Oklahoma divorce information

If you have been married for a significant period of time and earn more money than your spouse, you will most likely have to pay alimony after divorce. Fortunately, alimony is tax deductible for the party who pays. The following is a discussion of the criteria that must be met to render support payments to your ex-spouse tax deductible as alimony.

Alimony, also known as “spousal support”, is tax deductible for the party who pays and taxable for the party who receives. However, in order for alimony to be tax deductible your payments must comply with strict IRS regulations.

When Is Alimony Tax Deductible?

In order for payments to your ex-spouse to be considered alimony, an thus tax deductible, several criteria must be met:

1.Payer and payee must not live together.

2.The alimony must be specified in your divorce decree or divorce settlement. Alimony specified in other court orders, such as an Oklahoma separation order, also meet this criteria.

3.The decree or settlement must state that the alimony will be treated as tax deductible for the payer and taxable for the payee. The payer can deduct the amount of alimony he has paid from his taxes but the payee must declare the same amount as taxable income.

4.Payments must go to an ex-spouse in the form of cash, check or money order. Alimony may also take the form of real or personal property, but only monetary awards will be tax deductible. The transfer of services or property will not be considered deductible.

5.Alimony payment amounts must not be higher in the first three years than they are later on. Alimony is tax deductible, but other forms of support or reimbursement to an ex-spouse are not. So, the IRS will closely examine the payments you make in the first three years after divorce to insure that you are not disguising other forms of support or reimbursements as alimony in order to receive higher deductions.

6.Alimony payments cannot be linked to anything having to do with raising your children. Alimony is tax deductible but child support is not. Therefore, when you reach a divorce settlement it is very important that you do not to mix the terms of your alimony payments with any support for your children. For example, the termination of your alimony payments should not be linked to your children reaching a certain age. Do so and you will run the risk of the IRS disallowing your deductions as form of child support, which in turn may result in you being sued for back taxes.

If your alimony payments can meet these strict criteria, they should be tax deductible. On the other hand, it is possible to purposefully render alimony non-taxable if neither party includes the alimony in their taxes. This may be useful in rare cases where the payer does not need the deduction and payee does not want to report the income. For example, when the payee is in a higher tax bracket than the paying party and wants to avoid the tax burden. But in order for this to be legal, it must first be agreed to by both parties and declared in the divorce decree.

Initial, No Obligation Consultation:
Tulsa Oklahoma Alimony Attorney

To find out more about alimony in Oklahoma, contact the family law attorney at Divorce Law Office of Tulsa: 918-924-5526. We offer low-cost, no obligation consultations. If you prefer you may send your question using the “Ask the Lawyer” form on the right side of this page.

 

How the assets will be divided between you and your spouse is typically one of the biggest questions you will have when considering divorce. The biggest of these assets in question will most often be your house or marital home. This is often an emotionally charged decision, but not one that you cannot make on their own. On the other hand, if you and your spouse cannot come to an agreement, the court will make this decision for you based on state law.

In Oklahoma, your marital assets will be broken down into two categories: separate property and marital property. Property acquired by a spouse before marriage or after permanent separation, as well, as any property acquired as a gift or inheritance by either spouse is considered separate property. Marital property is defined as any property that you acquire jointly or individually during the course of you marriage.

The division of property during a divorce in Oklahoma is based on the principle of “equitable property”, which holds that property should be divided equitably based on each spouse’s contribution to marital property, and in the best interest of your children. All things being equal, if you have children, the parent who spends the most time caring for them will typically be awarded the house.

Equitable Property Explained

If you there are no children involved in your divorce, the decision will be based on whether the house is considered martial property or separate property. If the house is considered separate property, whomever holds title to the house will retain sole ownership and be allowed by law to request that the other spouse leave he home. On the other hand, if the house is considered marital property, neither spouse has the legal right to make that the other leave, unless domestic violence is involved and the court orders the removal of the offending party.

In this case, there are three main ways in which you can deal with your house:

1. Sell the house and divide the proceeds

2. One of you can take out a second mortgage and buy out the other’s equity in the house.

3. One of you can grant possession of the house to the other for a specific length of time, for instance until the last child leaves the home or until that spouse is financially self-sufficient. Afterward, one of you can to buy out the other spouse’s equity or the house can be sold and the proceeds shared between you.

If you feel that you need more time to negotiate an agreement with your spouse or to seek mediation, you may request a temporary court order to determine who will remain in the house until a decision is made and your divorce is granted.

If You Don’t Agree, Courts Decide Who Gets the House

Again, if you cannot come to an agreement on who gets the house after your divorce, Oklahoma courts will make the decision for you based the principle of equitable distribution. This could mean that the court will grant the possession of the house to one party, while granting possession of other assets of equitable value to the other. Alternatively, the court may order that house be sold and the proceeds divided amongst the two of you equitably.

To summarize, the question of who gets the house after an Oklahoma divorce is one that can be decided by both you and your spouse, or by the courts. An Oklahoma court will make its determination based on the principle of equitable property and in light of what is in the best interest of your children. If there are no children involved, the determination will be based on whether the house is considered to be marital or separate property. For more detailed information about who gets the house after divorce, consult an experienced Tulsa family law attorney.

Initial Consultation:
Tulsa Oklahoma Divorce Attorney

To find out more about property allocations in a Tulsa Oklahoma divorce, contact the Tulsa divorce attorney at Divorce Law Office of Tulsa: 918-924-5526. We offer low-cost, no obligation consultations. If you prefer you may send your question using the “Ask the Lawyer” form on the right side of this page.

 

As a parent you have a legal obligation to support your children. When you are ordered to pay child support as the non-custodial parent, you simply must pay. If you don’t pay your child support you may face serious consequence. The following is a list of enforcement measures that can be used against you if you don’t pay your child support in Oklahoma.

• An order may be given to your employer to withhold income from your paycheck.

• Your federal and state tax returns may be intercepted.

• You may have liens placed on your property.

• You may have your name included on the Oklahoma Child Support Enforcement’s Most Wanted.

• You may have licenses and permits suspended. This could mean your driver’s license, professional licenses, recreational licenses and/or your business permits.

• You may also have your vehicle registration suspended, meaning the registrations for your car, motorcycle, boat, airplane, truck etc.

• You can be denied a passport.

• You may be held in contempt of court and be sentenced to jail time.

If you have been ordered to pay child support you are legally required to make your payments regardless of where you live. The Uniform Interstate Family Support Act allows for child support to be enforced across state lines. In addition, the Oklahoma Child Support Enforcement Division has access to federal resources that enable them to find you and begin enforcement procedures in the state where you are located.

Unless the custodial parent agrees to other arrangements, wage garnishment is the standard way of paying child support in Oklahoma. If you quit your job to avoid paying child support, you may have your assets seized or be held in contempt of court and sentenced to jail time. In addition, the court may continue to use your previous income to calculate how much child support you must pay.

Exceptions Are Rare in Oklahoma Child Support

As a rule you must pay court ordered child support no matter the circumstance. You cannot for instance withhold payment because you have a dispute with the custodial parent over visitation or how your children are being raised. You may however seek a modification of your payments if there have been significant changes in your circumstance since your payment amount was last calculated. The loss of employment and serious illness, as well as, a change in the marital status or income of either parent may be grounds for a modification.

While future child support payments may be modified in the event that your financial circumstances change, it is virtually impossible to avoid paying back child support. Back child support cannot be reduced retroactively nor can it be discharged by filing bankruptcy. Furthermore, back child support may even be enforced against your estate in the event of your death.

As you can see, you face numerous unwanted and unnecessary consequences if you don’t pay child support in Oklahoma. If you simply cannot make your child support payments, you should go to court as soon as possible and request a modification or consult with an attorney who can advise you on other options to deal with your circumstances.

Initial Consultation:
Tulsa Oklahoma Child Support Attorney

To find out more about child support in Tulsa Oklahoma, contact the Tulsa child support attorney at Divorce Law Office of Tulsa: 918-924-5526. We offer low-cost, no obligation consultations. If you prefer you may send your question using the “Ask the Lawyer” form on the right side of this page.

If you have a child and are divorced, separated or simply not living with the other parent, deciding who gets to claim the child as a dependent in Oklahoma can be rather tricky. Only one of you is entitled to claim the dependent exemption for a child each year and the IRS keeps a close eye on Social Security numbers to keep both of you from getting the exemption.

As a general rule, you need to provide at least 50 percent of a child’s support during a given year if you want to claim them as a dependent on your taxes for that year. Couples often decide between themselves who will claim the child as dependent. If however, you cannot come to an agreement, the court will make the decision for you based on criteria applicable to the following three scenarios:

1. If you are legally divorced, separated, did not live together for the last 6 months of the year, or possess a maintenance agreement, and more than half of the support for the child during the year came from one or both of the parents, and both parents had custody of the child for sometime during the year, the custodial parent or parent who had custody the longest during the year, is entitled to claim the child as dependent.

