In Wyoming, either parent may be ordered to pay child support. The courts may appoint a trustee to invest the support payments and apply the income to the financial support of the children.

There are official Wyoming Child Support guidelines used to help determine the correct amount of child support. Generally, the support is determined by considering the combined income of both parents and the number of children to be supported.

The child support obligation is divided between the parents in proportion to the net income of each. The noncustodial parent's share shall be paid to the custodial parent through the clerk of the court.

The guidelines will be followed unless the parents have agreed to a child support amount approved by the courts, or the courts determine the guidelines are unjust for a particular case. Worksheets are available to calculate child support.

Wyoming uses the Income Shares Model to determine the amount of child support the noncustodial parent must pay. The Income Shares Model estimates the amount of support that would have been available if the marriage had not failed. This estimated amount is then divided proportionally to the parents according to each parent's income. This is easy to do using the Wyoming child support worksheet. Pay records typically substantiate the estimated incomes.

This routine takes into account both parents' gross income and applies a percentage to it based on the number of minor children they have together. The court takes the combined income of both parents and works out the proportion each contributes. That figure is then divided proportionately based on each parent's ability to pay and which parent has primary custody.

If the noncustodial parent has a higher income than the custodial parent, the noncustodial parent would then be responsible for the greater portion of the child support obligation; conversely, if the noncustodial parent has a lower income than the custodial, the noncustodial parent would then be responsible for the smaller portion of the child support obligation.

The Child Support Guidelines are presumed to be correct unless there is a showing that the amount would be unjust or inappropriate under the particular circumstances in a case.

Section 305 covers abatement of obligation. Unless the court decides otherwise, for periods when the noncustodial parent has the child for 15 or more days, Wyoming lowers the daily obligation by one half. Within 30 days after the claimed abatement, the noncustodial parent files for a reduction. The filing fee for this is $10, according to the code.

Child support is described in Wyoming Statutes Annotated; Title 20, Chapters 20-2-303 to 20-2-308.

Extraordinary expenses are either add-ons, where the expense is added to the support payment, or deductions, where the amount is deducted, and indicated as either mandatory or permissive. Childcare costs and extraordinary medical expenses are deviation factors. Private school tuition is a permissive add-on.

The enforcement of a child support order in Wyoming is described in section 310. A parent must show cause why he or she should not be held in contempt when a motion is filed and the parent violates it willfully.

If an able-bodied parent has violated the court order, he or she might be ordered to attend the Personal Opportunities With Employment Responsibilities work program offered by the Department of Workforce Services.

More information about Wyoming Child Support Enforcement can be found at their website.

Generally, child support ends when the child reaches 18 years of age or graduates from high school, whichever occurs later. A child will also automatically be ineligible for child support if that child marries, is legally emancipated, dies or enters military service.

Unless compelled by one of the parents, the court presumes that the obligation calculated using the table in Section 304 of the child support code of Wyoming is accurate. Deviations from guidelines are described in Section 307, which outlines the circumstances under which the court has the ability to deviate.

Deviation may be permitted after a consideration of the following factors: