The Connecticut child support guidelines calculate a parent’s obligation by combining both parents’ net weekly income, running that figure through a schedule tied to the number of children, and splitting the resulting basic obligation in proportion to each parent’s share of income. The framework sits in Connecticut General Statutes Section 46b-215a and is reviewed every four years by the Commission for Child Support Guidelines so the numbers track current economic conditions.1Justia. Connecticut Code 46b-215a – Commission for Child Support Guidelines The amount the schedule produces is presumed correct, and in most cases it is what the court orders.
How the Calculation Works
Connecticut uses an income-shares model. The guidelines schedule maps combined net weekly income against the number of children to produce a basic support obligation. At the lowest income levels, only the noncustodial parent’s income is used. Once combined net income rises above roughly $290 per week, the schedule shifts to both parents’ income, and the support percentages change accordingly.2Connecticut Judicial Branch. Child Support and Arrearage Guidelines For one child, the share of combined net income devoted to support runs from about 10% at the lowest levels up to roughly 25% at moderate incomes, then gradually declines as income climbs.
Once the schedule produces a total number, each parent’s piece is split by their share of the combined net income. A parent earning 60% of the total is responsible for 60% of the basic obligation. The custodial parent’s share is presumed to be spent directly on the child through everyday expenses. The noncustodial parent’s share becomes the actual payment, adjusted for things like childcare and health insurance premiums.3Connecticut eRegulations. Section 46b-215a-2c – Child Support Guidelines
What Counts as Income
Gross income is defined broadly. It covers earned and unearned income from essentially every source before deductions, and the regulations spell out specifically what falls in and what stays out.4Connecticut eRegulations. Section 46b-215a-1 – Definitions Included sources run from the obvious to the less intuitive:
- Employment income: salary, hourly wages (capped at 45 paid hours per week), commissions, bonuses, tips, profit sharing, severance, and in-kind compensation like employer-provided housing or transportation
- Benefit income: workers’ compensation, unemployment, strike pay, disability insurance, veterans’ benefits, Social Security retirement and disability payments, and pension or retirement income
- Investment and passive income: rental income after reasonable business expenses, interest, dividends, annuities, estate or trust income, royalties, and net self-employment earnings
- Other income: lottery and gambling winnings, alimony received from someone outside the current case, adoption subsidies for the child at issue, and taxable education grants
The exclusion list is shorter but important. Supplemental Security Income is excluded entirely. If a parent receives both SSI and Social Security disability or retirement benefits, only $5 per week of the Social Security portion counts as income. Public assistance grants, earned income tax credits, and child support received for other children living in the home are also excluded.
Deductions That Produce Net Income
The guidelines convert gross income to net weekly income by subtracting a specific set of allowable deductions. Not everything you spend money on qualifies. The list is limited to:
- Federal income tax, based on all allowable exemptions, deductions, and credits
- State and local income tax
- Social Security tax, or a mandatory retirement contribution in its place, capped at the Social Security maximum
- Medicare tax
- Health, dental, and medical insurance premiums for the parent and legal dependents, including the child whose support is being calculated
- Court-ordered life insurance for the child’s benefit
- Court-ordered disability insurance
- Mandatory union dues and initiation fees, only amounts actually deducted by the employer
- Mandatory uniform and tool costs, only amounts deducted by the employer
- Court-ordered alimony and child support paid for people not involved in the current case
Voluntary retirement contributions beyond what Social Security or a mandatory plan requires do not reduce net income for child support purposes.3Connecticut eRegulations. Section 46b-215a-2c – Child Support Guidelines The child’s current needs take priority over a parent’s optional savings.
Low-Income Protections and Imputed Income
Connecticut builds a floor into the schedule for parents with very little income. If the noncustodial parent’s net income falls below $50 per week, the guidelines eliminate the child support obligation entirely. For parents earning between $50 and roughly $290 per week, a special low-income section applies, using only the noncustodial parent’s income rather than the combined figure, with lower support percentages so the obligor retains enough for basic living expenses.2Connecticut Judicial Branch. Child Support and Arrearage Guidelines
The reverse problem is a parent who reports no income or an unusually low number. In that situation, the court does not have to accept the figure. A judge can impute income based on earning capacity, considering work history, education, vocational skills, and employability.5FindLaw. Connecticut General Statutes Title 46B – 46b-84 The deviation criteria specifically list “the parent’s earning capacity” as a financial resource that can justify adjusting the presumptive amount,6Connecticut eRegulations. Section 46b-215a-5c – Deviation Criteria which prevents a parent from quitting a well-paying job or taking a lower-paying one to shrink the obligation.
When Courts Deviate from the Guideline Amount
The schedule number is presumed correct, but either parent can argue it would be unfair in their situation. To deviate, the court must find on the record that the presumptive amount is inequitable, identify which deviation criteria apply, and state what the guideline amount would have been.7Connecticut eRegulations. Subtitle 46b-215a – Child Support Guidelines
The regulations recognize specific categories of deviation:
- Other financial resources, including substantial assets whether or not they produce income, earning capacity, and regularly recurring gifts from a spouse or domestic partner that have reduced the parent’s expenses
- Extraordinary child expenses such as education costs, unreimbursed medical expenses, and expenses tied to special needs
- Extraordinary parental expenses, including significant visitation-related travel costs and unreimbursed job-related expenses
- Shared physical custody, when the arrangement substantially reduces costs for one parent or increases them for the other, and both parents have enough income to meet the child’s needs after the deviation
An agreement between the parents can also support a deviation, but the court still has to identify at least one deviation criterion on the record.6Connecticut eRegulations. Section 46b-215a-5c – Deviation Criteria
How Long the Obligation Lasts
The baseline rule is that parents support their minor children until age 18. Three exceptions extend that timeline.
- High school students: if the child turns 18 while still a full-time high school student, support continues until the child finishes twelfth grade or turns 19, whichever comes first.
- Children with disabilities: for orders entered on or after October 1, 2023, a court can order support for a child with an intellectual, mental, or physical disability who lives with and depends on a parent for maintenance until the child reaches 26. Orders entered before that date are capped at 21.
- Educational support orders: a separate type of order can cover post-secondary education costs for a child enrolled at least half-time in an accredited college or vocational school and in good academic standing, until the child turns 23.
An educational support order is distinct from basic child support and has its own conditions. The child must share academic records with both parents, and the order suspends during any academic period where the child falls out of compliance.5FindLaw. Connecticut General Statutes Title 46B – 46b-84 A court can enter one at the time of divorce, during a pendente lite proceeding, or in a paternity case at any point before the child turns 23.
Changing the Order Later
Connecticut allows modification when either parent can show a substantial change in circumstances. The statute does not define “substantial” precisely, which leaves courts to evaluate each case on its facts. Common triggers include a meaningful increase or decrease in either parent’s income, a change in the child’s medical or educational needs, or a shift in custody arrangements.8Justia. Connecticut Code 46b-86 – Modification of Alimony or Support Orders and Judgments Once a substantial change is found, the court recalculates support using the current guidelines, which may have been updated since the original order.
One limitation matters a great deal in practice. Modifications take effect going forward only. The court cannot retroactively change what has already accrued, except that it may reach back to the date the motion for modification was served on the other party. Past-due amounts that piled up before that date stay locked in at the original rate. A parent who loses a job and simply pays less without filing for modification will keep accruing arrears at the old number until a court order changes it.