After you have gone through a divorce and are paying or receiving child support, there may come a time when you believe the amount you pay or the child receives should be adjusted. In Illinois, this may be done through a modification review process.

When Can I Have My Child Support Order Modified?

Under Illinois family law, an order for child support is eligible for modification review every three years, or when there is a significant change in either parent’s income or in the needs of the child. In the case of a three-year review, a parent will receive a letter from the agency in charge, informing them of the right to request a review.

Who Conducts the Modification Review?

Modification reviews of child support orders in Illinois are done by the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS), Division of Child Support Services (DCSS). The agency is tasked with the responsibility to make sure child support orders are consistent with applicable Illinois law and changed circumstances involving all concerned.

In Illinois, parents no longer have “custody” of minor children. Instead, parents claim “parenting time” and “decision-making authority” for their kids. These terms replaced custody in 2016 when Illinois made drastic changes to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA).

Some parents believe if they share an equal amount of parenting time, the estimated child-related expenses should be the same, and that neither party should pay child support payments. However, Illinois court disagree.

Let’s explore the influential factors for determining child support payment amounts,

Many unmarried and divorced parents in Illinois pay child support. The monthly payments are meant to help evenly spread the cost of raising a child when parents are unmarried or divorced. In order to determine which parent will pay child support, the court chooses one parent to be the primary guardian. This parent has the majority of the parenting time and will therefore receive any child support which is ordered. The court then considers both parent’s income, assets, and life circumstances and uses that information to calculate a fair and reasonable child support payment amount.

However, we all know that life can be unpredictable. Sometimes unexpected life events like job loss, becoming hospitalized, or incurring significant medical bills leave parents unable to make their child support payments in full and on time. If you are struggling to pay your court-ordered child support, read on to learn how to handle the situation in a way that benefits both you and your child.

Never Skip Child Support Payments

One of the most critical errors any payer parent can make is to simply stop paying their child support. Skipping a payment or paying a lesser amount than is required by the court order will make the payer parent look irresponsible and can influence the court’s decisions regarding child support and child custody in the future. Parents who do not make child support payments can have their wages garnished or tax refund intercepted. Furthermore, extensive nonpayment of court-ordered child support can be punishable by jail time. Illinois law calls this “criminal nonsupport.” Instead of missing payments, notify the court immediately upon realizing you cannot make your payments.

There are many different reasons that a child may require additional financial support from a parent. If a child’s parents were not married or together when the child was born, child support helps distribute the child’s expenses between both parents. This helps safeguard against one parent being saddled with the entirety of the financial burden associated with raising a child.

Child support also acts as a way of holding parents’ accountable for paying their fair share of costs like tuition, child care, housing, food, clothing, and others. The courts can help parents reach a child support arrangement which is reasonable and fair for both parents. The court also has the authority to intervene when a parent is not living up to the agreed upon child support commitment.

Some unmarried parents try to arrange an informal child support plan. They exchange money intended to help support the child outside of the rules and regulations of the courts. Unfortunately, this often results in unreliable child support payments, support nonpayment, ineffective parent-to-parent communication, and a generous amount of stress for everyone involved.

If you are getting divorced or are an unmarried parent, you probably have several questions about child support. It can be hard to know exactly what you will have to pay when you are the parent with less parenting time and equally hard to predict what you will be given in child support payments as the primary custodian. Child support in Illinois is calculated based on the Income Shares Model which takes both parents’ financial circumstances into consideration.

In Illinois, the final support award is "income driven,” meaning the amount a person must pay in child support is based mostly on the income of the parties. For that reason, it is critical that unmarried or divorcing parents understand what can be considered "income" under Illinois child support law and what resources are excluded from the definition of income.

The Income Shares model for calculating child support is much different from the calculation method used prior to July of 2017. The Income Shares model uses a table to determine support obligation which is based on the amount of money it is estimated would be spent on the child if the parents were living together. That financial obligation to the child or children is then divided between the parents based on their financial and life circumstances. The parent with more parenting time (formerly called visitation) and parental responsibilities (formerly called custody) will receive the other parent’s financial obligation to the child in the form of child support.