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When Can You Modify a Child Support Order in Florida?
Use the free tool — Child Support Estimate FL
The rule Florida uses to change an order
Florida uses a threshold to decide whether a child support order can be modified: the 15%-or-$50 rule. Child Support Estimate FL shows you this rule as part of walking through the guideline math step by step. It doesn't tell you whether your situation meets it — that's not legal advice.
What can change the guideline number
The guideline recalculates from a few inputs. Any of these can move the number enough to matter:
- Both parents' net incomes
- The number of children
- Overnights each parent has — Florida applies a time-sharing adjustment whenever a parent has 20% or more of the overnights
- Childcare costs
- Health-insurance costs, and who pays them
- Imputed income, if it applies to your case
The tool computes net incomes, income shares, the basic obligation from the schedule, the time-sharing adjustment, and the add-ons, and shows the arithmetic at each step.
Deviation — the court doesn't have to use the exact number
Florida courts can deviate from the guideline amount: up to ±5% freely, or more with written findings. The material behind this tool lists this among the deviation factors a court can apply.
What the calculator does and doesn't do
Child Support Estimate FL is a free, informational calculator, in English and Spanish. It computes the §61.30 guideline from the numbers you type, using approximate schedule rows. The court uses the exact statutory table, actual net incomes, and the facts in evidence, and may deviate from the guideline. This is not legal advice, and the tool does not file anything and is not affiliated with any court, the Department of Revenue, or any law firm.
What to do next
Type your own numbers — both incomes, overnights, childcare and health-insurance costs — into Child Support Estimate FL. You'll see the guideline recalculated step by step, with the 15%-or-$50 rule and the deviation factors explained along the way. For whether your case actually qualifies for a modification, confirm with the Florida DOR Child Support Program or legal aid.
Child Support Estimate FL is an informational calculator based on Florida Statutes 61.30 and the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure Form 12.902(e) as of 2025–26. The basic-obligation schedule is interpolated from anchor rows and is approximate; the statutory table controls. Net income depends on actual tax withholding and allowable deductions. It is not legal advice and does not file anything. It is not affiliated with any court, the Department of Revenue or any law firm.