Certain aspects of your BAH, such as a COLA, may not actually reduce your personal expenses and thus may not be considered “actual income” for purposes of child support. Determining child support can involve a complicated legal analysis and even small details can make a difference from one case to the next. I wouldn't be worried about it. If there is no child support order currently in place from the courts, your current support obligation is based on the rules for your branch of the military. No representation is made that the quality of the legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers. To calculate the amount of child support in Illinois, the court considers both parents’ income. Even though your state court orders your spouse to pay a certain amount for child support, it can be difficult to collect that support if he is unwilling to pay it. Cordell & Cordell has men’s divorce lawyers located nationwide. Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual I am unable to give you legal advice on divorce. However, each state establishes its own guidelines. So when figuring out whether or not to include disability payments, start first with the source of the payments, and that will give you your answer. some do require BAH. Finally, while not directly on point but in case law that applies in my state, the court in Petrini v. Petrini , 336 Md. others do not. In a 2010 California case called Marriage of Stanton, the court specifically held that allowances such as BAH and BAS are classified as income for the purpose of calculating child support. Can BAS & BAH for active Navy personnel be used to calculate income for child support? Collecting Child Support. The military does not regulate the method of child support payment, leaving the decision up to the custodial parent and the non-custodial parent (NCP) service member. The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Attorney services are provided by licensed attorneys in every state where Cordell & Cordell offices are located. The remainder of your disability, however, will NOT be garnished. Service members also receive a BAH if they are separated from their immediate family members. In addition to child custody, separating couples with children must figure out how to handle child support. Paternity Laws: Paying Child Support For A Child Born During Marriage But Not The Husband’s, Zoom Etiquette for Divorce Court Appearances and Hearings – Men’s Divorce Podcast, The Role of Children in Custody Litigation – Men’s Divorce Podcast, Do I Need an Accounting Expert in My Divorce Case? The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely upon advertisements. Is this a correct way today???? Each branch of the military has different rules for the support of family members. Child Support Payments . Yes the state can use BAH (a military term for "Basic Allowance for Housing) to calculate child support since it is a part of your gross income. I am in active Navy in Washington state and I had been divorced for more then 4 years, I remarried and had another child. the state the custody.child support case is in detrmines what can and cannot be used as income. They would enter their annual income (see "How do we calculate annual income?" The basic answer is yes, Virginia considers BAH and other non-taxable pay as income for child support purposes, as do most states. Office in Ridgeland, MS. Child Support For Military Dads: Does BAH Count As Income? Child support is an area that can be tricky and difficult to understand when it comes to divorce. I will be receiving the post-9/11 G.I. Child support for Alberta is calculated using the Federal Child Support Guidelines and the Alberta child support tables. Once you are in court, your child support obligation will be calculated using your state’s child support guidelines. Because if it is I will have to pay way more then I used to …. Can VA Disability Compensation Be Used to Calculate Child Support or Income? In my state, you and your wife are correct to include your BAH in estimating the child support award that will be ordered by the court as your BAH is considered income to you. If you and the other parent can’t agree on the support amount and a court hasn’t yet weighed in, you can consult military guidelines. HOWEVER EVERY TIME you PCS you have the right to have it looked at again and adjusted because BAH does change with duty station. If my child support goes up as a result of drawing my GI Bill benefits, I will not be able to afford school, which will disqualify me from receiving the GI Bill, putting me back at square one. We use cookies to give you the best possible experience on our website. Your email address will not be published. above), and the number of children who live with the other parent. The schedules also include a ... (BAH) and Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS). There is currently a legal disagreement over whether BAH and BAS pay should be included in your income. Child support is regarded as one of the most important financial obligations in the State of California. I know military personnel who are paying child support and their BAH is not calculated into it, only their base pay. The line-by-line help for this worksheet provides additional information … The military housing allowance, now called the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), is nontaxable allowance paid to service members who do not live in government housing. Will the court typically adjust income for this reason? The garnishment can also be used to meet alimony and child support. By relying on numerous resources (like IRS data, credit bureau information, new hire reporting directories, etc. THIS IS AN ATTORNEY ADVERTISEMENT. Under federal law (45 CFR § 302.56), all states must establish guidelines regarding how to calculate child support. To calculate a reasonable amount of child support, start with your state’s child support guidelines. BAS and COLA to be added. To schedule an appointment with a divorce attorney, including Maryland Divorce Lawyer Sara L. Schwartzman, please contact Cordell & Cordell. Michelle Ferreri licensed in PA and NJ only - Philadelphia, PA. Dorothy Walsh Ripka licensed in OH, IL, MO, KY and TX only. If you need to locate the parent responsible for support before you can begin the process