Child support (抚养费) covers a child's living expenses, education and medical costs. Under the PRC Civil Code, the parent who does not directly raise the child after divorce bears part or all of these costs; the amount and duration are agreed by the parents or decided by the court. Under the Supreme People's Court's Interpretation I on Marriage and Family, where the paying parent has a fixed income, support for one child is generally 20% to 30% of their monthly total income; for two or more children it may be increased but generally not above 50%. Where there is no fixed income, the court looks at annual income or the industry average.
Why it matters
Support is generally paid until the child turns 18, or until 16 if the child is mainly self-supporting through their own work. A child can later ask for an increase if costs rise or the payer's income grows. Parents cannot validly agree to waive a child's right to support where this harms the child. For international families, questions about currency, overseas income and enforcement abroad are common, and a clear agreement saves a great deal of trouble.
How it works in practice
An American father working for a tech company in Shenzhen earned a salary plus annual bonuses. On divorce, the court calculated support for his seven-year-old daughter at about a quarter of his average monthly total income including bonus, and ordered him to share international school fees above a set amount. Our child support calculator gives a rough first estimate for similar cases.
Common mistakes
- Calculating support on base salary only and ignoring bonuses and equity income
- Agreeing to a lump sum without considering school fee increases
- Stopping payment when visitation problems arise
- Assuming a paying parent abroad cannot be pursued; enforcement is harder but not impossible
- Forgetting that the child, through the custodial parent, can later request an increase