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Ability to Pay & Self-Support Adjustment

Quick Facts

Ability to pay is a statutory formula.
MN statutes mandate a minimum basic support amount based on number of children.

Ability to Pay

That a child support order should not exceed the obligor's ability to pay is a rebuttable presumption.

The court calculates the obligor's income available for support by subtracting a monthly self-support reserve equal to 120 percent of the federal poverty guidelines for one person from the obligor's gross income. If the obligor's income available for support is equal to or greater than the obligor's support obligation, the court will order child support.

If the obligor's income available for support is more than the minimum support amount, but less than the guideline amount, then the court applies a reduction to the child support obligation in the following order, until the support order is equal to the obligor's income available for support:

medical support obligation;
child care support obligation; and
basic support obligation.

If the obligor's income available for support calculated is equal to or less than the minimum support amount or if the obligor's gross income is less than 120 percent of the federal poverty guidelines for one person, the minimum support amount applies.

Minimum Basic Support Amount

If the basic support amount applies, the court orders the following amount as the minimum basic support obligation:

for one or two children, the obligor's basic support obligation is $50 per month;
for three or four children, the obligor's basic support obligation is $75 per month;
for five or more children, the obligor's basic support obligation is $100 per month.

If the court orders the obligor to pay the minimum basic support amount, the obligor is presumed unable to pay child care support and medical support.

If the court finds the obligor receives no income and completely lacks the ability to earn income, the minimum basic support amount does not apply.

Exception

These rules do not apply to an obligor who is incarcerated.