The Federal Child Support Guidelines:
Step-by-Step

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Line-by-line help for Worksheet 2

Special expenses

What are special expenses?

Special expenses are expenses that the amounts in the child support tables may not cover. The guidelines define special or extraordinary expenses as expenses that are:

• necessary in relation to the child's best interests, and
• reasonable in relation to the means of the parents and the child, and the family's spending patterns before the separation.

Can you use this worksheet?

You can use this worksheet if:

• you have a sole custody or split custody parenting arrangement, and
• your child requires special expenses.

This worksheet helps you:

• estimate each parent's share of special expenses, and
• calculate the amount that the paying parent is supposed to add to the child support table amounts to cover these special expenses.

As a general rule, each parent shares the expenses in proportion to his or her income, although parents may agree on a different way of dividing the expenses.

If you share custody

If you and the other parent share custody of your children, the guidelines do not set an amount of child support to be paid as they do for sole and split custody arrangements. The guidelines tell you to take other circumstances—like the increased costs of shared custody and the child's needs—into account when deciding on the amount of child support. However, if you share custody, you can still use this worksheet to get an idea of the total amount you have to spend to meet your children's needs, and each parent's ability to contribute to the expenses.

Before you start

Have your documents ready

To complete this worksheet, you will need information about the child's special expenses and both parents' incomes. This consists of at least the following:

• federal income tax returns for each parent for the past three taxation years,
• the schedules to those federal income tax returns,
• pay slips or other income records, if you need them,
• a completed Worksheet 1 for each parent, and
• the Canada Revenue Agency notices of assessment and reassessment for the past three taxation years.

Use only the parts of the worksheet that apply to you

You may need extra copies of this worksheet

Lines 19 to 25 have four columns each. Use a separate column for each child. If you have more than four children, you will need to photocopy this worksheet or download a copy at www.justice.gc.ca/childsupport before you start.

Line-by-line help

part A

In this part, you will calculate the total amount you and the other parent spend on special expenses in one year.

When you calculate the amount of special expenses each parent will pay, you must take into account any subsidies, benefits or income tax deductions or credits relating to the expense.

line 19 – child–care expenses

Include all child-care expenses that the parent with whom the child lives incurs due to that parent's job, illness, disability, or training or education for employment. Child-care expenses for other reasons are not eligible. Copy only eligible child-care expenses to line 19.

line 20 – medical and dental insurance plan

If you pay into a medical or dental insurance plan for a child's benefit, then the portion of your contribution to the plan on behalf of your child is an eligible special expense. Copy the amount of your contribution to the plan made for the child to line 20. If the other parent also pays into a plan for the child, add your contributions together and copy the total to line 20.

line 21 – uninsured health-care expenses

Some children require health care that is paid for by a parent and not by a provincial or territorial public health plan or private insuance. When this health care costs more than $100 per year, after deducting any amount received from an insurance plan, it may be considered a special expense. Health-care costs that might be special expenses include orthodontic treatment, speech therapy, prescription drugs, glasses, contact lenses, hearing aids, physiotherapy, occupational therapy and professional counselling provided by a psychologist, social worker or psychiatrist. Copy the total amount of health-related special expenses paid by either parent on line 21.

line 22 – education expenses

Include extraordinary expenses for primary or secondary school, and for any other educational programs that meet a child's particular needs. Copy the amount of these extraordinary expenses paid by either parent to line 22.

line 23 – post-secondary education expenses

Copy any amounts paid by either parent for a child's post-secondary education to line 23.

line 24 – extracurricular activity expenses

Copy the amounts paid by either parent for any extraordinary expenses for extracurricular activities to line 24.

line 25 – total amount for each child

Add lines 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 and 24 for each child. Copy the total to line 25.

line 26 – total amount for all children

Add lines 25A, B, C and D to get the total amount spent by both you and the other parent on special expenses for all your children.

part B

The purpose of Part B is to calculate the total amount of special expenses that the parents have to share. In this part, you subtract from the total amount of special expenses on line 26 any amounts that either parent receives to help pay for the expenses.

For lines 27 to 29, use a separate column for each child.

line 27 – contributions or subsidies from other sources

You, the other parent, or your child may receive a contribution towards a special expense. For example, a service organization might pay part of the costs of your child's hearing aid or a post-secondary school might offer your child a scholarship to help to pay tuition costs. Copy all the amounts you and the other parent or the children received or are entitled to receive for special expenses on line 27.

line 28 – child's contribution

Your child may pay part of a special expense. For example, your child may have a part-time job to help pay university tuition. Copy all the amounts that your child contributes toward his or her special expenses on line 28.

line 29 – amount received for each child

Add lines 27 and 28 for each child. Copy the totals on line 29.

line 30 – total amount received for special expenses

Add lines 29A, B, C and D to get the total amount received for special expenses.

line 31 – tax and benefit implications

A: calculate the total amount of tax relief

Tax rules allow a taxpayer to deduct certain child-related expenses from his or her income. This can reduce the amount of income tax the person has to pay. So, the parent who gets tax relief for a child-related expense saves money.

You will need to subtract the amount of this tax relief when you calculate the total cost of special expenses.

