underemployed.
The court will accept exemptions if the reason for the reduction in wage-earning capacity is due to circumstances beyond the parent’s control, such as the following:
Just as the court can investigate additional factors as to a parent’s income capacity, it will also accept any documentation that proves that the parent’s tax returns include income that is not actually received, commonly referred to as phantom income.
The calculation of the child support obligation in New York is heavily influenced by the parents’ income. It’s important to inform your attorney beforehand and submit the required documents to avoid having imputed income imposed on you on top of your reported income. Negotiating with your spouse on the amount of child support may also be helpful.
“Attorney Richard Shum assisted my family and I with a very difficult landlord. At a time of a lot of concern and uncertainty, Mr. Shum was there for us every inch of the way, his confidence and vast knowledge of the law, together with his passion for it and for helping people, provided us the serenity to go on about our life, while he took care of they daunting matter. At the end we reached an agreement only Atterney Shum could achieve. Since I recommended his service to any friends that is in need of help with legal matters, from Landlord/Tenant to family court, and in every case I receive a thank you call from said friends, following the successful outcome he provided. So, as I say to my friends, if you need an Attorney that will fight for you, and not stress you out, call this guy. you will thank me.”
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A court may modify child support upon a substantial change in circumstances. Unless the parties validly opted out, modification may also be available after three years or when either party’s gross income changes by at least 15%; a reduction in income relied on as a ground for modification must be involuntary and accompanied by diligent efforts to obtain suitable work.
Each parent can file a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) once two years have passed since the initial child support order was given. If there has been a 10% change in the Consumer Price Index for urban areas (CPI-U) as determined by the federal government compared to the year the initial order was issued, the court may grant an adjustment in the child support order.
The New York Child Support Program reviews child support orders every two years. If there is a child support order for a safety net assistance case, the COLA adjustment can be applied as soon as the case becomes eligible. The Child Support Program also assists in matters where a parent’s financial situation can affect the support order, such as if the payor parent suffered from an involuntary loss of employment or medical concern.
For custody changes between parents, a modification may be ordered so that the previous custodial parent is now required to pay child support to the other parent.
Child support orders are meant to be binding even if the parents or the child move out of New York. Although the income from a parent’s new partner or spouse cannot be used to modify the child support order, if the new marriage results in a parent having less living expenses and giving them more disposable income, the child support order may be changed to reflect the new income.
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A support recipient may file a violation petition to enforce a child support order. Depending on the circumstances, court-ordered or administrative enforcement measures can include income withholding, a lump-sum payment or money judgment for arrears, license suspension, account seizure, tax-refund interception, and passport consequences. A willful violation can also lead to contempt sanctions.
Family Court can enter, modify, or enforce child support through a support petition, while Supreme Court can decide child support as part of a divorce case. The correct forum can depend on whether a divorce is pending, which court issued the existing order, and whether the Supreme Court retained exclusive jurisdiction over enforcement or modification.
We Are Here to Help You
When you are going through a divorce, it is easy to get overwhelmed in the midst of everything that needs to be addressed. A skilled lawyer can help you keep up with all the things you need to consider when it comes to New York child support. Our Manhattan child support lawyers at the Law Office of Richard Roman Shum understand the importance of the legal choices you make during a divorce and how it impacts the future of you and your family. As such, we put in the work to make sure that our clients receive quality representation and counsel to protect their best interests. We may be able to help you reach a child support agreement that takes your child’s well-being seriously or help represent you in court to determine a fair child support obligation.
Our experienced lawyers are available for a free consultation. We can assist with ongoing child support cases as well as filing a petition for a child support order modification. Contact us today at (646) 259-3416.
“In both cases attorney Shum was great to work with. Navigating both of these situations was, at times, confusing. Attorney Shum made the details of both matters easy for me to comprehend.”