Child Support

The Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines provide a formula by which child support is calculated when there are unemancipated children. These guidelines take into consideration the parties’ income, costs of health/dental insurance, daycare costs, and prior child support orders. The type of parenting schedule also affects the child support, depending on whether there is a shared parenting schedule or if there is a custodial parent and a non-custodial parent.

The number produced by the guideline calculation is presumed to be the appropriate support order, but reasons may exist to deviate from that number, for example extraordinary travel costs to share time with the children, excessive medical costs, and other unusual circumstances.