Providing for your children’s needs is one of your biggest priorities as a parent in North Carolina. Sometimes the original support order might be too much or not enough to ensure a stable household. The Breeden Law Office can help you correct the child support needed to care for your kids.
Even when parents are no longer living in the same household, whether they are divorced or were never married, they are still obliged to pay for the care of their children. Under North Carolina’s support guidelines, parents must make reasonable payments to meet the needs of their children’s health, education, and maintenance.
In most custody situations, the non-custodial parent will make payments to the custodial parent. Those payment amounts can be determined during the divorce or when the original support order is signed. However, these agreements are not permanent. Sometimes life changes, and an order must be updated to cover the differences. You might need to lower the amount of child support you pay, or you may help getting your ex to pay more to care for your children. In either situation, a Raleigh child support lawyer can help you get the right level of child support.
Call us today at (919) 661-4970 or use our online contact form to connect with an experienced family law attorney in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Life doesn’t stay the same after a divorce or custody order is entered. Jobs change, incomes fluctuate, children grow, and their needs evolve. North Carolina courts allow parents to request a modification to their child support order if there’s been a substantial change in circumstances that makes the current arrangement unfair or inadequate.
You may need to modify child support if:
Whether you’re asking the court to raise or lower the current amount, you’ll need to show clear evidence that your situation has changed significantly and that the new support amount better reflects your child’s needs.
To decide whether a modification is appropriate, the court uses the North Carolina Child Support Guidelines. These guidelines rely on worksheets that factor in both parents’ gross monthly incomes, the number of children, custody arrangement, and the cost of things like health insurance, daycare, and education.
If updating your financial information on the appropriate worksheet shows that the amount of support would change by 15% or more, the court may treat that as evidence of a substantial change — especially if it’s been more than three years since the current order was entered.
Every family is different, but the court generally looks for major, ongoing changes that directly affect your ability to provide support or your child’s financial needs. Examples of substantial changes include:
On the other hand, voluntarily quitting your job or taking a lower-paying position may not be enough to justify a decrease — unless you can also show your child’s needs have changed and that your decision wasn’t made in bad faith.
To formally request a change to child support, you’ll need to file a Motion for Modification of Child Support with the same court that issued the original order. This motion must explain what has changed and why the current support amount is no longer appropriate.
After you file, the court will schedule a hearing. In most cases, both parents will need to present updated financial information and any documentation that supports their position, such as pay stubs, tax returns, proof of daycare or medical expenses, or evidence of custody changes.
During the hearing, the judge will consider:
If the judge agrees that modification is warranted, a new order will be issued and take effect going forward.
Child support in North Carolina usually ends when your child turns 18 or graduates from high school, whichever occurs later. However, if your child is still in school at 18, support continues until they graduate, stop attending, or turn 20 — whichever comes first.
If you have more than one child on the same order, the obligation does not automatically decrease when one child ages out. You must file for a modification to have the amount recalculated based on the remaining children.
Even if you and the other parent agree that a change is needed, the court won’t approve a modification unless legal requirements are met. And if the other parent challenges your request, the process can quickly become complicated and stressful.
At the Breeden Law Office, we’ve helped parents across Wake County navigate the child support system for more than 20 years. We can help you:
We know how important it is to protect your child’s wellbeing — and your own financial stability — when your circumstances change.
If your current support order no longer works for your family, you don’t have to deal with it alone. A knowledgeable family lawyer can help you understand your options, prepare the strongest possible case, and guide you through the court process with confidence.
Contact the Breeden Law Office today to schedule your consultation with a Raleigh child support modification attorney.