The Federal Child Support Guidelines: Step-by-Step
Step 4: Find the right table
The Federal Guidelines have child support tables for each province and territory. In Step 1, you determined that the Federal Guidelines apply to you. In this step, you will determine which table in the Federal Guidelines applies in your situation.
The tables set out basic child support amounts that depend on the income, the number of children, and the province or territory of residence. There is a separate federal table for each province and territory. That is because the child support amounts in the tables are based partly on provincial and territorial tax rules. Since provincial and territorial tax rules are different, so are the table amounts.
Remember, if you are divorced or divorcing and you both live in a designated province, you must refer to the provincial guidelines. The Federal Guidelines apply in all other divorce cases.
The rules in provincial and territorial child support guidelines may be a bit different from those in the Federal Guidelines. But all of them, except for Quebec, use the federal tables, so the basic amounts are the same.
Use the chart below to see which table applies. In some cases, you may need to use more than one table.
| If... | Then… |
|---|---|
you both live in the same province or territory |
use the table for that province or territory. |
you live in different provinces or territories and one of you has sole custody and the other parent must pay support |
use the table for the province or territory where the paying parent lives. |
you live in different provinces or territories and you share or split custody |
use the tables for both provinces or territories where you reside to determine what you would each pay to the other parent. |
one of you lives outside Canada |
use the table for the province or territory where the parent in Canada lives. The laws of the other country may apply in some cases. You may want to consult a lawyer. You may also find information relating to interjurisdictional support useful. |
Recap
You have now determined which table (or tables) applies in your situation. You may want to write down this information in section 5 of your Child Support Tool.
- Date modified:
