New Mexico Child Support

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Child support is one of the most argumentative issues in a divorce. In New Mexico state laws are formed to address this issue. New Mexico Annotated Statute 40-4-11.1. comprises of the relevant guidelines. The primary purpose of these guidelines is to establish a child support standard state policy that will secure the best interests of children, as per the earning capacity of the parents. These also aim at providing a consistent and equal treatment to persons in similar circumstances. According to the New Mexico divorce child support guidelines, the phrase 'children of the parties' denotes any natural or adopted child or children of the parents to the action before the court. It does not essentially mean any natural or adopted child or children of any one parent.

Let us go through some of the most important aspects of child support in New Mexico.

Interstate New Mexico Divorce Child Support

The UIFSA (Uniform Interstate Family Support Act) is drafted by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform Laws in the USA. This act addresses the enforcement of child support within the nation. As compared to the past, inter-state enforcement of child support has been made simpler due to the UIFSA. As per this Act, a private lawyer or enforcement officials can refer a case in another state for action. The child support agencies in either state can pursue inter-state wage withholding.

This Act has a provision as per which, if some specific conditions are met with, a state can perform a case against an obligor who resides out of this state. There are examples wherein a non-custodial parent has fled to another state to avoid payment of support. Such a parent can be arrested. Moreover, interception of the tax refund of such a parent may be done. In very rare cases, it is observed that such a parent falls under the jurisdiction of the federal court.

Wage Withholding in New Mexico Divorce Child Support

The child maintenance orders that have been issued after January 1994 comprise of a provision for wage withholding. However, there are some exceptions wherein the courts along with the parents may accede to other payment styles.

Wage Withholding means that the support amount is deducted from the paycheck of the non-custodial parent similar to insurance premiums or taxes. Then, the CSED (Child Support Enforcement Division) forwards a check to the custodial parent. The advantage of this method is as follows.

• The non-custodial parent has a distinct written record that he/she has made the payment.

There are several cases wherein the non-custodial parent is self employed. Then, an arrangement must be made for electronic funds transfer to the CSED.

The CSED reviews the previous support order in the following conditions.

• If either parent requests for a review
• After every 3 years of the issue of the previous order

On the basis of financial conditions, the order might be altered.

What does Joint Custody mean?

Joint Custody implies the following 2 types:

• Joint legal custody i.e., powers of decision making regarding various issues of the child
• Joint physical custody i.e., the duration for which the child is in the care of each parent

Child Support is determined by the gross income of both parents as well as the duration for which the child is in the care of each parent. Thus, generally one parent owes the amount to another in joint custody also. However, no support amount is paid by one parent to another if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

• Both the father and the mother have precisely the same gross income
• Both the parents disburse identical amounts for work related day care and insurance
• Both the parents have the child for exactly the same number of days in a year

The support orders get terminated when the child turns 18 or 19, or if the child is studying in high school, whichever of these happens first. There are some other circumstances when the support order ends such as:

• The child dies
• The child marries
• The child joins the military

If the child is disabled, then the non-custodial parent might be ordered to continue paying the amount for an indefinite period. Again, if any child becomes pregnant and gives birth, support will not come to an end; because the child is not legally emancipated.

The amount of New Mexico divorce child support is not regarded as income of the receiving parent. Consequently, this parent does not pay any taxes on the received amount. The obligor parent also cannot deduct the amount paid by him/her for income tax purposes. The support formula includes the expenses of offering vision, dental and medical insurance. It may happen that both parents have the capacity to provide insurance. In this case, the court selects the best policy at the lowest expense.

To conclude, it can be said that parents should pay court ordered support amount for the benefit of their children. They should shoulder this responsibility with eagerness rather than trying to escape from this.

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