How Virginia Calculates Child Support
Virginia uses the Income Shares model to determine child support obligations. This page explains the guidelines, formula, and key factors.
Model Type
Income Shares
Virginia looks up a basic support obligation from the § 20-108.2(B) statutory schedule by combined gross income, prorated by each parent's income share. Shared-custody cases -- where the parent with fewer overnights has more than 90 -- use a different worksheet with a 1.4× cross-calculation.
Sources & Verification
- The self-employment tax approximation treats the entered gross figure as net SE profit; there is no separate field for actual business expenses, so it will differ from a return-based calculation.
- The split-custody worksheet (§ 20-108.2(G)(2), each parent primary custodian of at least one shared child) is not implemented.
- The 150%-of-federal-poverty-level provision allowing a court to go below the $68 statutory minimum is surfaced only as informational text, not computed (poverty guidelines change annually and are not tracked here).
Income Basis & Definitions
gross income (both parents)
Selects the base-support amount from the schedule/table.
Source: §20-108.2 guideline schedule and shared custody methodParent A gross income used by guideline.
Source: Income definition / worksheet income line(s)Parent B gross income used by guideline.
Source: Income definition / worksheet income line(s)Parenting Time Handling
Calculator selects custody model/worksheet (sole/shared/split/joint) and applies corresponding formula.
Source: Custody/worksheet applicability and parenting-time adjustmentShared custody method applies at 90+ days; worksheet uses annual days/overnights inputs.
Source: Shared custody input lines (days/overnights)Deductions & Adjustments
Adjustments/credits for other dependents or court-ordered support for other children (state-specific).
Source: Other children / preexisting support adjustmentIf the guideline adjusts for spousal support (paid/received), capture amount.
Source: Spousal support (alimony/maintenance) adjustmentAdd-Ons & Allocation
Work-related childcare costs added and allocated between parents.
Source: Childcare add-onChild’s health insurance premium share and uninsured/unreimbursed medical allocation.
Source: Medical support (insurance + uninsured medical)Caps, Minimums & Deviations
If guideline table caps at an income level, above-cap support is typically discretionary with findings.
Source: Maximum schedule income / above-cap handlingDeviation allowed for enumerated factors; requires findings (court-determined).
Source: Deviation factors / findings