New Mexico child support is based on overnight totals
New Mexico uses overnight totals in its child support formula to determine the amount of child support in your divorce case.
Besides income, overnight totals are a key part of the New Mexico child support formula. Your parenting time directly affects your child support, whether you pay or receive.
Use the calculator above to instantly get an estimate of your support amount.
Most overnight time totals are estimates (and thus incorrect)
New Mexico lawyers and judges often rely on overnight estimates only, even if they are incorrect, because counting total hours is tedious and time consuming. Divorcing parents often rely on these estimates as well.
Using estimates means your overnight totals are wrong when compared to your actual parenting time schedule. This means your child support amount will not be fair or exact.
How to calculate overnights instead of relying on estimates
To calculate overnights, the easiest and most accurate way is to use software. Without software, you're forced to count each night for a whole year, which is error-prone when you include alternating holidays, summer break, and any changes to the schedule throughout the year.
Visualize your schedule. Get a written parenting plan. Calculate your parenting time.
Using software, you can also tweak your schedule to see how even little changes affect your total parenting time, and you can see how your overnights change each year due to holidays and other events.
You can also track what actually happens, and show how much time you've actually received for any period of time. Historical information is a powerful tool when you request a child support modification or when you request more parenting time.
Fast facts on child custody and child support in New Mexico
In any divorce, New Mexico family courts award custody of the children to one or both parents. Custody is divided into legal custody and physical custody. The total parenting time factors into the child support formula for both sole and joint custody.
New Mexico sole physical custody: The children reside with and are supervised by the residential parent, while the other parent is entitled to scheduled visitations. In New Mexico, sole physical custody is given to the parent with whom the children spend the most time with. The nonresidential parent receives fewer than 128 overnights, or 35 percent.
New Mexico joint physical custody: Each parent has significant periods of physical custody, which allows them frequent and continuing contact with their children. New Mexico law outlines shared custody as any arrangement in which the child has regular and continuing contact with both parents. Parenting time does not have to be equally divided to qualify for shared physical custody. The nonresidential parent must host the children for 128 overnights or more each year to qualify for joint custody.
New Mexico child support formula and parenting time adjustment
New Mexico family courts use formulas that consider both parents' incomes and the needs of the child to arrive at a monthly child support amount. A parenting time adjustment is given based on joint custody.
Sole custody formula: The total income from the two parents is put into the formula and then a basic monthly support is figured by using the New Mexico Child Support Guidelines. Certain deductions are allowed when figuring total income.
To be considered a sole custody case, the nonresidential parent spends fewer than 128 days per year, or less than 35 percent of the time, with the children. There is no parenting time credit given for sole custody situations. The residential parent receives child support from the nonresidential parents according to New Mexico law.
Joint custody formula: Both income and overnights figure into the joint custody formula, unlike the one for sole custody. In New Mexico, when a family court orders joint physical custody, each parent must host the children for at least 128 days per year. The more overnights the nonresidential parent receives, the lower the child support.
Examples of sole child custody and New Mexico child support
Consider the hypothetical case of Robert and Mary. Robert's adjusted income is $4,000 per month, while Mary's adjusted monthly income is $2,400. They have two children.
See how the child support amounts change in these examples:
- Scenario #1: Robert is the nonresidential parent in this sole custody case, and is scheduled to host the children for fewer than 128 days per year. He pays $898 in child support each month to Mary.
- Scenario #2: Mary is the nonresidential parent and hosts the children for fewer than 128 days per year. She pays $538 in child support to Robert.
In New Mexico sole custody cases, the nonresidential parent pays child support to the residential parent, regardless of income.
Examples of the shared custody formula in New Mexico child support
Consider the hypothetical case of Robert and Mary. Robert's adjusted income is $4,000 per month, while Mary's adjusted monthly income is $2,400. They have two children.
See how the child support amounts change in these examples:
- Scenario #1: Robert hosts the children for 128 days or 35 percent, just over the minimum to qualify for shared physical custody. He pays $591 in child support per month to Mary.
- Scenario #2: Robert hosts the children for 146 days, or 40 percent. He pays $485 in child support to Mary.
- Scenario #3: Robert hosts the children for 165 days, or 45 percent. He pays $373 in child support to Mary.
- Scenario #4: If Robert and Mary agreed to a 50/50 split, or 182 days, he pays $272 in child support. This is because he is the higher earner.
If Mary were the nonresidential parent, she would pay child support to Robert, and be eligible for a parenting time adjustment based on the total number of overnights with the children.
Other factors in the New Mexico child support formula
New Mexico's child support formula uses the following information to calculate your monthly amounts for shared custody child support:
Eligible children: The obligation for a parent to provide child support for a child ends when the child reaches 18 years old or graduates from high school.
Gross earnings: Gross earnings are established based on tax records and current pay stubs. New Mexico law requires the use of both parents' incomes from the equivalent of one full-time job to determine a child support amount.
Specific deductions: There are some deductions allowed by New Mexico family courts that allow an adjustment of the income, including health insurance premiums for the children, support for other children and child care expenses, for example.
How accurate child support helps your children
Paying accurate child support helps your children in several ways, primarily because it ensures their financial needs are met.
Here are some other reasons why accurate overnight numbers help you, the other parent and your children:
- It provides a fair way to determine your child support amounts
- It guarantees the child support amount reflects each parent's responsibilities
- It allows for modifications if your actual time and scheduled time are different
- It is compliant with New Mexico law
Your financial obligations to your children don't end with divorce, so whether you are paying or receiving child support, you owe it to your children to pay or receive the proper amount.
Top 5 things to remember about New Mexico child support and overnights
To ensure you are paying or receiving the right amount of child support in New Mexico, remember these 5 things:
- New Mexico Child Support Guidelines award sole or joint physical custody primarily based on the number of overnights the nonresidential parent receives.
- Sole physical custody means that the nonresidential parent is scheduled for fewer than 128 days with the children per year. A parenting time credit is not given in sole custody cases in New Mexico.
- A parenting time credit is given in shared custody cases to nonresidential parents when the nonresidential parent hosts the children for 128 overnights or more. The more overnights there are, the lower the child support amount.
- In the case of an approximate 50/50 split in parenting time, the higher earner pays child support to the lower earner.
- The nonresidential parent always pays child support to the residential parent.
Use Custody X Change software to create a custody schedule that will quickly calculate the total parenting time for the New Mexico child support formula.
As you negotiate what kind of custody schedule will best fit your needs, the software will accurately calculate your overnights.
Visualize your schedule. Get a written parenting plan. Calculate your parenting time.