Virginia Child Support Calculator (2026): State Guidelines

How Virginia calculates child support

Virginia uses an "income shares" model. A schedule in the Code sets the basic amount parents with a given combined gross income are presumed to spend on their children each month. Health insurance and work-related child care are added, and each parent is responsible for a share in proportion to their income (Va. Code § 20-108.2(G)(1)). The amount that results is presumed correct; a court can depart from it only with written findings (§ 20-108.2(A) and § 20-108.1).

The steps follow the court worksheets: DC-637 for sole custody, DC-640 for shared custody and DC-638 for split custody. The worksheets say to use monthly amounts rounded to the nearest dollar, with 50 cents or more rounded up. Virginia's Department of Social Services points parents to the fillable DC-637 worksheet to estimate support; there is no state calculator that looks up the schedule for you.

1. Gross income	All income from all sources before taxes: wages, bonuses, commissions, self-employment profit, pensions, Social Security, unemployment, spousal support received and more. SSI, public assistance and child support received don't count (§ 20-108.2(C)).
2. Available income	Add spousal support received and subtract spousal support paid under an order or written agreement. Subtract support paid for other children, the schedule amount for other children living with the parent, reasonable business expenses and half of self-employment tax.
3. Schedule amount	Look up the combined available income and the number of children (one to six) in the schedule in § 20-108.2(B). Between two rows the amounts "shall be extrapolated"; the law gives no formula, so the calculator draws a straight line between the rows and shows both neighbouring results.
4. Add-ons	Add the children's health, dental and vision coverage paid by a parent (or a parent's spouse) and the custodial parent's work-related child care (§ 20-108.2(E) and (F)).
5. Income shares	Each parent's available income divided by the combined amount. The noncustodial parent owes their share of the total, minus any health coverage they pay directly.
6. Custody	90 days a year or fewer with one parent: sole custody. More than 90 days for each parent: the shared custody formula. Each parent has at least one child living with them: split custody (§ 20-108.2(G)).
7. Minimum	A sole custody amount under the presumptive minimum is raised to it: $68 a month, as Virginia's Division of Child Support Enforcement (DCSE) states; the Code says only "the statutory minimum" (§ 20-108.2(B)).

The official example: $600 and $200 a month, one child

Neither the Code nor the worksheets include a worked example. The only official one is in the 2025 report of the Child Support Guidelines Review Panel, and it uses the schedule in force until June 30, 2025. The calculator starts with the same parents on today's schedule.

Combined income: $600 + $200	$800
Schedule amount for $800, one child (schedule in force July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2025)	$154
Paying parent's share: $600 ÷ $800	75%
75% × $154 = $115.50, rounded up	$116
Same case on the current schedule: $800 row, one child	$166
75% × $166 = $124.50, rounded up	$125

The Panel's words: "75% of $154 is $116". On the schedule that took effect July 1, 2025, the same parents' guideline amount is $125 a month, above the $68 minimum.

A shared custody case, worked by hand. You earn $7,000 a month and the other parent $3,000 (70% and 30%), with two children who spend 245 days a year with you; you pay $400 of child care. The schedule gives $1,824 for $10,000 and two children; × 1.4 = $2,554. Your 245 days are 67.1% of the year (the shared worksheet shows percentages to one decimal): $1,714 of support for your time, plus $400 child care, is $2,114, and the other parent owes 30% of it, $634. The other parent's 120 days are 32.9%: $840, of which you owe 70%, $588. The other parent pays you the difference, $46 a month. The sole custody worksheet would give $667, which is not less, so the shared amount stands.

Shared custody: more than 90 days a year

When each parent has the children for more than 90 days a year, a shared custody amount is calculated (§ 20-108.2(G)(3)). The schedule amount is multiplied by 1.4, the "shared support need", because two homes cost more than one. Each parent's part is that need times the share of days the children spend with them, plus the health coverage and work-related child care that parent pays. Each parent owes their income share of the other parent's part, and the parent who owes more pays the difference.

The shared amount is presumed correct, "unless a party affirmatively shows that the sole custody support amount ... is less". If so, the lesser amount is paid. That is why the calculator shows both. If the shared formula would have the parent with more days pay, the shared amount is treated as the lesser one. If either parent's gross income is at or under 150% of the federal poverty guideline, the shared amount isn't presumed correct, and the court decides whether the sole or the shared amount is more just.

A "day" is 24 hours. When the parent with fewer overnights has the children overnight for less than 24 hours, each parent is presumed to get half a day. The court decides when the year and the day begin. Shared custody cases go to court: the DCSE Program Manual says they "must be referred to court".

90 days or fewer	Sole custody worksheet (DC-637). The parent with fewer days pays their income share.
More than 90 days each	Shared custody worksheet (DC-640): schedule × 1.4, split by days, crossed with the income shares.
Sole amount less	A party can show the sole custody amount is less; the lesser amount is then paid (§ 20-108.2(G)(3)(a)).
Different schedules	Children with different days are averaged into one shared calculation; mixes of sole, split and shared custody use pro-rata steps in § 20-108.2(G)(4)-(6) that this calculator doesn't cover.