Categories of child-related expenses that qualify for tax relief include:

1. Child-care expenses (line 214, federal income tax return)

2. Educational expenses that a child transfers to a parent (line 324, federal income tax return)

3. Medical expenses (line 332, federal income tax return)

You need to estimate the amount of tax relief each parent gets for expenses relating to the children and copy this amount to line 31. Only do this calculation when a parent is claiming or intends to claim the expense on his or her income tax return.

One way to find out the amount of tax relief is to complete an income tax return for each parent who has child-related expenses.

In some families, only one parent will have amounts to copy on lines 214, 324 or 332 of the federal income tax return. In other families, both parents will have amounts.

There are specific rules about who is eligible to claim a deduction for child-care expenses. You may wish to refer to the Canada Revenue Agency's General Income Tax and Benefit Guide for more information.

You may wish to follow these steps to estimate your tax relief amount:

Step 1 Use a blank income tax return to simulate two situations. (These income tax returns are for your use only; you do not need to submit them to the Canada Revenue Agency.) Complete the first tax return with the appropriate amounts written on lines 214, 324 and 332 to calculate the tax that would be payable at line 435. You may only need to fill in one line or you may have special expenses to include on two or all three lines.

Step 2 Now, do the income tax return again leaving lines 214 and 324 blank and reduce the amount on line 332 by the amount spent on the child. Calculate the tax that would be payable at line 435.

Step 3 Now, you need to compare the two tax amounts. Subtract the amount of tax payable when special expenses have been included in the tax return from the amount of tax payable when no special expenses were taken into account. The difference is the amount of that parent's tax relief.

If the other parent can claim a deduction for any of the same special expenses, follow steps 1, 2 and 3 for that parent, too. Copy the total amount of tax relief for both parents to this line.

line A_______________

B: calculate the increase in federal and provincial benefits (not included on tax return)

Because special expense deductions may lower a parent's taxable income, any benefits that parent receives may increase. For example, the lower a parent's taxable income, the higher the National Child Benefit and some provincial benefits may be.

Compare the net incomes from steps 1 and 2 above. If they are the same, you do not need to complete this section. If the net incomes are different, calculate the benefits receivable for each net income. Copy the total difference between these benefit amounts for both parents to this line.

line B_______________

For more information on tax benefits and how they can affect your taxable income, you may wish to contact the Canada Revenue Agency at 1-800-959-8281, or visit the Canada Revenue Agency's Internet site at www.cra-arc.gc.ca.

Add lines A and B above to find the total tax and benefit implications. Copy this total to line 31 of Worksheet 2.

line 32 – total amount to help pay special expenses

Add line 30 and line 31 to get the total amount received to help pay for the special expenses listed in Part A. Copy the total on line 32.

line 33 – total amount of special expenses parents have to share

Line 26 minus line 32 gives you the total amount of special expenses. Copy this amount on line 33.

part C or part D – sole custody arrangement

Part C or part D helps you to calculate the portion of the special expenses that each parent should pay in a sole custody arrangement. Use part C of this worksheet if neither parent pays spousal support to the other parent.

Use part D when one parent pays spousal support to the other parent so that the amount of spousal support is reflected in the calculation of annual income.

line 34A – paying parent's annual income

Copy the paying parent's annual income from Worksheet 1, line 18 on line 34A.

line 34B – receiving parent's annual income

You will need the completed Worksheet 1 for the receiving parent. Copy the receiving parent's annual income from Worksheet 1, line 18 on line 34B.

Note: Lines 35 to 38 are not necessary for the calculations in Part C. Please skip to the explanation for line 39 if you are completing Part C.

line 35 – spousal support received from the other parent

Copy the amount of spousal support that the parent receives from the other parent. In many cases, the amount of spousal support received will be in the “Parent receiving child support” column. However, sometimes the parent who has custody of the children, and receives child support for them, pays spousal support to the other parent. In that case only, the amount of spousal support received will be in the “Parent paying child support” column. Whatever your situation, the amount of spousal support received should appear in only one of the two columns for line 35.

line 36 – total

Add lines 34 and 35. Copy the total to line 36.

line 37 – spousal support paid to the other parent

Copy the amount of spousal support that the parent pays or is going to pay to the other parent. The amount of spousal support paid should appear in only one of the two columns for line 37.

line 38 – annual income for purposes of special expenses

To find the annual income amount of each parent to use to calculate each parent's share of special expenses, subtract line 37 from line 36 and copy this amount to line 38.

line 39 – total annual income for purposes of special expenses

If you are completing Part C, add lines 34A and 34B. Copy the total on line 39.

If you are completing Part D, add lines 38A and 38B. Copy the total on line 39.

line 40 – paying parent's income proportion

If you are completing Part C, divide line 34A by line 39. Copy the result on line 40.

If you are completing Part D, divide line 38A by line 39. Copy the result on line 40.

The purpose of this calculation is to find out what part of the total net annual income of both parents is earned by the paying parent. The number you will get when you divide the paying parent's income by the total income of both parents will usually be in decimal form, such as 0.66. Make sure you divide the smaller number by the larger number.

