Tampa Military Child Support Lawyers: Getting Military Income Right

Military child support cases are often decided by details that never appear on a civilian pay stub. A servicemember may receive basic pay, Basic Allowance for Housing, Basic Allowance for Subsistence, special pay, incentive pay, deployment-related compensation, cost-of-living allowances, bonuses, reserve pay, or government-provided housing. A veteran may receive military retired pay, VA disability compensation, Combat-Related Special Compensation, Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay, Social Security disability benefits, or a separate payment attributable to a child.

Each payment may have a different purpose, tax treatment, duration, and effect on the Florida child support calculation. A W-2 rarely tells the entire story. A bank deposit may be distorted by allotments, Thrift Savings Plan contributions, debt payments, insurance premiums, or other deductions. A single Leave and Earnings Statement may capture an unusual month rather than the servicemember’s normal income.

Mockler Leiner Law, P.A. represents active-duty servicemembers, veterans, retirees, reservists, National Guard members, military spouses, former spouses, and parents in child support cases throughout Tampa Bay and across Florida. Our work includes families connected to MacDill Air Force Base, families separated by assignments or deployments, and parents transitioning between active service, retirement, disability, reserve status, and civilian employment.

The objective is not to inflate military income or suppress it. The objective is to prove the correct number.

How Florida Calculates Military Child Support

Florida child support is governed primarily by section 61.30, Florida Statutes. The statute begins with each parent’s monthly gross income, subtracts only the deductions allowed by law, combines the parents’ net incomes, and applies the statutory guidelines schedule. Each parent is then assigned a percentage of the child’s support need.

The calculation may also include:

• Work-related child-care expenses;

• The incremental cost of health and dental coverage for the child;

• Uncovered medical, dental, psychological, and prescription expenses;

• The number of overnights exercised by each parent;

• Social Security or VA benefits paid because of a parent’s retirement or disability;

• Extraordinary expenses or special needs;

• Appropriate statutory deviations.

The guidelines amount is presumptive, but it is not untouchable. A court may vary by up to five percent after considering relevant circumstances. A greater deviation requires written findings explaining why the guidelines amount would be unjust or inappropriate.

Military child support is therefore not a percentage of basic pay, BAH, or take-home pay. It is a structured calculation based on both parents’ financial circumstances, the parenting plan, child-related expenses, and any legally recognized credits or deviations.

What Military Compensation Counts as Income?

Section 61.30 defines gross income broadly. It includes wages, bonuses, commissions, allowances, overtime, disability benefits, retirement payments, Social Security benefits, reimbursed expenses, and in-kind payments to the extent they reduce living expenses.

That definition reaches many forms of military compensation even when the payment is not taxable under federal law.

For a broader examination of pay records and military compensation, read our guide to calculating military income in Florida divorce and family law cases.

Basic Pay

Basic pay is normally the starting point. It is determined by pay grade and years of service and is generally taxable. The current LES should be compared with the applicable military pay table, promotion history, service dates, and prior statements.

Basic pay may change because of:

• Annual military pay adjustments;

• Promotion or reduction in rank;

• Longevity increases;

• Transition between active and reserve status;

• Separation or retirement;

• Recoupment of a prior overpayment.

A current LES may accurately show what was paid that month without establishing the correct average for a temporary, retroactive, or final child support award. Historical records matter.

Basic Allowance for Housing

Basic Allowance for Housing, commonly called BAH, is generally included in the Florida child support income analysis. Section 61.30 includes allowances and payments that reduce living expenses. The fact that BAH is excluded from federal taxable income does not exclude it from Florida child support income.

BAH may depend on the servicemember’s pay grade, duty station, and dependent classification. The amount may change following a PCS transfer, change in dependent status, move into government housing, separation from service, or reassignment to a different housing market.

BAH disputes commonly involve several issues:

• Whether the servicemember receives BAH at the with-dependents or without-dependents rate;

• Whether BAH is received in cash or transferred through an allotment for privatized housing;

• Whether the servicemember lives in government quarters;

• Whether a temporary BAH rate is being mistaken for long-term income;

• Whether BAH is being counted twice;

• Whether an outdated duty-station rate is being used;

• Whether a housing benefit exists even when cash BAH does not appear as spendable income.