of establishing a child support order, then the BCSE may be able to help. Child support is calculated based upon the combined gross (pre-tax) income of both parents. To determine the total income used to calculate child support, you may also need to adjust your annual income based on Schedule III of the Federal Guidelines. The child support calculator can be used to calculate the amount of child support money a parent has to pay to the other parent as part of a separation and or divorce settlement. Phyllis MacCutcheon licensed in CT and NM only. The different classifications of income raise questions about which pay sources are considered when calculating assets in a divorce case. If you are interested in speaking with our legal team, complete our contact form or call (909) 726-7112 to schedule a free consultation with our lawyers. Can I request for the court to protect my GI Bill benefit from being used to calculate support? Generally, the entries on an LES can be divided into two categories: Pay and allowance. – Men’s Divorce Podcast, Click here for a full listing of offices nationwide. An attorney in Illinois says that per IRMO - Baylor 324 Ill App 3d 213 that they can use it. My wife feels the gross monthly income amount entered into the calculator should be adjusted in consideration of the fact that my BAH is income that will not be taxed, as opposed to all of her employment income being taxed. Joseph Cordell, Principal Partner, licensed in MO and IL only. I can give general divorce help for men, though, my knowledge is based on Maryland divorce and child support laws where I am licensed to practice. The amount of child support paid will depend on the amount of parenting time the parents have. This is standard. The courts used all sources of income in deciding how much support I owed (BAH and BAS) and sent a garnishment to the Defense Finance Accounting System (DFAS). The guidelines will calculate your obligation based on your actual monthly income (before taxes), your wife’s actual monthly income (before taxes) and the cost of any health insurance, work-related daycare and/or extraordinary medical expenses of the children. Florida law allows for food and housing in child support calculations. identifies values in the child support schedules, the entries in the schedules used to calculate the actual child support obligation are based upon either consumption spending9 or after-tax income, whichever is lower. BAH and BAS are nontaxable for the IRS, but are included in child support calculations. While courts typically protect benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from some collection activities, these protections don't extend to child support payments in most states. Child support guidelines typically take both parties' incomes into account. I am in the active Army stationed in Maryland going through divorce. ), BCSE may be able to locate the non-custodial parent. The non-taxed compensation that you received in place of your retirement pay can be garnished. So if you’re asking how much child support should I pay, the answer is that it … Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. 1 found this answer helpful | 3 lawyers agree I understand that the courts feel BAH and BAS are income, but it’s odd and interesting that the military’s pay system does not, and will not pay out support orders calculating BAH and BAS. Conversely, allowances such as the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS), Cost of Living Allowance (COLA), etc., are non-taxable. Lisa Karges, Florida Resident Partner - Tampa, FL. You should consult with a superior to determine the amount of child support you should be paying pending a court order. Giana Messore licensed in AR only – Little Rock, AR. bill and with it Basic Housing Allowance (BAH). All states have adopted one of three different formulas, called models, to determine the appropriate amount of child support payments for each family.  Once the monthly child support amount has been determined, it is important to set up a means of receiving the support payments when a service member is not able to assist in … 453 (1994), attributed free housing to a father’s actual income for purposes of calculating child support but did not adjust the value of that housing to account for the fact that it was a tax-free benefit. or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window). DFAS in turn, did not use the BAH and BAS in actually paying the support, but instead paid up to 55% of my “disposable income” not including BAH and BAS. Military BAH and BAS included for child support purposes - no Federal pre-emption (reproduced by permission from "David S. Goldberg" marylandmediator@gmail.com) All active duty members of the military receive “basic pay” corresponding to their rank and years of seniority. The funds that are disbursed via the G.I. Amounts classified as pay, such as base pay, sea pay, hazard pay, etc., are usually taxable. The decision set a precedent for the full earnings of military members — taxable or otherwise — to be considered when calculating child support. Home / Articles / Child Support For Military Dads: Does BAH Count As Income? This is true especially where the noncustodial parent is living alone in the barracks but drawing BAH based on a child support obligation. Read More: Can VA Disability Compensation Be Used to Calculate Child Support or Income? Both pay and all allowances are used to calculate child support. A military paystub, or Leave and Earnings Statement (LES), can be difficult to read and understand — especially when trying to determine your child support obligation. This is also a part of the process where many non-custodial parents — who are typically fathers — feel they have been treated unfairly by the courts when the support amount seems far too high. By Travis Gray, J.D. Here is the rub: since service members rotate duty stations (some much more frequently than others) how is an attorney supposed to use this allowance to calculate child support if the amount theoretically can change a day after the judge signs the order? Military divorce, Can I calculate include BAH for child support? Use this Alberta Child Support Calculator to calculate child support for sole, shared and split custody parenting. 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