Child Support Agreements

Child support is the money paid by one parent to the other for the day to day expenses of the children after separation.

It is assessed through the Child Support Agency using a formula, based on the number of nights the child is in each parent’s care and the taxable income of both parties.

​To get an idea of what your assessment might look like you can use the Child Support Estimator shown here.

It is expected that both parents will pay for the child’s day to day basic expenses when the child is with them, such as food, clothing, housing and utilities.

The assessment of child support is a periodic weekly or monthly amount aimed to assist the parent with more care of the child and/or on a lower income to meet these expenses.

The assessment amount is often not enough to cover the expense of a child. Parties can negotiate a private agreement between them that better assists them to share the cost of raising their children.

If you are considering entering into a private agreement, then you should think about your child’s specific needs and make a list of the regular current and foreseeable expenses and how you may want to share these. Consider some of the following:

1. ​Educational expenses (tuition, private tutoring, uniforms, books, technology, camps and excursions).
2. Extra-curricular activities (music and sport and the uniforms, equipment and fees associated)
3. Medical Expenses (private health insurance, out of pocket medical and ancillary expenses (orthodontics and specialists), medication.