Child support is governed by the Arizona Child Support Guidelines. It is calculated using a formula outlined in the Guidelines after the following variables are determined by agreement between the parties or by a judge following a court trial:
- Monthly gross income for each parent
- Cost of supporting children not common to the parties
- Spousal maintenance (alimony) paid/received
- Cost of child care
- Cost of medical insurance for the children
- Parenting time schedule
The number and ages of the children also affect the calculation. Rough calculations can be prepared in an initial office consultation, but the calculations will be based on the assumptions (see above variables) provided by the client for the calculation. If the variables change later (for example, the judge finds the incomes to be different than the figures supplied by the client or the judge orders a different parenting time schedule than the client expects), a different child support amount would result.