Child Support Modification - Preparation Worksheet - Florida

Florida Child Support Modification Preparation Worksheet

DO NOT FILE THIS WORKSHEET. Transfer verified facts to the current version of Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.905(b) accepted by the filing court. The official form requires sworn factual statements; do not copy an example or guess.

1. Before You Prepare the Official Form

Existing order

• Court and county that entered the original order: [____________________________]
• Case number and division: [____________________________]
• Date of final judgment or latest modification: [____/____/________]
• Paragraph establishing current support: [________]
• Current amount and frequency: $[________] every [week / other week / month / other: ________]
• Attach the final judgment and every later modification needed to show the operative order.

Jurisdiction and venue screen

• Was the original order entered in Florida? [yes / no]
• Was it entered by the court identified above? [yes / no]
• Does either parent or any child now live outside Florida? [yes / no]
• Is another state, country, tribal court, or Title IV-D agency involved? [yes / no]

If the order was entered elsewhere or a parent or child lives outside Florida, stop and obtain jurisdiction-specific advice before selecting a court. The approved-form instructions themselves warn filers to consult counsel about where to file in those circumstances.

2. Identify the Requested Change

The moving party seeks to:

• ☐ increase ongoing child support;
• ☐ decrease ongoing child support;
• ☐ address support after a child reached majority or another order-defined termination point;
• ☐ modify child-care, health-insurance, or uncovered health-expense treatment;
• ☐ obtain another child-support modification: [____________________________].

Requested new amount, if calculated: $[________] per [________].

Do not treat this requested amount as self-executing. The existing order remains operative unless and until the court enters a new order.

3. Changed-Circumstances Facts

Fla. Stat. § 61.14(1)(a) addresses a change in circumstances or financial ability and permits a court to increase, decrease, or confirm support as equity requires. The approved form asks the filer to explain a substantial change and why the change is in the child’s best interests.

What changed after the operative order?

• Date the change began: [____/____/________]
• Person affected: [Petitioner / Respondent / child / other]
• Before the change: [facts and amounts]
• After the change: [facts and amounts]
• Cause of the change: [____________________________]
• Expected duration and supporting facts: [____________________________]
• Documents supporting the change: [pay records / tax records / benefit records / child-care invoices / insurance records / medical records / other]
• Why modification serves the child’s best interests: [specific facts, not a conclusion]

Do not use a made-up six-month rule. The cited statutes do not establish a general rule that every child-support change must continue for six months.

Guidelines-only route

If the claimed substantial change relies on the guidelines calculation itself, compare:

Under § 61.30(1)(b), the guidelines may supply the substantial change only when the difference is at least 15 percent or $50, whichever is greater. Do not state that this numerical threshold is the only possible basis for modification.

4. Current Financial Information

The petitioning party’s income affidavit must accompany the modification petition and be served with it under § 61.30(14). Use the current financial-affidavit form required for the filer’s circumstances.

Petitioner

• Gross monthly income: $[________]
• Allowable monthly deductions: $[________]
• Net monthly income: $[________]
• Current financial affidavit selected: [Form 12.902(b) / Form 12.902(c) / confirm current form]
• Completed, signed, and ready to accompany petition: [yes / no]

Respondent

• Known or estimated gross monthly income: $[________]
• Source and date of information: [____________________________]
• Missing information needed: [____________________________]

Do not insert a 15-day financial-affidavit deadline. Section 61.30(14) says the respondent includes the affidavit with the answer or as soon thereafter as practicable, and in every event at least 72 hours before a hearing on either party’s finances.

5. Guidelines and Child-Related Costs

Prepare the current Child Support Guidelines Worksheet, Form 12.902(e), using verified information.

For each child-related cost, identify who prepays it and avoid counting it twice. Sections 61.30(7)-(9) govern the cited additions, credits, and percentage shares; the complete guidelines calculation may require other statutory inputs not reproduced here.

6. Requested Relief for the Official Petition

Ask only for relief supported by the facts and current law:

• ☐ modify ongoing support to the guidelines-supported or otherwise supported amount;
• ☐ make the modification retroactive to the filing date as equity requires, recognizing that retroactivity is for the court to decide under § 61.14(1)(a);
• ☐ allocate qualifying child-care and health-related costs consistently with § 61.30 and the calculation;
• ☐ enter the separate income-deduction order required by § 61.1301(1)(a) for a nontemporary modifying order if none has been entered;
• ☐ grant other lawful relief stated with its basis: [____________________________].

Do not add private-contract terms such as indemnity, liability caps, force majeure, integration, severability, forum selection, arbitration, automatic enforcement remedies, or prevailing-party fees. A petition asks the court for relief; it does not create those obligations by agreement.

7. Official Filing Packet Checklist

Confirm the current forms and local requirements with the clerk or filing court before filing.

• ☐ Current Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.905(b)
• ☐ Copy of final judgment and relevant modification orders
• ☐ Petitioner’s current financial affidavit required by § 61.30(14)
• ☐ Current Child Support Guidelines Worksheet, Form 12.902(e), or a documented reason permitted by the official instructions for filing it later
• ☐ Notice of Social Security Number, Form 12.902(j), if not previously filed
• ☐ Certificate of Compliance with Mandatory Disclosure, Form 12.932, when required
• ☐ Settlement agreement, if any, using current requirements
• ☐ Any locally required cover sheet, proposed order, confidential-information filing, fee, or indigency application

The clerk-hosted approved-form instructions list additional papers and describe timing, but the available copy is dated 11/15. Confirm that every form number, edition, deadline, and local procedure is still accepted before filing.

8. Signature, Service, and Case Path

• Complete the official petition in black ink or as the filing court currently permits.
• Sign the official petition before a notary public or deputy clerk as the approved form directs.
• Arrange lawful initial service; do not treat a certificate of service by mail or email as a substitute for required initial process.
• The cited approved-form instructions state that, when personal service is used, the respondent has 20 days to answer. Calculate any deadline under the current rules and actual service facts.
• After an answer or default, follow the current contested, uncontested, or default procedure and all local mediation and hearing requirements.

9. Final Accuracy Review

• ☐ Every factual statement is supported by personal knowledge or identified evidence.
• ☐ Dates and amounts match the operative orders and records.
• ☐ The substantial-change explanation states facts rather than labels.
• ☐ The best-interests explanation is child-specific.
• ☐ The petitioner’s affidavit accompanies and is served with the petition.
• ☐ The guidelines comparison uses monthly amounts and the current worksheet.
• ☐ Requested retroactivity is phrased as discretionary relief, not an automatic effective date.
• ☐ Interstate, Title IV-D, military-service, constructive-service, safety, or confidential-information issues received separate review.
• ☐ The filer uses the current official form accepted by the court, not this worksheet.

Attorney review is required before use.