This is the final article in our series on what forms you need to file for temporary orders in your divorce case. Last week we went over the Proposed Order of Child Support.  Today we discuss the Washington Child Support Worksheets.

WHY YOU NEED IT

You must attach a completed Washington Child Support Worksheet to your proposed Order of Child Support.  Your completed work sheet will assist the court in determining each parent’s basic obligation for child support, and for other expenses such as uninsured medical expenses and day care expenses.

This determination is made according to Washington’s statutory child support schedule, which calculates each parent’s basic obligation for financial support based upon the parents’ combined net income and the number and age of the children for whom support is needed.

Under this schedule, each parent pays child support in an amount proportionate to how much income they contribute to the combined family income.  The non-residential parent will generally pay that child support directly to the residential parent. The residential parent’s contribution is calculated, but not actually paid to anyone – the court just assumes that this is the approximate amount that the residential parent will pay for the children’s expenses.

If you or your ex- are currently unemployed, the court may still decide to impute a certain amount of income to you or your ex- if the court believes that the unemployment is voluntary.

As discussed in our articles on the Financial Declaration and Sealed Financial Source Documents, do not forget that you must provide proof of your income and bank statements to the court.

WHERE YOU GET IT

Like most of the forms discussed in this series, you can download a blank Child Support Worksheet, as well as detailed instructions on how to fill it out, on the Washington Courts pattern forms site.

WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE

Check out a word version of the Child Support Worksheet here.