Do the New October 2025 Child Support Tables Change Your Existing Order in Alberta?

If you pay or receive child support in Alberta, you may have heard that the tables changed in the fall of 2025. A natural worry is whether your current order has quietly changed too, or whether you are now owed more or owe less.

The short answer is that your order stays as written until it is changed in the proper way. This article explains what changed, which tables apply to which periods, and how a different table amount can lead to a variation.

This article covers the law of Alberta.

What changed on October 1, 2025

Updated Federal Child Support Tables took effect on October 1, 2025. They use 2023 tax rules, while the previous tables used 2017 rules.

The tables are the starting point for working out basic child support. The amount depends on the paying parent's annual income, the number of children and the province of the payer. Because the tax rules behind the tables were updated, the amount for the same income may now be different.

This article does not set out any dollar figures. Amounts changed on October 1, 2025, so check the exact figures in the current tables on the Department of Justice Canada website (justice.gc.ca).

Which tables apply to which periods in Alberta

In Alberta, the 2017 tables apply to child support periods from November 22, 2017 through September 30, 2025. The 2025 tables apply to periods on or after October 1, 2025.

So the date of the period matters, not just the date you are reading about it today.

Why this applies whether or not you were married

Alberta says the Federal Child Support Tables are used to calculate child support under both the Divorce Act and the Family Law Act. Alberta's Child Support Guidelines are made under the Family Law Act and adopt the Federal Child Support Guidelines in Schedule 1.

Divorcing spouses are under the Divorce Act, and the Federal Child Support Guidelines apply unless both spouses are habitually resident in a province designated by order. Unmarried, separated-but-not-divorced and adult interdependent partners proceed under Alberta's Family Law Act and the Alberta Child Support Guidelines. Because the Alberta guidelines adopt the federal tables, the table amounts are the same.

Your existing order is not automatically recalculated

Existing orders are not automatically changed by the 2025 tables. If the new tables produce a different amount, that may count as a change in circumstances, and parents can seek a variation order or use a recalculation service.

For a table-based order, a change in circumstances is any change that would result in a different child support order. Under the Divorce Act, before varying a child support order the court must be satisfied that a change of circumstances as provided for in the applicable guidelines has occurred, and the variation must follow the applicable guidelines.

Under the Divorce Act, a court may vary, rescind or suspend a child support order, retroactively or prospectively, on application by either or both former spouses. If you were never married, or are separated but not divorced, how a change works under the Family Law Act depends on your situation, so it is worth confirming with a lawyer.

Whether a change would apply back to an earlier date depends on your facts, so it is worth getting advice before assuming either way.

• The new tables do not rewrite your order on their own.
• A different table amount may be a change in circumstances, but you still need to take a step to change the order.
• Your income, the number of children and other changes can also affect the result.

If you are paying or receiving through the Maintenance Enforcement Program (MEP), recalculations are timed around the anniversary date of the court order and are based on the most recent tax return.

What to do next

• Find your current order or agreement and note the date it was made and the amount.
• Gather your most recent tax returns and notices of assessment, since income drives the table amount.
• Check the current tables on justice.gc.ca for the payer's province, income and number of children.
• Compare the table amount with what your order says, keeping in mind that special or extraordinary expenses may be added on top.
• Decide whether to seek a variation order or use a recalculation service.
• Speak with a lawyer if your income is over $150,000, is irregular, or if there is shared or split parenting, since special rules can apply.

Existing orders are not automatically changed by the 2025 tables, but how this applies to your own order depends on your situation, so it is worth confirming with a lawyer.

Frequently asked questions