How Child Support Is Calculated in Nebraska

Nebraska Supreme Court guidelines recognize the equal duty of both parents to support their children in proportion to their net incomes; the worksheets use an income shares table. The court's self-help page links to the guidelines and worksheets and to a third-party calculator offered free for 30 days to self-represented people.

You can apply for child support enforcement services online through the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS); the application takes about 20 minutes and you should have Social Security numbers and birth dates for you and your children, any existing support order, and the children's health insurance information. You must wait until a child is born to apply for that child. Help is available from Nebraska Child Support Customer Service at 1-877-631-9973, option 2. A $35 yearly fee is charged to the person receiving support once $550 has been collected in a year, with some exceptions.

In Nebraska, people under 19 are minors. A parent's duty to pay child support ends when the child turns 19, marries, dies, or is emancipated by a court, unless the support order specifically extends support beyond that. The paying parent can file a written application to terminate support with the clerk of the district court, with a certified copy of the birth certificate, marriage license, death certificate or emancipation order. Unpaid support does not go away when the child turns 19.

In cases receiving state child support services, DHHS reviews orders on its own initiative or at either parent's request and refers an order to the county attorney to seek modification when it varies from the Nebraska Supreme Court child support guidelines by more than the amount set by court rule because of financial circumstances that have lasted at least three months and are expected to last at least six more, or when health coverage is available but the children have none. Except for health coverage, DHHS does not review an order less than three years old unless the requesting party shows a substantial change in circumstances, such as a change in employment, earning capacity or income. The county attorney then files the complaint to modify and represents the state; any party may also hire a private lawyer.

Nebraska Child Support is run by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). It locates parents, establishes paternity, establishes court orders for child and medical support, enforces child, spousal and medical support orders, and modifies orders on request. Apply online (about 20 minutes) or with the paper Application for Child Support Services; have Social Security numbers and birth dates, any existing court order and the children's health insurance information ready. Parents can make payments, request payment history and request an order change through the program's pages, and log in at My Nebraska Child Support Account. Customer service call center: 1-877-631-9973, option 2 (8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central, Monday through Friday).

The Nebraska Judicial Branch's Child Support self-help page links the Nebraska Child Support Guidelines, including the child support worksheets, and a child support calculator designed by Advanced Legal Software (Omaha). The court says the calculator is provided with the developer's permission for people representing themselves and is free for 30 days.