Separation/Divorce Ontario: Support Payments

[Truth_S33k3r]

Greetings!
I am currently in the midst of a separation/divorce. I am looking for some guidance and clarification. I have in my possession a pdf file that has a table outlining the Ontario Child Support guidelines.
I am the father of two children. Just say I am making 30,000 a year, the table indicates I should be paying a total of 444 per month in child support in a situation in which I have less than 40% custody of my children.
Is that tabled amount the ENTIRE amount I am required to pay based on my monthly wage. Or is there legislation that indicates I need to pay over and above the 444 to my X Spouse for things such as Day care???
Up to this point my agreement has remained out of the court system. My X desires me to pay the table amount in the guideline + an additional amount for child care. I am interested to know that if my separation/divorce does reach the court system will the courts award my X a support payment based on the guideline.. or based on the table amount + additional stuff like childcare.
I spoke to a friend who has indicated to me that the tabled amount in the guideline is all she is legally entitled to. (of course if I wanted to agree to more I'm sure she wouldn't object....)
Your feed back, experiences and wise words are very much appreciated. Have a wonderful day.

[singledad99]

Congratulations on staying out of court system so far. Try to stay out of there in future as well or you will be paying much more to the lawyer than paying your ex or your children. That means even if you have to give little more in terms of support, you should do that rather than going to court.

Additional expenses such as day care, sports, medical/dentals etc are shared by both parents in proportion to their respective gross incomes (before taxes and child support). You can find more information about that on this forum by searching Section 7 expenses or Additional expenses.

[Truth_S33k3r]

Thanks for the information

Hey,
Thanks very much for the info... it has lead me to the answer I have sought. The following link makes the issue pretty much crystal clear for me...

Special or Extraordinary Expenses : Canadian Divorce Laws

Aside from the Ontario Child support guideline, I would be legally required to pay for portion of the the daycare expenses occurred on a monthly basis.

In this case... it has been agreed that I am to pay 60% of the child care expense. My beef right now is that I am paying 60% of an expense that can be mitigated by me looking after the kids more often. Terms like.. 'more stable for the kids' are being used... as well as... 'there spots need to be reserved'... we that's fine... When does it become in my favor to approach the court?

[Mess]

Hi Truth_S33k3r.

As you descibe your situation, your ex already has over 60% time with the children. It would be very hard for you to challenge this because the existing situation, "status quo", has a lot of weight. Your ex can and will point out that the current situation is healthy and happy for the children so the courts would not change that just to save you money.

Without knowing the full details of the daycare situation, just going by your comments, it sounds like it is a full time registered daycare. If your ex is getting subsidy then the children will have to usually be enrolled full time. (Subsidy priority would be according to need, and the greater need is if mum is in full time school or full time work.)

If there is no subsidy, then a registered daycare would have a rate for 3-4 days per week available. But really, working this out really really needs your ex to be co-operative and for her to want this as much as you.

It's common for a separation agreement to state that if babysitting is required then the other parent should be offered the option of caring for the child first. However if there is a legitimate rule that the daycare space would be lost, then this is a hard arguement.

"Stability" can't take precidence over maintaining a strong relationship with your child. Your relationship with your child should be your main focus, it should be your actual motivation, and it is what you should stress in any negotiations or court action.

It sounds like you are early in the process and haven't had to deal with a lawyer yet? Sooner or later you need a signed agreement to deal with custody, access, child support as well as an agreement over your splitting of assets and debt, etc. You will need to do a full financial disclosure, as will your ex. It all has to be signed off by a lawyer, even if you save money by doing most of the work yourself or through a paralegal or using a kit. So you should expect some legal costs anyway.

Going to court is worth it if you have a reasonable chance of winning your case and the costs of court will be covered by the amount you save in the result. You won't get out of court for less than $15-20k in costs, and if your ex has to take you to court to obtain child support then you could liable for her costs as well.

It's stupid for me to point this out now, but your best situation would have been to have the children over 40% in the first place, and had an arrangement where you were providing care during the days right from the start. That is better for you legally and financially, but more important, it is better for your relationship with your kids. It will be a lot tougher to make your arguements from where you're at now, especially since your ex will argue that your motives are just financial. I can't say if your odds are good or bad.