Child support and expatriate allowances

[socrmomof3]

Hi, Soc!

Husband and I were transferred to Canada ealier this year. Company is paying us $3K a month extra in housing, food, utility, etc allowances. This is based on husband, myself, and MY 3 kids living with us. We get NO extra money for step-kids in anyway.

His ex is taking us back for a CS increase. Our attorney says she may be able to get a percentage of our allowance since it shows as "income".

What can we do to avoid this increase? Technically, my husband's income has not increased by the 20% required to even consider a CS increase.

Indiana holds jurisdiction on this case.

Thank you!

Socrmomof3

[socrateaser]

>What can we do to avoid this increase? Technically, my
>husband's income has not increased by the 20% required to even
>consider a CS increase.

Ask the company to treat the various payments to you on your pay stub as reimbursements for employee business expenses.

The money that you are receiving is income, if it is intended as compensation for personal expenses. If you were to continue to maintain your primary residence in the U.S., and both you and your husband worked for this company, and you were on-call 24x7, such that your maintaining a residence in Canada was a job-related necessity, and solely for yor employer's benefit, then you could claim this income as business related expenses even if the company didn't.

But, as you describe it in your post, it sure seems like income to me, and I'm fairly certain that a court will view it that way, too.

The basic principle is, that if you could receive the money into your personal bank account as disposable income today, then to the extent that you could, the court has discretion to order support against you, just as if you actually did receive the money.

There is one more possibility. You could file for divorce and stipulate to a court order granting you child/spousal support against your husband in the amount of the extra payments. Then, the Indiana court would be forced to exclude the payments from your husband's income under the support guidelines.

Of course, you would have to have the mental state (intent) to actually divorce -- otherwise this would be a fraud on the court.

You DO want a divorce now, don't you?

[socrmomof3]

Thank you, Soc.

So what you are saying is...the private school tuition that the company reimburses us for for my 3 kids to attend private school in Canada is also considered income? Or the money the company reimburses us for my attending graduate school? These reimbursements show up on our tax return as income, but the company grosses up our income to cover the federal tax.

But obviously, this money goes for the expenses my husband's dependants (as defined by the coirporation). Doesn't common sense exclude the 4/5 portion of allowances that are NOT directed towards my husband?

Thank you.

[socrateaser]

>Thank you, Soc.
>
>So what you are saying is...the private school tuition that
>the company reimburses us for for my 3 kids to attend private
>school in Canada is also considered income?

Yes. Private school is a discretionary expense, i.e., there is no law that compels the children's attendance.

>Or the money the
>company reimburses us for my attending graduate school?

Yes, for the same reason as above.

>These
>reimbursements show up on our tax return as income, but the
>company grosses up our income to cover the federal tax.

I wish I had such an incredible benefit as a tax free post-secondary education.

>
>But obviously, this money goes for the expenses my husband's
>dependants (as defined by the coirporation). Doesn't common
>sense exclude the 4/5 portion of allowances that are NOT
>directed towards my husband?

Common sense is not a legal defense. All of the benefits you describe are valuable and discretionary -- and DEFINITELY income for the purposes of calculating child support, unless you get a divorce and obtain an order granting you those payments, instead of your husband.

The child support guidelines in each state are extremely difficult to overcome, for all sorts of reasons that are not particularly relevant to your case. There are certain things, however, that the court cannot ignore, and a child support order in favor of children of a subsequent relationship is one of them.

Which, is why I offerred the advice that I did. If you don't want to do that, then get ready to tighten your belt, because some of that money you're getting is gonna go to support your hubby's children from his prior relationship.