Receiving BAH at the with-dependents rate does not mean the difference between that rate and the without-dependents rate automatically belongs to the other parent. BAH is a military entitlement. Florida child support must still be calculated under section 61.30.

BAH-DIFF is also not a substitute for Florida child support. It is a military housing-entitlement concept that may apply to certain servicemembers assigned to single-type government quarters who have a support obligation. It does not establish the amount a Florida court must order.

Our article addressing whether BAH is income in a Florida military divorce provides additional discussion of these issues.

Government Housing and Other In-Kind Benefits

A servicemember who lives in government housing may not receive spendable BAH. That does not necessarily end the inquiry. Section 61.30 permits consideration of in-kind benefits that reduce personal living expenses.

The court should determine what benefit is actually being received rather than assigning an imaginary BAH payment. Relevant evidence may include housing documents, the LES, privatized-housing allotments, proof of utilities, actual out-of-pocket expenses, and the duration of the housing arrangement.

Accuracy requires avoiding both extremes. A real housing benefit should not be ignored, but BAH and the same housing benefit should not be counted twice.

Basic Allowance for Subsistence

Basic Allowance for Subsistence, or BAS, is ordinarily part of the income analysis even though it is tax-free and intended to offset the servicemember’s food expenses. It is an allowance that increases the servicemember’s available financial resources.

The analysis should use the amount actually received. If BAS is subject to meal deductions or a servicemember is required to use a dining facility, the LES and actual arrangement should be examined rather than assumed.

Overseas Housing Allowance and Cost-of-Living Allowances

Overseas assignments may generate Overseas Housing Allowance, Overseas Cost-of-Living Allowance, utility allowances, temporary lodging allowances, or other station-related payments.

In State, Department of Revenue v. Price, 182 So. 3d 782 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015), the First District held that a Navy servicemember’s Overseas Housing Allowance had to be included in gross income when calculating past child support because the allowance reduced his living expenses. The fact that the payment was earmarked for housing did not remove it from the statutory definition of income.

Price also illustrates an important distinction. A payment may be included in gross income while the parent’s unusually high cost of living remains relevant to a request for deviation. Excluding income and requesting an equitable deviation are not the same legal argument.

CONUS COLA, Overseas COLA, and similar payments require the same careful analysis. The court should determine the amount received, its purpose, whether it reduces ordinary living expenses, and whether the payment is recurring or tied to a temporary assignment.

Special Pay, Incentive Pay, and Bonuses

Military compensation may include aviation pay, flight pay, sea pay, submarine duty pay, hazardous duty pay, parachute pay, diving pay, special duty assignment pay, foreign language pay, medical or dental special pay, special warfare pay, assignment incentive pay, retention bonuses, continuation pay, enlistment or reenlistment bonuses, hostile fire pay, and imminent danger pay.

These payments cannot be handled with one blanket rule. The court must determine:

• Whether the pay is currently being received;

• How long it has been received;

• Whether it is expected to continue;

• Whether it depends on qualification, assignment, deployment, or reenlistment;

• Whether a lump sum should be allocated over an appropriate period;

• Whether the payment is recurring or nonrecurring;

• Whether an anticipated termination is supported by orders or other competent evidence.

Ignoring stable special pay can understate income. Treating a short deployment-related payment as permanent income can create an unsustainable order. Historical LES records, orders, contracts, qualification documents, and pay histories often decide the issue.

Florida law also permits child support to be paid from nonrecurring income or assets when recurring income is insufficient to meet the child’s needs.

Deployment and Combat-Zone Income

Deployment may produce hostile fire pay, imminent danger pay, hardship duty pay, family separation allowance, assignment incentive pay, or tax advantages associated with combat-zone service.

A federal tax exclusion does not automatically exclude deployment pay from Florida gross income. It does, however, affect the net-income calculation because tax-free income should not be burdened with a fictional income-tax deduction.

Duration is usually the central dispute. A temporary child support order entered during deployment may reflect the income actually being received at that time. A final order should not casually assume that temporary deployment pay will continue indefinitely. Conversely, a servicemember should not omit deployment compensation actually received during a retroactive support period.

Military deployment can also affect overnights and the time-sharing adjustment. Our discussion of military deployment and Florida time-sharing explains why the parenting and financial issues should be addressed together.

