Should my ex still work even though I am paying child support?

Question

I was wondering about this, you see I am about to pay child support to my ex and I have recieved the paperwork from the court. To my surprise on her side it shows 0.00 for total income, now I do not know if she is working or not, but is there a way she could get in trouble with the courts if she does not work to support the child? I find this unfair for me because I have enough bills as is and I do not need to take the full brunt all because of her lazy butt won't work.

Any advice or comments are welcomed in this matter

Answer 1

No, she doesn't have to work. When the court calculates child support, they credit her the amount of money that she is capable of making. (If they calculated her as making minimum wage, and you KNOW that she is capable of making more than that...you can file for modification) And if they calculated her income as 0 then something was done incorrectly. Then they divide the total income amount of both parents depending on who has the children more...and then they come up with your calculated amount based on percentage of parenting time. Who provides medical insurance? If you do, then you should recieve a break on that. Also, if the children go to daycare, and she does not work...then you can file for a modification saying that you should not have to pay for unnecessary daycare. If they don't go to daycare, then consider her being a stay home mom a good thing....otherwise, the support calculation would be the same...but you would have to pay an additional amount for daycare too! Besides that...for over hundreds of years, it has been proven that children with at least one parent at home, do better all around! I know it sucks...feels like you are renting your kids...but no matter what she does with herself, your money is helping to raise them one way or another. How many kids do you have? How much are they ordering you to pay? How often do you have the kids?
If you have any questions or doubts...refer to your states family court website. They have a child support calculator worksheet you can fill out to see if you are being treated unfairly.
Good luck!

Answer 2

Well, I don't know why she isn't working but I think she should work regardless. As far as you having other bills, well thats life. You also have a child and her income won't matter when it comes to paying child support. What will matter is how much you make and 17% of that will go twoards child support. If you made $100 a week then only 17% of that would be taken but if you make $10,000 a week then 17% of that. Although I have a friend who works, even has her masters, bought a house with her new husband and when they went to court the judge gave her problems because she bought a house. Her ex makes good money and for whatever reason they used that against her. Which to a certain point I can understand but she worked hard to get her masters degree and get a good job so she could buy a home for her family. It's not like in your situation where your ex doesn't even work.

Answer 3

No. she will not be forced to work, believe it or not being a full time mother is a job in itself. However you will not be paying enough to even cover an electric bill so why are you worried about taking the full blunt of it. She will still have to work if she does not want to be on welfare and besides even if she does work you will still have to pay child support. Why do so many Fathers have such a big freaking problem supporting their own child? It makes me sick!!!

You know you men get all the benefits of the child while the mother or I should say the custodial parent has to do it all: work, raise the child, everything, then you turn around and complain for the least little bit you do contribute.

Answer 4

Normally the courts not only look at current income, but the POTENTIAL for income when deciding child support. So, if your ex has, let's say, a law degree, then her potential for earning is going to be rated higher than if she has only worked in, let's say, food service. Most attorneys will look at the past 2 to 3 years of tax returns when calculating child support. Most states also have a child support calculator.

Another consideration is that apart from child support, you will be required to pay a percentage of child care (and out of pocket medical, etc...). That percentage could be 50/50 or it could be 90/10. You need to consider that if she does start working outside the home you will have MORE expense to pay for child care. And even if you think she is lazy, would you rather have her or a child care provider raise this child?

I know that it's hard when a couple splits, more so when children are involved, but the best thing you can do is keep your child FIRST and foremost in your mind. When you pay your child support you are helping your child maintain their home and have what they need. In helping mom you are actually helping your child. I am NOT saying that mom should not contribute but I think you need to consider the non-monetary contributions she makes in providing for the child.

Good luck!!

Answer 5

No she doesn't need to work. The judge might find it a bit strange that she doesn't have any income coming into the house so they may find that suspicious but if she has a boyfriend or husband that is working, then you're out of luck. She can get into trouble if she is working and hasn't let the court know and you can find out if she's working by doing one of those Internet searches. My brother's wife was working and receiving child support for her son but when they moved to GA and the father was trying to fight that, she quit her job and now he has to pay for 100% of the child support. I asked if they take the husbands income (my brother's) into consideration and they said "no" because his income doesn't have anything to do with their son. Hope this helps!

Answer 6

No, I don't think she can get in trouble. How old is your child(ren)? If your child is young, it may be hard for her to find a job that will cover child care expenses and still leave her with enough money to make it worth being away from the child. Also, you would have to help pay half of child care, so that would be more money from your pocket. Also, there's nothing lazy or easy about raising children. It's a non-stop, vacationless job, so believe me, she is working.

Answer 7

I will tell you this, for a while after your divorce, you are going to encounter some things that will make you want to wrap your head with tape to keep it from exploding. Best thing to do is make sure your case was handled as best as it could have been and get on with life. Keep your child top priority in your thoughts and ignore what your ex does as long as your child is well cared for.

It's not easy on either parent but worse on the child. Keep that in mind. Just let go the things you cannot change or affect and be with your child as much as is possible.

Answer 8

Sorry you're upset, but no she does not have to work. Child support doesn't mean that money has to be spent directly on things for the kid, but anything that includes his welfare such as utilities, rent, car for him to be transported in etc. If, for some reason, your ex can get by on this amount of money rather than dropping the kid at a babysitter, then great for her.
Besides, who ever said raising a child wasn't 'work'?

The more I think about your comments the angrier I get. You are upset because she doesn't have to rush to get him dressed in the morning, get his food ready, take him to school or babysitter,
schedule times for doctor's appointments, do his laundry, go to work, rush home make dinner, clean house, help with homework, etc. etc. etc. MEANWHILE, you are free to go out with friends, hang out at bars, date women almost every night of the week etc. You need to grow up and get over it.

Answer 9

Hate to say it Joe but yeah, she doesnt' have to work...she IS taking care of the child 24/7 which is more than what you're doing. Sorry so blunt, but you're talking about the mother of your child that way..."lazy butt won't work".
Whatever happens, DON'T put your child in the middle of your problems. I've seen it happen...it continues to happen with my nephew...and it's all his father's issues that are coming down on him.
So if you love your child, suck it up and pay the child support...and just keep a smile on that face especially when he/she is around. You don't want your child resenting you if you don't pay or if you do put him/her in the middle of your issues.
hope that helps
Dr. Phil (LOL)

Answer 10

I don't know exactly if she could get in trouble for not working, but you should look into that. You wouldn't want your child to be with a person that doesn't have money to take care of him/her. That would mean that she would be living off of you and not really taking care of the baby like she should because she would be using your money for everything else. She needs to get a job to support her and the baby. Who says that you are always going to be working?? Then she would be s*** out of luck really.