Child Support Change in Circumstances

by Leo from Miami, Florida, Miami-Dade County

Child Support Change in Circumstances: I have been paying child support for the last 6 years. My daughter had always lived with her mom. About 1 year ago my ex (we were never married) brought our daughter to me and said she couldn't take care of her anymore and was moving out of state and asked me to stay with her.



I then filed a Petition for Child Support Modification and the child support court stopped the child support. Then her mom (my ex) came back not that long ago and wants our daughter back (I guess since the money stopped).

I am in the process of filing for Child Custody now. My question is: Can I file for child support since my daughter lives with me now?

Answer to Florida Child Support Question

Dear Leo,

Yes, of course you can.

You may even be able to collect retroactive child support for the year that your daughter has been with you.

The Supplemental Petition to Modify Parenting Plan Time-sharing Schedule and Other Relief, Florida Supreme Court approved form 12.905(a), paragraph 6 asks whether you (the Petitioner) are requesting a modification of child support along with the modification of custody and time-sharing.

Take a look at our popular web-powered instructions page for Form 12.905(a) for more information.

You are required to file your financial affidavit along with the supplemental petition which you are working on now. Just go the one step further and be ready to file the Child Support Guidelines Worksheet as well. The Child Support Guidelines Worksheet requires financial affidavits from both parties.

It is the combined income of both parents that must be filled into the worksheet to arrive at a child support amount. The combined income of the parents is matched up with the number of children on the table of child support amounts. And the percentage of each parent's share is calculated depending on each parent's income.

Notice: We provide these answers to the general public and our website visitors as a means to further their online legal research. These answers are merely suggestions and should not be regarded as legal advice.

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Our Self Help Guide, Modifying Child Support in Florida, helps you navigate the court process and procedures once you file your documents with easy to follow checklists, links to websites, important addresses & phone numbers, and much more. Modifying Child Support In Florida

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