Reservists and National Guard Members

Reserve and National Guard income may combine civilian wages with drill pay, annual training pay, active-duty orders, bonuses, special pay, and allowances. A single month may be misleading because the member’s duty status can change throughout the year.

The proper analysis may require:

• Civilian pay records;

• Reserve or Guard LES statements;

• Drill and annual-training history;

• Title 10 or Title 32 orders;

• Mobilization and demobilization dates;

• Unemployment or differential-pay records;

• Bonuses and retention incentives;

• Proof of anticipated civilian reemployment.

Averaging may be appropriate when income predictably fluctuates. It may be inappropriate when a documented activation, demobilization, retirement, or permanent employment change makes historical income unrepresentative.

PCS Payments, Per Diem, and Reimbursements

Not every payment appearing on a military record is compensation. A genuine reimbursement for an official expense may be different from an allowance that reduces ordinary living expenses.

PCS-related payments may include dislocation allowance, mileage, per diem, temporary lodging expenses, household-goods reimbursements, and travel advances. The court should determine whether the payment reimbursed an actual military expense, exceeded the expense, or paid costs the servicemember otherwise would have borne personally.

The label assigned by the military is relevant, but it does not always answer the Florida family law question. The practical effect of the payment matters.

Tax-Free Military Income Still Counts

One of the most frequent mistakes in military child support calculations is equating taxable income with Florida gross income.

BAH, BAS, VA disability compensation, CRSC, and certain deployment-related payments may be tax-free. They may nevertheless count as income for child support. Their nontaxable status must be handled correctly when determining net income.

The calculation should not:

• Exclude a payment merely because it is tax-free;

• Apply an income-tax deduction to money that produces no tax liability;

• Use only W-2 wages when the LES shows substantial nontaxable compensation;

• “Gross up” a tax-free payment without a valid legal and evidentiary basis;

• Treat voluntary deductions as though they reduced statutory gross income.

Tax treatment and child support treatment are related, but they are not identical.

Why Take-Home Pay Is Usually the Wrong Number

The amount deposited into a servicemember’s bank account is not necessarily income for child support purposes. The LES may show voluntary allotments, Thrift Savings Plan contributions, TSP loan repayments, debt recoupment, SGLI premiums, savings transfers, or other deductions.

Section 61.30 permits specific deductions from gross income. These include actual taxes, mandatory retirement contributions, certain health-insurance costs, and qualifying court-ordered support that is actually paid. A voluntary TSP contribution, personal loan payment, allotment to savings, or consumer debt payment does not automatically reduce child support income.

The court must distinguish between a lawful deduction and a personal decision about where income is directed.

Time-Sharing and Military Child Support

Florida applies a time-sharing adjustment when a parent exercises at least 20 percent of the annual overnights—generally 73 overnights. The calculation does more than reduce support by a simple percentage. It applies the statutory substantial-time-sharing formula and then accounts for child care, health insurance, and other expenses.

The number of overnights in the parenting plan must be calculated accurately. Military schedules can complicate that analysis because of deployments, TDY, training, shift work, long-distance parenting, and make-up time.

If a parent fails to exercise the overnights used to calculate support, section 61.30 treats that failure as a potential substantial change in circumstances. A modification based on the failure may be made retroactive to the date the parent first stopped regularly exercising the schedule, subject to the statutory requirements.

Child support and parenting rights are legally distinct. A parent cannot ordinarily stop paying support because time-sharing was denied. A parent also cannot ordinarily deny time-sharing because support was not paid. Each problem requires the correct enforcement remedy.

For parenting issues, review our guide to military child custody and parenting plans.

Health Insurance, TRICARE, and Uncovered Expenses

Section 61.13 requires child support orders to address health insurance when coverage is reasonable in cost and accessible to the child. TRICARE may provide valuable coverage, but its availability does not eliminate the need for precise order language.

The court should determine:

• Whether the child is eligible for TRICARE;

• The incremental cost of covering the child;

• Whether the plan is usable where the child lives;

• Whether supplemental or dental coverage exists;

• How uncovered medical, dental, psychological, and prescription expenses will be divided;

• What happens after retirement, separation, loss of eligibility, or relocation;

• Which parent is responsible for enrollment and maintaining current DEERS information.

