How Child Support Is Calculated in Pennsylvania

Child support follows a statewide guideline set by Supreme Court rule (Pa.R.C.P. 1910.16-1 and following), placing primary emphasis on the parties' net incomes and earning capacities; the guideline amount is presumed correct. The parents' combined monthly net income and number of children determine the basic support amount from the Basic Child Support Schedule, and each parent's share is based on that parent's percentage of combined net income (an income shares approach). The Pennsylvania Child Support Program offers an online support estimator; the court sets the actual amount.

Child support cases are handled by the Domestic Relations Section (DRS) of each county court. You can apply online through the Pennsylvania Child Support Program's E-Services (registration required); the request is forwarded to your county DRS, and it is not officially filed until the DRS reviews and accepts it. You can also print and submit the paper forms (Social Security Disclosure, Application for Child or Spousal Support, Intake Questionnaire and Complaint for Support) to your county DRS; call first to see if an appointment is needed. Pennsylvania courts charge a $40.25 fee for every new court action, which the DRS adds to the paying parent's balance. A $35 annual federal fee applies to a parent who receives $2,000 or more in support in a year, unless that parent has ever received cash assistance.

Parents are liable to support their unemancipated children who are 18 or younger, and the law says parents may also be liable to support children 18 or older. Under the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure, the county domestic relations section sends an emancipation inquiry before a child's support ends; if no other children are covered and the parent receiving support does not respond within 30 days or does not give grounds for continuing support, the order is ended administratively on the later of the date the last child turns 18 or graduates from high school.

A petition to modify a support order may be filed at any time and must be granted if the person asking shows a substantial change in circumstances. The petition must state the material and substantial change it is based on; a new guideline amount from revised support guidelines, or newly identified income or assets, may count. In addition, on request of either parent (or automatically when the family receives cash assistance), each order is reviewed at least once every three years, and in that review the court adjusts the order by applying the statewide guidelines without requiring proof of a change in circumstances. Incarceration (other than for nonpayment of support) can be a material and substantial change. Petitions are filed with the county Domestic Relations Section.

Support orders generally provide for mandatory attachment of income (wage withholding). Other tools in Pennsylvania law include reporting overdue support to credit bureaus (after notice and up to 20 days to contest); state income tax refund intercept; intercepting Pennsylvania Lottery winnings over $2,500; county publication of names of parents 30 or more days behind; liens, including on the net proceeds of certain awards; and orders to deny, refuse to renew or suspend licenses when income cannot be attached and the parent owes three or more months of support (after 30 days' notice). A person who willfully fails to obey a support order can be held in contempt, punishable by up to six months in jail, a fine up to $1,000 and/or up to one year of probation. Willfully failing to pay when able to pay is also a separate offense (generally a summary offense, and in some cases a third-degree misdemeanor).

The Pennsylvania Child Support Program (Department of Human Services) handles child support through each county's Domestic Relations Section (DRS). Through the PA Child Support Website you can request support services (new support application, modification, recovery of overpayment or withdrawal of a pending complaint), make payments, print a payment coupon, estimate support and look up case information; online requests are forwarded to the county DRS, which must review and accept them before anything is filed with the court. Register or log in on the PA Child Support Website. For questions, contact your county DRS.