Low income, high income and other special rules

The minimum. When the sole custody amount is below "the statutory minimum", there is a presumptive minimum order of that amount. The Code doesn't put a number on it, and neither does the DCSE Program Manual (effective June 4, 2026), which also says "the statutory minimum". DCSE states on the VDSS website that "the minimum payment amount for an order of support in Virginia is $68 per month", and the calculator uses $68. If the paying parent's gross income is at or under 150% of the federal poverty guideline ($1,995 a month for one person in 2026), the court may set less on evidence that the parent can't pay. Parents without assets who are in a psychiatric facility, imprisoned for life without parole, totally and permanently disabled (including SSI recipients) or otherwise involuntarily unable to earn income are exempt (§ 20-108.2(B)).

Above the schedule. The schedule ends at $42,500 a month of combined income. Above that, the law adds 2.6% (one child), 3.4% (two), 3.8% (three), 4.2% (four), 4.6% (five) or 5.0% (six) of the income above $42,500 to the $42,500 amount. There is no cap.

Between rows. The schedule moves in $50 steps. For incomes in between, the law says the amounts "shall be extrapolated" without a formula. The calculator uses a straight line between the two rows, rounded to the dollar, and shows what the result would be with each neighbouring row.

Other children. Support a parent actually pays under an order for other children is subtracted from that parent's income. For a parent's own or adopted children from another relationship living with them, the schedule amount for those children at that parent's income alone is subtracted. Both are only presumptions (§ 20-108.2(C)).

Split custody. When each parent has at least one of the children, each parent owes their income share of the schedule amount for the children living with the other parent, and the parent who owes more pays the difference (§ 20-108.2(G)(2)).

Not covered here. Deviations for the factors in § 20-108.1 (such as imputed income, special needs or private school), sole and shared custody mixed among the same children, and more than six children. The DCSE Program Manual refers cases with more than six children to court.

Health insurance	The children's part of health, dental and vision coverage paid by a parent or the parent's spouse is added; a noncustodial parent who pays it directly gets it back off their share. Coverage is "reasonable" at up to 5% of the paying parent's gross income (§ 63.2-1900).
Child care	Work-related child care, up to the cost of quality licensed care (§ 20-108.2(F)).
Uninsured medical	Reasonable uninsured medical and dental bills, including eyeglasses, prescriptions, orthodontics and counseling, are split by income as they come up, outside the monthly amount (§ 20-108.2(D)).
Disability benefit	A benefit the children get from a parent's disability entitlement counts as that parent's income and is credited against that parent's support. A credit larger than the support goes toward past-due support (§ 20-108.2(C)); the shared and split worksheets would net it against the other parent's amount instead, and the calculator shows that figure too.

Questions people ask

How is child support calculated in Virginia?

Add both parents' monthly gross income, after adjustments such as spousal support and support for other children, and look up the combined amount and the number of children in the schedule in Va. Code § 20-108.2. Add the children's health insurance and work-related child care. Each parent owes a share in proportion to their income, and the parent without custody pays their share. If each parent has the children more than 90 days a year, the shared custody formula is used instead.

How much is child support for one child in Virginia?

It depends on both parents' incomes. With a combined income of $10,000 a month, the schedule amount for one child is $1,251. A noncustodial parent who earns 60% of the combined income owes 60% of it, $751 a month, before health insurance, child care and shared custody. With a combined income of $800, the amount for one child is $166.

How many days is shared custody in Virginia?

More than 90 days a year with each parent. A day is 24 hours; a shorter overnight with the parent who has fewer overnights is presumed to be half a day for each parent. With shared custody, the schedule amount is multiplied by 1.4 and divided by each parent's days, and the result is presumed correct unless a party shows that the sole custody amount is less.

What is the minimum child support in Virginia?

The Code sets a presumptive minimum of "the statutory minimum" per month without naming the amount. Virginia's Division of Child Support Enforcement (DCSE) states on the VDSS website that the minimum is $68 a month. If the paying parent's gross income is at or under 150% of the federal poverty guideline, the court may go lower on evidence that the parent can't pay, and some parents, such as those who are totally and permanently disabled, are exempt.

Does Virginia have an official child support calculator?

No. The Department of Social Services points parents to the court's fillable Child Support Guidelines Worksheet (DC-637), which doesn't look up the schedule for you. This calculator follows the same worksheet lines, and the shared (DC-640) and split (DC-638) worksheets, with the schedule in the Code.

What if our combined income is above the schedule?

The schedule ends at $42,500 a month. Above that, the law adds a percentage of the income above $42,500 to the amount for $42,500: 2.6% for one child, 3.4% for two, 3.8% for three, 4.2% for four, 4.6% for five and 5.0% for six. For example, at $50,000 with three children the basic amount is $5,867 + 3.8% × $7,500 = $6,152.

Virginia child support calculator

Virginia child support estimate