The total cost of a servicemember’s family coverage should not automatically be attributed to one child. The relevant figure is generally the proven cost attributable to the child or children involved in the case.

Child Support for Disabled Veterans

Military disability cases require a separate analysis because “disability pay” may describe several different benefits. A veteran may receive VA disability compensation, military disability retired pay, Social Security Disability Insurance, CRSC, CRDP, or a child-related payment based on the veteran’s disability.

These benefits do not all receive identical treatment. Our page on military disability pay in Florida divorce and family law cases examines the broader distinctions.

VA Disability Compensation Is Generally Income for Child Support

Section 61.30 expressly includes disability benefits in gross income. Federal law prevents VA disability compensation from being divided as marital property, but that does not make the benefit invisible when calculating child support.

In Rose v. Rose, 481 U.S. 619 (1987), the United States Supreme Court held that federal veterans-benefit protections did not prevent a state court from enforcing a child support obligation against a disabled veteran whose principal income consisted of VA disability benefits. The Court recognized that veterans’ disability benefits are also intended to help support the veteran’s family.

Three separate questions must be kept distinct:

• Whether a payment counts as income;

• Whether the benefit can be divided as marital property;

• Whether a particular federal payment can be garnished directly.

VA disability compensation may count as child support income even though it cannot be equitably distributed and may be protected from some forms of direct attachment.

Because VA disability is generally tax-free, the calculation should include the actual benefit without assigning a fictitious income-tax deduction to it.

Credit for a VA Payment Made Because of the Veteran’s Child

Florida appellate authority addresses the credit a disabled veteran may receive when an additional VA payment is made for the child.

In Maslow v. Edwards, 59 So. 3d 299 (Fla. 5th DCA 2011), the veteran received VA disability benefits for himself and an additional monthly benefit for his minor child. The Fifth District held that the child-related benefit should first be included in the veteran’s income and the combined family income. After calculating the veteran’s support obligation, the veteran was entitled to a credit for the benefit paid for the child.

The court applied the same basic method used for Social Security dependent benefits:

• Include the child-related benefit in the disabled parent’s income;

• Calculate child support under the guidelines;

• Credit the benefit against the disabled parent’s resulting obligation;

• Require the parent to pay the difference if the benefit is less than the obligation;

• Allow any excess to remain for the child’s benefit.

The source and character of the payment must be proven. A VA award letter, payment history, dependency determination, apportionment decision, and records showing the recipient and effective date may be critical.

A veteran should not simply stop paying court-ordered support because a former spouse or child begins receiving a VA-related payment. The existing order remains enforceable until the court or appropriate agency recognizes and applies the credit.

Social Security Disability Benefits Paid to the Child

A disabled veteran may also qualify for Social Security Disability Insurance. If the veteran’s child receives derivative Social Security benefits because of the veteran’s disability or retirement, Florida law provides an express credit.

Under section 61.30:

• The derivative benefit paid to the child or caregiver is included in the disabled or retired parent’s gross income;

• The court calculates that parent’s support obligation using the increased income;

• The benefit is then credited against that parent’s share;

• If the benefit is less than the obligation, the parent pays the difference;

• If the benefit equals or exceeds the obligation, the monthly obligation is satisfied;

• Any excess belongs to the child and is not applied to arrears or retroactive support that accrued before the benefits began.

This methodology is consistent with Wallace v. Department of Revenue ex rel. Cutter, 774 So. 2d 804 (Fla. 2d DCA 2000), and Sealander v. Sealander, 789 So. 2d 401 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001).

Section 61.30 also provides a procedure for obtaining the credit. A parent subject to an existing support order may file a motion requesting credit or include the request in a petition to modify. In a Title IV-D case, the Department of Revenue may determine and apply the credit after notice and an opportunity for a hearing.

The veteran should preserve the Social Security award letter, payment history, effective date, lump-sum calculation, and proof of all amounts sent to the child’s caregiver.

Social Security Derivative Benefits Are Not SSI

Social Security dependent benefits paid because of a parent’s earnings record are different from Supplemental Security Income paid because of a child’s own disability or financial eligibility.

