Maine Child Support Guidelines and How Support Is Calculated

Maine calculates child support using the Income Shares Model — a formula that estimates what parents would have spent on the child if the household had stayed intact, then divides that amount proportionally based on each parent's income. The math is structured, but the inputs require careful preparation.

Getting your numbers right on the Child Support Affidavit (FM-050) and Child Support Worksheet (FM-040) directly determines your obligation. Here's how the calculation works.

Step 1: Determine Each Parent's Gross Income

Gross income includes wages, salaries, bonuses, self-employment income, pensions, disability benefits, rental income, and investment returns. It does not include means-tested public assistance like TANF or SSI.

If a parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, the court can impute income based on earning history, education, and local job market conditions. Quitting a job to lower your support obligation doesn't work.

Both parents report their income on the Child Support Affidavit (Form FM-050), which must be signed under oath and notarized. You'll need to attach supporting documents: recent tax returns, pay stubs, and documentation of any other income sources.

Step 2: Find the Baseline Support Obligation

Maine publishes a Schedule of Basic Child Support Obligation — a lookup table that takes the parents' combined annual gross income and the number of children, and returns a dollar amount representing the total support obligation.

Each parent's share is proportional to their income. If Parent A earns 60% of the combined income and Parent B earns 40%, Parent A is responsible for 60% of the baseline obligation.

Step 3: Adjustments and Deductions

The baseline amount can be adjusted for:

• Childcare costs necessary for employment or education
• Health insurance premiums for the child
• Extraordinary medical expenses not covered by insurance
• Other children the parent is legally obligated to support

These adjustments are calculated on the Child Support Worksheet (Form FM-040). Both parents must exchange completed worksheets at least three days before the Case Management Conference.

The Substantially Equal Care Formula

Here's where Maine diverges from most states. Instead of applying a simple overnight-count discount, Maine uses a qualitative standard called substantially equal care.

To qualify, both parents must share the child's total care roughly equally — not just overnight time, but educational involvement, recreational supervision, childcare duties, and medical oversight. If the court finds substantially equal care, the calculation shifts to Supplemental Worksheet FM-040-A:

1. The baseline support obligation is multiplied by 1.5 to account for the added cost of maintaining two full households
2. This enhanced amount is divided proportionally by income
3. The higher-earning parent pays the difference to the lower-earning parent

The result is often lower than a standard primary-residence calculation but higher than a straight 50/50 split of the baseline amount.

What Happens at the Case Management Conference

The Family Law Magistrate will review both parents' FM-050 affidavits and FM-040 worksheets, verify the math, and enter a temporary child support order. If either parent disputes the other's reported income, the magistrate can order additional financial disclosure.

Child support can be modified later if there's a substantial change in circumstances — or automatically reviewed every three years without showing a change.

The Maine Child Custody & Parenting Plan Guide includes a child support math worksheet that walks through the Income Shares calculation step by step, helping you prepare accurate figures before your court appearance.

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