Massachusetts child support guide
Massachusetts uses a weekly worksheet. Both incomes, children’s ages, parenting arrangements, and care expenses influence the result.
Sources checked .
Open Massachusetts’ current worksheets
Guideline at a glance
- Guideline model
- Weekly available-income guideline
- Income used
- Weekly income after guideline adjustments
- Current materials checked
- 2025 guidelines, effective December 1, 2025
- Our calculator
- Financial intake; use the official calculator for the amount
How Massachusetts child support law works
The Trial Court’s 2025 Child Support Guidelines apply to orders and judgments entered from December 1, 2025. The court requires a guidelines worksheet even when a party requests a different amount; a deviation or relevant post-secondary issue also calls for the findings form.
Sources: Trial Court guidelines and current CJD 304 / CJD 305 forms.
How the guideline is calculated
- Determine both parents’ weekly income using the guideline definition and the adjustments on CJD 304.
- Apply the 2025 weekly chart. Its shaded low-income region uses the payor’s available income; otherwise the chart uses combined available income.
- Follow the worksheet for child count, children’s ages, parenting arrangements, and child-care and health-coverage costs.
- Review the presumptive result and any requested deviation using CJD 305. A worksheet estimate does not itself change an existing order.
The 2023 worksheet is not the current worksheet for new orders. Do not mix monthly pay figures with the weekly amounts required by the 2025 chart.
Sources: Trial Court guidelines and current CJD 304 / CJD 305 forms; 2025 guidelines: income definition; 2025 guideline preamble and required forms; 2025 weekly child-support chart.
Documents that make the worksheet more useful
- Recent pay statements with pay frequency and records for other income.
- Each child’s birth date, school status, parenting schedule, child-care costs, and health-coverage costs.
- Current CJD 304 and, when applicable, CJD 305 from the Trial Court.
Keep the source document beside each figure you enter. If a number is uncertain, note what still needs to be confirmed before relying on an estimate.
What this site’s worksheet covers
The educational guide and official resources are available now. Our Massachusetts workflow collects both parents’ financial information and produces a printable accounting. It does not calculate a child-support amount; the official state calculator linked on this page does.
How Massachusetts cases actually get to a number
Complete both parents’ weekly income and guideline adjustments, then apply the current formula. Alimony sequencing can change the incomes used for child support. The guidelines are not a simple percentage of one paycheck.
Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines use a presumptive worksheet on weekly income, with structured treatment of parenting, child-related costs, and support of other children. That is a different path from neighboring states that use another model, so do not import a table, percentage, or overnight credit from somewhere else.
Parenting time in Massachusetts
Parenting time is built into the current Massachusetts formula rather than being an afterthought credit. The worksheet asks for the parenting schedule; a vague ‘shared’ label is not an input.
Costs Massachusetts usually treats separately
- Child-care costs
- Health-care coverage
- Extraordinary medical or educational expenses
- Support actually paid for other children
When Massachusetts courts leave the guideline
Judges may depart for a stated reason. High income, a child’s own resources, and extraordinary travel are typical. The worksheet still has to be run first.
Official Massachusetts forms to keep beside this guide
Massachusetts Guidelines Worksheet and financial statement; alimony sequencing must be reviewed. This site provides financial intake and a printable accounting; the support amount comes from the official calculator. The primary authority is the published Massachusetts source. Fill the official form from source documents. Use this page only to check that you chose the right Massachusetts path—primary versus shared, table versus percentage, add-ons versus basic support.
Where this is typically filed
Probate and Family Court hears these cases. Use the current Child Support Guidelines worksheet, not a prior year’s form.
Questions specific to Massachusetts
Does Massachusetts use weekly figures?
Yes. Convert monthly or annual income carefully before entering the worksheet.
How does alimony interact with child support?
When both issues are in the same case, sequencing can change the incomes used. They remain separate obligations.
Is this the same as a DOR calculation?
DOR/CSE uses the same guidelines. Still verify the inputs, especially parenting time and other-child credits.
Use the official worksheet
Open Massachusetts’ current worksheets. These resources are maintained by the state court or agency. Check the applicable version and instructions before preparing a filing.
To organize records first, open our Massachusetts financial intake. Its PDF is a record of your entries, not a calculated support order or a substitute for the state form.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a separate 2026 Massachusetts guideline?
The Trial Court’s current resource page identifies the December 2025 guidelines and expressly states that there are no 2026 Child Support Guidelines. Use its current worksheet links.
Does this guide also calculate alimony?
No. These steps concern child support. A worksheet may consider an existing spousal-support payment when its rules allow, but it does not determine a new alimony award.
Can I file the financial intake as the state worksheet?
Our intake is a preparation aid. Use the official state forms and the instructions for your court when submitting a proposed support calculation.