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Maintenance & Child Support
Enter yearly incomes and see the New York guideline results update as you go. Estimates are planning tools, not a determination of an award.
- Step 1
Tell us about the family
Enter the number of children, who they live with, and where each party lives (for city income tax).
- Step 2
Enter each party's yearly income
Use gross income from the most recent tax return or pay stubs. Add a name or label (for example Wife, Husband) so results say who pays whom.
- Step 3
Read your results and choose next steps
Guideline maintenance and child support update as you type. Then optionally explore above-cap amounts, maintenance duration, and produce the court worksheets or a recap.
Children
Number of unemancipated children of the marriage.
The maintenance and child support figures shown alongside are what the guideline formulas produce if the court applies the statutory income caps. A court can consider income above those caps, so treat these numbers as a starting point for discussion with your attorney, not a prediction of an award.
Incomes
Annual income for each party. Choose below whether these are before-tax amounts or already-adjusted CSSA income.
Party with the higher income
Enter the higher earner's income. Enter 0 if there is none.
Where Party A lives Required
Party with the lower income
Enter the lower earner's income. Enter 0 if there is none.
Where Party B lives Required
Both residences are required. Taxes are calculated slightly differently for New York City and Yonkers residents, and those taxes come off income before support is figured.
Income used for support (CSSA income)
New York starts from gross income and subtracts Social Security, Medicare, and any New York City or Yonkers income tax. What is left is the income the guideline formulas use.
Choose where each party lives above to include city income tax.
| Line | Party A | Party B |
|---|---|---|
| Reported annual income before taxes | — | — |
| Less Social Security & Medicare | − — | − — |
| Less city income tax | − — | − — |
| CSSA income | — | — |
Combined CSSA income
—
Combined income after maintenance
—
Pro rata share for add-ons
Each parent pays this percentage of add-on expenses — child care, health insurance, unreimbursed medical costs and, where ordered, education (DRL 240(1-b)(c)(4)–(7)). It is based on each parent's income after maintenance is moved from one to the other.
Party A
—
Party B
—
Calculate Maintenance & Child Support
Thresholds effective March 1, 2026: $241,000 maintenance income cap, $193,000 combined child support cap, $21,546 self-support reserve and $15,960 poverty guideline. The caps are editable as they change.
With these caps
- Maintenance / month
- —
- Maintenance / year
- —
- Child support / month
- —
- Child support / year
- —
Running calculations above the cap
The statute applies its percentages only up to the income caps shown above. Income above a cap is not automatically counted; a court may include it after weighing the statutory factors. Use these controls to see what that would look like. These are scenarios you choose, not predicted awards.
- Start with the guideline figures. With the cap fields left at their defaults and the switch below off, the results are the statutory guideline amounts.
- To test maintenance above the cap, raise the “Maintenance income cap” field or drag its slider to the payer's income (or any amount you want to model). The results show the difference from the statutory caps.
- To test child support above the cap, raise the “Child support combined income cap” field or slider, or turn on “Apply child-support percentage above the cap” to apply the percentage to all combined income.
- Compare and record. The results panel shows the guideline amount and the above-cap amount separately. If you rely on an above-cap figure in an agreement, the reasons (the statutory factors) must be stated.
Maintenance is the lower of two statutory formulas. Both calculations are available.
When does a court go above the cap?
The caps are a starting point, not a ceiling. A court may award support on income above them after weighing the statutory factors — the length of the marriage, the standard of living the family enjoyed, each party's health, earning capacity and future needs, care of the children, and any wasteful spending. Awards above the cap are discretionary and fact-specific.
How long does maintenance last?
New York suggests a duration based on how long you were married — from the date of the marriage to the date the divorce action is commenced.
Enter both dates and the length of the marriage is calculated for you.
0–15 years: 15%–30%
Over 15 to 20 years: 30%–40%
Over 20 years: 35%–50%
This schedule is advisory. A court may order a shorter or longer term — or lifetime maintenance — after weighing the statutory factors, and maintenance generally ends on remarriage or the death of either party.
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