California Child & Spousal Support Calculations | Custody Craft

California Child & Spousal Support Reports — Done Right

Professionally prepared, court-ready support reports — without hourly legal fees or complicated software.

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Digital documents with standard and expedited options available. Starting at $499.

Why families use Custody Craft

Support Calculations That Account for the Details

Child and spousal support decisions affect finances, parenting, and long-term planning. Our professionally prepared reports help you understand the numbers before making important decisions.

Know What Support Should Realistically Look Like

Receive professionally prepared California support calculations based on your actual financial and parenting information — not rough estimates or generic online calculators.

Be Better Prepared for Negotiation or Court

Use organized, court-ready reports during mediation, settlement discussions, attorney consultations, or court proceedings.

Avoid Expensive Attorney Prep Costs

Get professionally prepared support calculations without paying hourly legal fees for routine financial preparation work.

Stop Guessing and Start Planning

Understand potential support outcomes so you can make informed financial and parenting decisions with greater confidence.

Start Your Support Report

Why professional preparation matters

Small Financial Details Can Significantly Change Support Amounts

California support calculations are affected by taxes, deductions, parenting time, overtime, self-employment income, healthcare costs, and dozens of financial variables.

Outdated Income Information

Old income numbers, missing deductions, or unreported financial changes can produce inaccurate support calculations. Unfortunately census data indicates that most people are not receiving the amounts they are owed for support.

Our intake captures updated income, deductions, and financial adjustments before your report is prepared. Updating income figures or parenting time may swing the support by hundreds every month.

Self-Employment & Variable Income

Overtime, commissions, bonuses, self-employment, and business income are frequently oversimplified or misclassified, resulting in incorrect tax figures which produces inaccurate support.

While predicable income factors into a base support amount, an additional payment known as an "Ostler/Smith percentage" may be ordered. We provide these charts that go along with your base support report.

Parenting Time & Financial Adjustments

Parenting schedules, insurance costs, retirement deductions, and allowable expenses can substantially affect the final support amount.

Our intake organizes custody schedules for all children or per child, and financial details so they are accurately reflected in the final report.

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Your complete package

Everything Included in Your Support Report

Your professionally prepared support report package includes the calculations, tax analysis, explanations, and printable documents needed for planning, negotiation, mediation, or court use in California.

01

Guideline Support Calculations

Child and/or spousal support amounts calculated using California guideline formulas and court-certified Xspouse™ software.

02

Income & Tax Breakdown

Detailed income, deduction, and tax calculations showing how the support amounts were determined.

03

Printable Support Orders and All Schedules

Formatted support order documents that can be used for negotiation, mediation, attorney review, or court submission. All schedules and supporting documentation that was used in the calculations included.

04

Professional Review

Clear summaries and notes designed to help you understand the numbers behind your report. Your information is reviewed for completeness and consistency by a registered California tax preparer before your report is delivered.

05

Fast Online Delivery

Standard delivery is 2–3 business days. Expedited 1-business-day delivery is available.

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Sample deliverable

Inside the Report Packet

Sample full support report packet

Court-Ready Report Packet

What’s Included In Your Support Report Packet

See a full sample report here, or click any of the individual sections below.

Preview the full packet →

Explore each section

Review the individual report pages

Sample attestation cover sheet

Opening section

Attestation Cover Sheet

Confirms the report was reviewed and prepared by a California Registered Tax Preparer.

Sample table of contents

Packet Navigation

Report Packet Table of Contents

An organized roadmap of the entire support report packet, including section names and page references for easier review and navigation.

Sample guideline support summary

Quick Snapshot

Guideline Support Overview

A concise, high-level summary of the calculated child and spousal support amounts, including incomes, taxes, cash flows, and parenting time.

Sample support order report

Court-Style Format

Support Order

A ready-to-file support order that details the totals of each party's income, taxes, deductions, and the proposed support orders.

Client Financial Summary

Financial Impact

Client Financial Summary

A simplified financial summary showing how support affects each party’s monthly net income, taxes, and overall cash flow.

