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Module 1: Overview of NYS CSE Program

Support Establishment: Calculating a Child Support Obligation

To determine a fair child support obligation, the court uses standard guidelines based on the Child Support Standards Act (CSSA). These guidelines consider the following:

  1. A non-custodial parent's annual income, minus certain allowable deductions
  2. The number of children involved
  3. Child related expenses
NOTE: The court considers the custodial parent's income in determining the child support obligation, but then pro-rates (divides) the combined income appropriately to arrive at the non-custodial parent's share.