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  • Shared Custody/ Payor Parent

    Hello,

    For parents with shared custody. Would both parents be considered a payor parent? How about split custody, would both parents be considered payor parents?

    I ask because, through reading some case law, there are certain obligations or expectations that the payor parent is held accountable to. In a case of shared custody, the higher earner appears as the payor because the with the offset, the transfer of capital flows from the higher earner to the lower earner, and the contribution of the lesser earner gets hidden. I feel that both parents should be held accountable to the obligations of the payor parent.

    I spoke to a Chartered Financial Divorce Specialist. She told me that in a case of split or shared custody, to ask the judge to order the support obligation of each parent be paid by each parent, and not to order an amount paid by offset. She stated that this is for tax purposes. If the judge calculates the offset amount and orders the higher earning parent to pay this amount in child support, Revenue Canada will see that parent as the only one paying child support and certain benefits will be lost.

  • #2
    Correct. If you are using any type of offset, the separation agreement must clearly state the amount that both parents are paying.

    eg.

    "Mother will pay 70% of table support to father, which is $500, and the father will pay 70% of table support, which is $600. For convenience, the father will pay $100 per month of child support"

    If you don't write it like this, the recipient of the offset (even if it is as low as $1) will receive all of the child benefits, which is thousands of dollars a year.

    I have no idea why CRA does this. But they do.

    Comment

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