

Is Overtime Pay or Bonus Pay Considered for Texas Child Support?

Some of the most frequent question I get are in regard to child support such as:

  1. How much?
  2. Will I have to pay child support for over time?
  3. Can I quit my job or reduce my income to avoid paying higher support?

The starting point for answer these questions involves looking at Texas Family Code.

Section 154.061:

  1. Whenever feasible, gross income should first be computed on an annual basis and then should be recalculated to determine average monthly gross income.

154.062. Net Resources

(a) The court shall calculate net resources for the purpose of determining child support liability as provided by this section.

(b) Resources include:

  1. 100 percent of all wage and salary income and other compensation for personal services (including commissions, overtime pay, tips, and bonuses);
  2. interest, dividends, and royalty income;
  3. self-employment income;
  4. net rental income (defined as rent after deducting operating expenses and mortgage payments, but not including noncash items such as depreciation); and
  5. all other income actually being received, including severance pay, retirement benefits, pensions, trust income, annuities, capital gains, social security benefits other than

What does this mean?

Basically, whenever possible you start with the Gross income from the year. Then figure out the net income by deducting things such as:

  1. Federal income taxes (calculated for a single person with one exemption and the standard deduction)
  2. State income tax (if paid)
  3. Union dues
  4. Social Security taxes
  5. Medicare taxes
  6. Health insurances costs paid for the children only

Once this net number is known child support is calculated. What this means is yes, overtime pay and bonus pay is considered in the Court’s calculation of Child Support.

What if I lose my Job or I no longer make overtime pay?

Should you lose your job or no longer receive a bonus you can ask to modify the amount of child support you pay.

The Court does not want to address “what if” situations only “what is.”

My buddy in another state does not have pay child support on overtime why do I?

Other states calculate child support differently.

Some states evaluate how much time either parent spends with child when calculating child support. Texas uses a formula plug in the numbers and then calculate child support.

Arizona takes the attitude that each parent should have the choice of working additional hours through overtime or at second job without increasing the child support award.

Texas has the attitude “what is in the best interest of the child.” This means that even though something may be better for a parent the overall concern is for the child.

What happens if I am unemployed?

Just because a parent does not have a job does not mean they do not have to pay child support. Under Section 154.068 Texas law presumes:

(a) In the absence of evidence of a party's resources, as defined by Section 154.062(b), the court shall presume that the party has income equal to the federal minimum wage for a 40-hour week to which the support guidelines may be applied.


A parent you can always quit your job but that will not necessarily help you with reducing your monthly child support amount. Not only it is a bad idea because you will no longer have a source of income Texas law provides a legal mechanism to fight against this “dirty trick.”

Recently a Husband tried to do this in a divorce case where we represented the wife. Every time we found out where he as working he would quit his job and give us a sad story about being unemployed. This happened 4 or 5 times.

We asked the judge to set child support based on his earning ability and not his actual income. That is exactly what the judge did.

Under Texas Family Code Section 154.068:

a) If the actual income of the obligor is significantly less than what the obligor could earn because of intentional unemployment or underemployment, the court may apply the support guidelines to the earning potential of the obligor.



Other Articles you may be interested in:

  1. The Dirty Trick of Quitting Your Job to Avoid Child Support During a Texas Divorce
  2. Can I get child support while my Texas divorce is pending?
  4. Can I Sue My Ex for Retroactive or Back Child Support in Texas?
  5. Child Support and College Tuition in Texas
  6. Texas Child Support Appeals
  7. In Texas are Child Support and Visitation Connected?
  8. Why Ignoring Child Support Obligations is a Bad Idea in Texas
  10. Child Custody Basics in Texas
  11. 6 Mistakes that can Destroy Your Texas Divorce Case

Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC | Spring Divorce Lawyers

