Parents sometimes approach child rearing one day at a time. To consider all of the decisions that one has to make about the upbringing of his or her offspring can completely overwhelm a New York parent. Just as decisions and choices about parenting must be made on an ongoing basis with regard to one’s kids, so too must parents continuously cover the numerous and ever-present costs associated with caring for his or her children.
A parent who does not live with or have full custody of his or her child may be required to pay financial upkeep in the form of child support. There are many costs that may be covered with child support funds, and this blog post will touch on several of the categories of need that may be funded with child support payments. However, readers of this blog are encouraged to consider the specific details of their child support cases as this post provides only as an overview of this complex legal topic.
At its most basic level, child support is intended to provide a child with his basic needs. Child support should be used to provide a child with food, clothing and shelter. As such, child support can be used to pay the mortgage or rent of the home where the child resides and may be used to purchase the groceries that the child eats.
Child support can also be used to pay for a child’s medical costs, whether they are subject to insurance reimbursements or out of pocket fees. Payments may also be directed toward the costs of maintaining medical insurance for the child.
Finally, child support may be used to pay for schooling, extracurricular programs, day care or even entertainment opportunities. Children receive child support so that they may live as normal of lives as possible; though every child support agreement and order is different, many costs associated with raising a child may be paid with child support to ensure that the children’s best interests are served.