(Note: When the receiving parent has no income on line 34B in Part C, the result of the calculation will be ‘1' for the paying parent.) Copy the total on line 41.

line 41 – paying parent's share of special expenses

To calculate the amount of the paying parent's share of special expenses, multiply line 40 by the actual cost of special expenses on line 33. Please make sure that the amount on line 41 is a dollar amount, not a proportion. Copy the total on line 41.

line 42 – special expenses paid directly by the paying parent

The paying parent may be paying some special expenses directly. For instance, the paying parent may give an orthodontist a series of post-dated cheques to cover orthodontic work on a child for a year or pay tuition directly to a university.

When a paying parent is paying some special expenses directly, then the total amounts paid can be subtracted from the amount he or she has to pay the receiving parent for special expenses. Remember that the paying parent may receive tax relief for paying some special expenses. Please see line 31 for more information.

line 43 – annual amount of special expenses payable

Line 41 minus line 42 gives you the annual amount of special expenses that the paying parent will pay to the receiving parent. Copy the total to line 43.

line 44 – monthly amount of special expenses payable

Divide line 43 by 12 to find out how much the paying parent will pay each month to the receiving parent to share the costs of the children's special expenses. Copy the total to line 44.

part E or part F – split custody arrangement

Note: Parts E and F use the terms parent A and parent B to help you and the other parent keep track of your information. These terms could apply to either of you.

Part E or part F helps you to calculate the income of each parent and the portion of the special expenses that each parent would pay in a split custody arrangement. Use part E of this worksheet if neither parent pays spousal support to the other parent.

Use part F when one parent pays spousal support to the other parent so that the amount of spousal support is reflected in the calculation of annual income.

In part F use a separate column for each parent.

line 34A – annual income of parent A

Copy parent A's annual income from Worksheet 1, line 18 to line 34A.

line 34B – annual income of parent B

Copy parent B's annual income from Worksheet 1, line 18 to line 34B.

Note: If you do not pay spousal support to or receive spousal support from the other parent, you should be completing Part E of this worksheet. Lines 35 to 38 are not necessary for the calculations in Part E. Please skip to the explanation for line 39 if you are completing Part E.

line 35 – spousal support received from the other parent

Copy the amount of spousal support that one parent receives from the other parent. The amount of spousal support received should appear in only one of the two columns for line 35.

line 36 – total

Add lines 34A and 35A. Copy the total to line 36A. Add lines 34B and 35B. Copy the total to line 36B.

line 37 – spousal support paid to the other parent

Copy the amount of spousal support that one parent pays or is going to pay to the other parent. The amount of spousal support paid should appear in only one of the two columns for line 37 (A or B).

line 38 – annual income for calculating special expenses

To get the annual income of each parent to use to calculate each parent's share of special expenses, subtract line 37A from line 36A and copy the total to line 38A. Subtract line 37B from line 36B and copy the total to line 38B.

line 39 – total annual income for calculating special expenses

If you are completing Part E, add lines 34A and 34B. Copy the total to line 39.

If you are completing Part F, add lines 38A and 38B. Copy the total to line 39.

line 40 – each parent's portion

If you are completing Part E, divide line 34A by line 39 and copy the amount on line 40A; and divide line 34B by line 39 and copy the amount on line 40B.

If you are completing Part F, divide line 38A by line 39 and copy the amount on line 40A; and divide line 38B by line 39 and copy the amount on line 40B.

The purpose of these calculations is to find each parent's share of the total net annual income. The number you will get when you divide the one income by the total income of both parents will usually be a number with a decimal, such as 0.66. Make sure you divide the smaller number by the larger number.

line 41 – amount of parent's share of special expenses

To calculate the amount of each parent's share of special expenses, multiply line 40A by the actual cost of special expenses on line 33 and copy the total amount to line 41A. Multiply line 40B by line 33 and copy the total amount on line 41B. Please make sure that the amount on lines 41A and B are dollar amounts, not a proportion.

line 42 – special expenses paid directly by parent

One parent may be paying some special expenses directly. For instance, a parent may give an orthodontist a series of post-dated cheques to cover orthodontic work on a child for a year or pay tuition directly to a university.

When a parent is paying some special expenses directly, then the total amounts paid can be subtracted from the amount he or she has to pay the other parent for special expenses.

Copy the real (net) amount of special expenses that each parent is paying directly for children in either parent's custody to line 42. Remember that you may receive tax relief for paying some special expenses. Please see line 31 for more information.

line 43 – annual amount of special expenses payable

Line 41A minus line 42A, and line 41B minus line 42B gives you the annual amount of special expenses that both parents will pay. Copy these amounts to lines 43A or 43B. The amounts on lines 43A and 43B should add up to zero. The parent who has the positive amount (the amount greater than zero) will pay this amount to the other parent.

line 44 – monthly payable amount of special expenses

Look at lines 43A and 43B and find the line that has the positive amount (the amount greater than zero). Then divide that amount by 12 to find out how much that parent owes to the other each month for the cost of the children's special expenses. Do the calculation only for the parent with the positive amount on line 43. Copy “0” in the final line of the box for the other parent.

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