SSI is means-tested public assistance. Section 61.30 specifically prevents a court from treating a child’s SSI as independent income supporting a downward deviation. A parent generally does not receive a derivative-benefit credit for SSI paid because of the child’s own disability.

Confusing SSDI derivative benefits with SSI can materially distort the calculation.

CRDP, CRSC, and Disability Retired Pay

Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay, or CRDP, generally restores military retired pay that otherwise would have been waived to receive VA disability compensation. CRDP is usually taxable military retired pay and should be identified separately from VA disability.

Combat-Related Special Compensation, or CRSC, is a tax-free benefit for qualifying combat-related disabilities. CRSC is not divisible military retired pay, but its separate-property status does not necessarily exclude it from the child support income analysis.

Military disability retired pay under Chapter 61 presents additional issues. The payment may contain service-based and disability-based components, and its tax treatment may vary. The Retiree Account Statement, retirement orders, VA records, CRDP or CRSC documentation, and the divorce judgment should be reviewed together.

The court should also avoid counting the same retirement or disability stream twice. A former spouse’s direct share of military retired pay, a VA waiver, CRDP restoration, and CRSC election can alter what each party actually receives.

A Disability Rating Does Not Automatically Decide Employability

A VA disability rating does not always establish that the veteran cannot work. A 100 percent schedular rating is not necessarily the same as Total Disability Based on Individual Unemployability, and neither automatically resolves the Florida imputation analysis.

If a party seeks to impute additional employment income to a disabled veteran, section 61.30 requires competent evidence addressing whether the unemployment or underemployment is voluntary and identifying actual available employment for which the parent is qualified. Medical restrictions, vocational evidence, work history, education, licensing, disability determinations, and efforts to obtain suitable employment may all matter.

A veteran should not be treated as voluntarily unemployed merely because the opposing party believes the veteran could work. Conversely, disability status should not be used to conceal actual employment, business income, or earning activity.

Direct Garnishment of VA Disability Is a Separate Question

Federal law limits direct attachment of many VA benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 5301. Certain federal payments may nevertheless be subject to withholding for support under 42 U.S.C. § 659 and 5 C.F.R. Part 581. VA compensation paid in place of waived military retired pay may receive different treatment from pure VA disability compensation.

The VA may also apportion benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 5307 when a veteran’s child is not in the veteran’s custody and the veteran is not reasonably discharging the responsibility for support.

These rules concern collection and apportionment. They do not necessarily determine whether the disability payment counts as income or whether the veteran owes child support under a Florida judgment.

Evidence Needed in a Military Child Support Case

A sound military child support calculation usually requires more than one LES. Depending on the issues, the evidence may include:

• At least 12 months of Leave and Earnings Statements;

• Additional LES records covering any retroactive support period;

• Military W-2s and federal income tax returns;

• Civilian pay records for reservists and National Guard members;

• Retiree Account Statements;

• VA award and dependency letters;

• CRDP and CRSC statements;

• Social Security award and payment histories;

• PCS, deployment, TDY, activation, retirement, and separation orders;

• BAH, OHA, and COLA records;

• Bonus, continuation-pay, and reenlistment documents;

• Government or privatized housing records;

• Proof of child-care and health-insurance costs;

• The parenting plan and an accurate overnight calculation;

• Bank records showing the actual receipt of disputed benefits.

The LES should be read from top to bottom. Entitlements, deductions, allotments, year-to-date figures, leave balances, and remarks may each explain an apparent discrepancy.

The firm’s article on calculating military income discusses why one pay record should never be accepted uncritically.

Temporary and Retroactive Child Support

Florida courts may award temporary child support while a divorce or paternity action is pending. Temporary calculations are often made quickly, which makes accurate financial disclosure especially important.

An inflated temporary order can create arrears before the evidence is fully developed. An understated temporary order can leave a parent carrying nearly all of the child’s expenses. Military pay records should be requested early rather than waiting for the final hearing.

In an initial child support determination, section 61.30 allows retroactive support for as much as 24 months before the petition was filed, measured from the date the parents stopped residing together with the child. The court must consider the obligor’s actual income during the retroactive period and payments already made for the child.

For military families, that can require reconstructing prior BAH rates, deployments, OHA, special pay, promotions, reserve activations, disability awards, and derivative-benefit payments month by month.

