Most parents who receive child support on their child’s behalf are well aware of some of the basic expenses that it’s intended to cover. These include housing, food and clothing.
They can also use child support for other costs associated with child rearing, such as transportation, phone service and out-of-pocket medical care expenses. It can also be applied to a wide range of school-related expenses.
School expenses and more
Each jurisdiction varies in terms of whether you can use child support to pay for certain expenses or seek more support to ensure that your child can participate in extracurricular activities you couldn’t currently afford to cover.
Most jurisdictions allow parents to apply any child support to day care costs, extracurricular activities, tutoring, textbooks, uniforms, school lunches, after-school babysitters or transportation and field trip costs.
If your child is homeschooled, then you might even be able to use child support to cover your role as their teacher, co-op participation costs and the costs of curricula you need to purchase. It may also be possible for you to seek increased support to cover your child’s enrollment in summer camp or day program on extended school breaks.
The costs associated with transporting your child between home and school and their various extracurricular obligations may also be covered by child support. Vehicle repair costs, insurance, registration fees and gas may be valid justifications for using child support or requesting more of it.
Raising a child is costly. Both parents must share in these costs. If you’re the parent receiving child support, it’s crucial to be able to document what your expenses are and justify why they’re necessary.