What is child support?

Once parents get divorced, it is still their responsibility to provide for a child’s financial needs until the child reaches an age he or she can support him or herself. In general, however, the economic burden of raising a child falls upon the custodial parent; therefore, all states require that the non-custodial parent provide his or her share of child-rearing costs, including a regular amount of child support in addition to financial contributions toward a child’s health, education, and child care. Child support, moreover, is a legal obligation a parent cannot get out of - the non-custodial parent must pay what the guidelines require, in full and in cash, regardless of how much the non-custodial parent may provide in the way of clothes or recreation.