When Does the Family Court Not Follow the South Carolina Child Support Guidelines?

A family court judge can deviate from the South Carolina Child Support Guidelines; however, if the judge decides the application of the guidelines is inappropriate, the court must make specific written findings as to why it didn’t follow the guidelines.

The court can deviate from the guidelines when:

-The combined monthly gross income of both parents is less than $750 per month In this case the court will usually not order less than $100 per month in child support, but the court should attempt not to put the paying parent into a position of not being able to live at a minimum level of subsistence.

-The combined monthly gross income of the parties is $360,000 a year or $30,000 a month.

*Remember that a deviation from the South Child Support Guidelines is an exception and not the rule.

-Source The South Carolina Child Support Guidelines

How is Child Support Determined in General?

Generally, the court looks at both parties’ gross income and plugs the amounts into the South Carolina Child Support Calculator (click here for calculator) along with the cost of health insurance for the child(ren), daycare costs, alimony (if any), the number of nights the child(ren) is/are with each parent, and any extraordinary medical expenses for the child(ren). Judges usually use the amount that the calculator determines; however, a judge can take other factors into consideration when determining support as well. These other factors are listed in the South Carolina Child Support Guidelines. I’ll discuss these factors in upcoming posts.