Child Support During and After an Ontario Divorce

If you are divorcing and have children, child support is often the first money question you face. It can be dealt with in the same case as the divorce, and the court pays attention to it before the divorce is granted.

This article explains where child support fits in an Ontario divorce, which papers are usually involved, and how it is treated for tax. How the table amount applies to your family depends on your facts, so a lawyer can confirm the details.

Why child support matters to the divorce itself

In Ontario, only the Superior Court of Justice, including its Family Court branch, deals with divorce. Under the Divorce Act, the court must be satisfied that reasonable arrangements have been made to support any children of the marriage. If they have not, the court delays the divorce.

This means child support is not an optional extra. Even when you and your spouse agree on everything else, the court wants to see that the children are provided for.

How child support shows up in the paperwork

In an uncontested divorce, the evidence is an affidavit on Form 36 (Affidavit for Divorce). It must give the child support arrangements and financial information, along with the other information the court needs to grant the divorce.

Either spouse can start the case, or both can file a joint application. In a joint application, the divorce and any other order can be made only with both spouses' consent. Each spouse completes a separate Form 36 in a joint case.

If support is included in the order, the applicant files an extra copy of the draft Divorce Order (Form 25A) and two draft support deduction orders.

• Form 36 (Affidavit for Divorce) sets out the child support arrangements.
• Form 25A is the draft Divorce Order.
• Draft support deduction orders are needed if support is included.

Do you need a financial statement?

Anyone who claims support or property must serve and file a financial statement. Form 13 is used for a support claim without a property claim, and Form 13.1 is used for any property claim, whether or not support is also claimed.

There is an exception. If the only support claim is child support in the table amount, no financial statement is needed, unless there is also a property claim or a claim for exclusive possession of the matrimonial home.

When a financial statement is required, it must be sworn before a commissioner of oaths, and supporting financial documents must also be provided. You must correct or update a served financial document as soon as you find it is wrong. If a party fails to disclose, the court can order the documents served and must award costs.

Tax and other money effects

Support paid under a court order or written agreement is reported on line 21999. Only the deductible part, spousal support, goes on line 22000. Child support is not deductible.

Child support is separate from spousal support. For spousal support, the court considers each spouse's condition, means, needs and other circumstances, and it does not consider misconduct by either spouse in relation to the marriage.

Parenting decisions are also separate. In parenting orders, the court considers only the child's best interests.

What to do next

• Gather income and expense records for yourself, and for your spouse if you have them.
• Check whether your claim is only for table child support or also includes property or the matrimonial home, because that decides which financial statement applies.
• Think about mediation. Where appropriate, parties must try a family dispute resolution process such as mediation.
• If you reach an agreement through mediation, each party should get advice from a different lawyer before signing.
• Speak to a lawyer if the amount, your spouse's income or your children's arrangements are unclear.

Frequently asked questions