Formal Report

Full Financial Analysis

Formal Report

A detailed breakdown of the financial calculations, tax treatment, deductions, and support methodology used throughout the report packet.

Main Screen Cash-Flow Analysis

Scenario Comparison

Main Screen Cash-Flow Analysis

An expanded look at how support affects each party’s take-home income, tax burden, and percentage share of household cash flow.

Findings & Rebuttals

Supporting Details

Findings & Rebuttals

A structured summary of the financial assumptions, deductions, tax treatment, and parenting allocations used in the calculation.

Income & Expense Details

Income Breakdown

Income & Expense Details

A detailed review of annual and monthly income, taxes, deductions, and financial obligations for each party.

Bonus and Variable Income

Variable Earnings

Bonus and Variable Income

An advanced support schedule showing how bonuses, commissions, or fluctuating income may affect future support obligations.

Data Detail

Full Input Audit

Data Detail

A comprehensive audit-style breakdown of every major financial input, tax setting, deduction, and support variable entered into the calculation.

Sample program and tax settings

Calculation Rules

Program & Tax Settings

A disclosure of the guideline formulas, tax assumptions, calculation methods, and software settings applied throughout the report.

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How We Do Things at Custody Craft

Guided intake form with clear support calculation questions
The Intake Form

Plain-English questions

Our intake is designed to smartly capture even minute details that affect calculations. Easy cases can breeze through it, while more complicated cases can go through the details comprehensively. What would normally take hours in a law office for financial interviews can now be completed online, for a fraction of the time and money.

Download area for completed support report files
Order Details

Your document hub

After your professional review, your child support professional will upload your report to your dashboard along with helpful notes and clarifications. Contacting support through your order is always forwarded to your professional representative.

Secure account dashboard showing support report orders
Your Dashboard

Your orders stay organized

Your dashboard contains everything needed to keep your case (or cases for attorneys and professionals) organized, from here you can check on existing orders, purchase revision credits, start new reports, or contact support.

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After checkout

Complete your intake when you’re ready.

You do not need to gather documents before ordering. After checkout, you’ll complete a secure, guided intake form at your own pace. Start immediately or return later — your progress is saved.

Helpful items may include recent income information, parenting schedules, insurance premiums, deductions, and support-related expenses.

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Optional Add-On: Spousal Support

Many of our clients choose to include guideline temporary spousal support in their support report. Temporary spousal support is typically assigned at the start of a case, with fair and equitable long term spousal support being worked out by the end of the court process.

Adding this to your support report provides a clear overview of both child and spousal support based on California’s standard guideline formulas, helping you prepare confidently for negotiations, mediation, or early court discussions.

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Who We Serve

Individuals & Parents

Save thousands in legal fees and hours of time with our online process. With reassurance that your support is computed accurately, and confidence moving forward.

Attorneys & Law Firms

Let us handle the report preparation, while you focus on strategy. Whether you need a report that follows guideline support formula or want a particular strategy, we're here to help.

Mediators & Court Personnel

We provide a neutral, guideline calculation that follows the state formula. Our portal is designed to keep all your cases organized and accessible.

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Before you order

Your Questions, Answered

Most important question

Why does using a tax-focused service matter for child support?

California child support is based on net disposable income — not gross income. That means tax treatment, deductions, filing status, healthcare costs, and other financial inputs directly affect the final support amount.

Our service approaches the calculation from the tax side first, so the final report reflects how the guideline calculation actually works — resulting in a more accurate report.

Do you help me understand the report?

Yes. Your completed report includes explanations and notes. You can also contact your assigned support professional through your dashboard if you need clarification.

What if I get new information later?

You can request a revised report from your account after any open orders are fulfilled. Revisions are available for a small fee for up to 180 days after the original order.

How secure is my information?

Your intake information and completed documents are handled through your secure account. Files are encrypted in transit and at rest.

Can you advise on my case?

We can provide reports that reflect the financial data and parenting schedules you provide. We do not provide legal advice, complete court filings for you, or advise on litigation strategy.

Start Your Child Support Report

Please start by selecting an option.

Standard $499 • 2–3 business days Expedited $599 • 1 business day Spousal Support Only Starting at $499

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