Modification After Deployment, PCS, Retirement, or Disability

Military income changes frequently. Promotion, deployment, PCS orders, retirement, medical separation, demobilization, loss of special pay, a VA rating decision, or the commencement of Social Security derivative benefits may create grounds to modify child support.

Under section 61.30, the guidelines may establish a substantial change when the difference between the existing obligation and the recalculated amount is at least 15 percent or $50, whichever is greater. Other substantial changes may also support modification under section 61.14.

The existing order does not change automatically. A servicemember who loses deployment pay, retires, or becomes disabled should not wait while an unaffordable obligation continues to accrue. A parent seeking increased support should likewise act promptly after a promotion, new allowance, or substantial increase in income.

Modification is generally tied to the filing date of the modification request. Delay can be expensive.

Military Family Support Rules Before a Florida Order

Military family support regulations may provide interim relief before a Florida court enters a temporary or final support order. Examples include Department of the Air Force Instruction 36-2906, Army Regulation 608-99, and Navy MILPERSMAN 1754-030.

These rules can require servicemembers to support lawful family members, comply with court orders, and respond to command inquiries. They may be useful when a servicemember has stopped providing support and a Florida hearing has not yet occurred.

Military regulations do not replace Florida child support. A command does not calculate permanent support under section 61.30, decide disputed time-sharing, or modify a Florida judgment. Once a court order or enforceable agreement controls, the military generally expects compliance with it.

Learn more about interim family support under military regulations.

Enforcement of Military Child Support

Florida child support orders may be enforced through income deduction, contempt, judgments for arrears, liens, tax intercepts, license consequences, attorney’s fees, and other statutory remedies. Federal procedures may permit withholding from military pay or retired pay when the order and service requirements are satisfied.

A contempt case requires careful attention to the obligor’s ability to comply. An unexplained LES deduction or transfer of income does not necessarily establish inability to pay. At the same time, a genuine disability, retirement, demobilization, or involuntary income reduction should be supported with records rather than general testimony.

The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act may permit a stay when military duties materially affect a servicemember’s ability to appear or defend the case. It does not automatically suspend child support, forgive arrears, or authorize self-help. Our guide to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act in Florida military divorce cases explains the distinction.

Building a Strong Military Child Support Case

A successful strategy begins by identifying the disputed component of income. The question may be whether BAH was omitted, whether OHA was temporary, whether a bonus should be averaged, whether disability benefits are tax-free, whether a derivative benefit produces a credit, or whether an opposing calculation double-counts a housing or retirement benefit.

Effective preparation may include:

• Building a month-by-month military income chart;

• Separating taxable and nontaxable compensation;

• Identifying temporary pays and their scheduled termination dates;

• Calculating the correct tax deductions;

• Comparing the LES with the W-2, tax return, and bank records;

• Proving the value and duration of in-kind benefits;

• Preparing alternative calculations for disputed income;

• Documenting the source and effective date of every disability-related payment;

• Presenting a complete child support guidelines worksheet;

• Requesting clear findings on credits, deviations, and disputed income.

Settlement language should identify the income used, the derivative benefits being credited, responsibility for health insurance, allocation of uncovered expenses, retroactive support, arrears, and the termination schedule for each child. Vague language creates future litigation.

Trial Lawyers Who Understand Military Pay

Richard J. Mockler served in the United States Marine Corps and has substantial experience handling military divorce, military income, child support, disability, retirement, custody, and appellate issues. His finance and tax background is especially useful when a case depends on military compensation, tax-free allowances, retirement records, or competing financial calculations.

Angela L. Leiner brings extensive trial and appellate experience to complex military family law cases. She represents servicemembers, veterans, spouses, and parents in contested support, custody, relocation, pension, disability, enforcement, and modification proceedings.

Mockler Leiner Law, P.A. prepares military child support cases with the understanding that the calculation must withstand negotiation, mediation, trial, and—when necessary—appellate review.

Frequently Asked Questions About Military Child Support

Does BAH count as income for Florida child support?

Generally, yes. Florida includes allowances and in-kind payments that reduce living expenses in gross income. BAH is also tax-free, which means it must be entered without assigning a federal income-tax deduction to that portion of compensation. The court should use the amount actually received and avoid double-counting government or privatized housing.

Does BAS count as income?

BAS is generally included because it is an allowance that increases the servicemember’s available resources and offsets food expenses. The actual LES and any meal deductions should be reviewed.

Does Overseas Housing Allowance count?

Yes, when it reduces the servicemember’s living expenses. In State, Department of Revenue v. Price, the First District held that OHA had to be included in gross income for past child support. An unusually high overseas cost of living may still support a separate deviation argument.

Are hostile fire pay and deployment pay included?

They may be included while received, even when tax-free. The disputed issue is often whether the payment is temporary. Deployment orders, historical LES records, and the expected end date should be presented so a short-term increase is not improperly treated as permanent income.

Does a VA disability payment count as child support income?

Generally, yes. Section 61.30 includes disability benefits in gross income, and Rose v. Rose confirms that federal law does not make VA disability compensation unavailable for determining and enforcing family support. This does not mean VA disability can be divided as marital property.

What credit does a veteran receive if a payment is made for the child because of the veteran’s disability?

In Maslow v. Edwards, the Fifth District held that the child-related VA payment should be included in the veteran’s income and then credited against the veteran’s calculated support obligation. If the benefit is less than the obligation, the veteran pays the difference. The precise credit depends on proof of the benefit’s source, recipient, amount, and effective date.

What happens when the child receives Social Security based on the veteran’s disability?

The derivative Social Security benefit is included in the disabled parent’s gross income. Child support is calculated using that income, and the benefit is then credited against the parent’s share. Excess benefits belong to the child and are not used to erase older arrears.

Can a veteran stop paying when derivative benefits begin?

No. A parent should seek a court-recognized credit or modification rather than unilaterally stopping payment. Section 61.30 permits the parent to file a motion for the credit or include the request in a modification petition.

Is SSI paid for a disabled child credited against a parent’s support?

Generally, no. SSI based on the child’s own disability or financial eligibility is different from a derivative benefit paid because of a parent’s work record. Florida law does not treat the child’s SSI as independent income supporting a downward deviation.

Do TSP contributions reduce child support income?

Not automatically. Florida permits a deduction for mandatory retirement payments. Voluntary TSP contributions, TSP loan payments, savings allotments, and personal debt payments generally should not be treated as though the income never existed.

Does equal time-sharing eliminate child support?

No. Florida’s time-sharing formula considers overnights and each parent’s net income, but equal overnights do not guarantee zero support. A significant income difference, child-care expenses, health insurance, or special expenses may still produce a monthly payment.

Can child support be based on a servicemember’s future promotion?

The calculation normally begins with actual current income. A court should not speculate about a promotion that has not occurred. If promotion is confirmed or income later increases enough to satisfy the modification standard, support may be revisited.

What happens when deployment pay ends?

The support order does not automatically decrease. The servicemember may need to file a supplemental petition for modification and prove the income change. Waiting can result in arrears based on an outdated order.

Can DFAS withhold military pay for child support?

Military pay and certain forms of federal remuneration may be subject to income withholding when the order complies with federal requirements. The treatment of VA disability is more limited and depends on the type of benefit. Direct withholding is separate from the court’s authority to count the benefit as income and impose a personal support obligation.

How far back can Florida award retroactive child support?

In an initial determination, the court may award support for up to 24 months before the petition was filed, measured from when the parents stopped residing together with the child. The court must consider actual historical income and payments made for the child.

Can a commanding officer set Florida child support?

No. A command may enforce military family-support rules, counsel the servicemember, or require compliance with an existing order. Permanent Florida child support is determined by the court or appropriate Florida child support process under state law.

Speak With a Tampa Military Child Support Lawyer

Military child support can affect your children, housing, monthly cash flow, disability benefits, retirement transition, security clearance concerns, and long-term financial stability. The correct result begins with understanding every component of compensation and presenting the evidence clearly.

If your case involves basic pay, BAH, BAS, OHA, COLA, special pay, deployment income, military retirement, VA disability, Social Security dependent benefits, CRDP, CRSC, reserve income, modification, or enforcement, Mockler Leiner Law, P.A. can help.

Please do not hesitate to call us today at (813) 331-5699 or contact us online.