However, if the custodial parent waives his or her right to claim the dependent exemption in a divorce decree or separation agreement, etc., the non-custodial parent can claim the child and receive the exemption. Alternately, the custodial parent can waive the right to the exemption by using IRS Form 8332, which then the non-custodial parent must attach to his or her tax return to receive the exemption. You may relinquish your right to the exemption for one or more years, but when you do relinquish your right to receive the exemption, you also forfeit the Child Tax Credit for that year.

2. If you are not married, lived together for the last 6 months of the year, or you do not have a written agreement concerning child support or child custody, whomever provides more than 50 percent support for the child during the year, is entitled to claim the dependent exemption for that year.

3. If the parents share custody and provide for the child on a 50/50 basis, the rules become much more complicated and it can be difficult to determine who is entitled to the exemption. Typically in this situation, the courts will make the decision based on what is in the overall best interest of the child. Should you want to know about what criteria is used in this scenario, you can consult IRS Publication 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information, or employ an experienced attorney to help you clarify the rules.

So in general, the parent who provides the greater part of support for the child (more then 50 percent), whom the IRS always assumes is the custodial parent or parent who has custody the longest, gets to claim the child as a dependent in Oklahoma. The IRS will however approve of agreements made to the contrary, if they are stated in a divorce decree, separation agreement etc., or if the custodial parent relinquishes the exemption on IRS Form 8332.

Initial, No Obligation Consultation:
Tulsa Oklahoma Divorce Attorney

To find out more about divorce and tax issues in Oklahoma, contact the Tulsa divorce attorney at Divorce Law Office of Tulsa: 918-924-5526. We offer low-cost, no obligation consultations. If you prefer you may send your question using the “Ask the Lawyer” form on the right side of this page.

Why Child Support?

The calculation of child support in Oklahoma starts with the principle that both parents are accountable for the support of their children. It also acknowledges that there are extra costs related to child-custody. For example, the custodial parent typically has to spend more money on housing, food, transportation, medical insurance, etc. These costs are often paid for in cash by the custodial parent. Child support is awarded to distribute these costs evenly between the parents. The rest of this article discusses how child support is calculated in Oklahoma and how you can arrive at a figure on your own.

Who Calculates Oklahoma Child Cupport?

You and the other parent may agree upon the terms of child support yourselves and have them included in a prenuptial or separation agreement, which then must be approved by the courts. If you cannot come to an agreement, the court will calculate and provide the terms for you. Oklahoma courts use strict mathematical guidelines to determine the minimum amount of child support to be ordered.  Some factors included in these calculations are the income of the parents, the number children to provide for, the cost of daycare, health insurance and special needs, such as tutoring or transportation from one parent to another for visitation. Typically, even if you share custody 50/50, the parent with highest income will owe child support to the other.

How Does Oklahoma Calculate Child Support?

In Oklahoma, child support is calculated by taking each parent’s gross monthly income and subtracting any allowed “income adjustments”. These adjustments include, allowances for federal and state income taxes, health insurance, work related costs, other child support being paid or received, etc. The parents’ adjusted gross monthly incomes are then combined to arrive at the combined gross family income. Each parent’s percentage contribution to the combined gross family income represents his or her percentage contribution to the base child support obligation, which is obliged to be paid by the non-custodial parent to the custodial parent.

Oklahoma Child support guidelines include a chart representing total combine family income levels and the corresponding child support figures for each. A judge will use this as a basis to determine the actual amount of child support to be ordered. But because Oklahoma law does not give the court much leeway to deviate from the child support guidelines, the actual amount the judge orders will usually be very close to the calculated amount.

How Can I Calculate Child Support?

If you want to estimate the amount of child support to be awarded, you can use the child support calculator on the Oklahoma Department of Human Services website.  There you can also obtain a copy of the Oklahoma Child Support Guidelines and download instructions on how to use the calculator.

Another online Oklahoma Child Support Calculator  on the EsquireEmpire wiki generates formatted orders that can be used in court filings.

Once you arrive at a figure, it can then be used as a basis for negotiating child support with the other parent or for requesting a modification of a previous child support order. Alternatively, you can have an Tulsa family law attorney who is experienced in child support issues calculate the amount for you. But remember that only a judge can order child support, so what ever you arrive at will still have to be approved by the court.

Initial Consultation:
Tulsa Oklahoma Child Support Attorney

To find out more about child support in Tulsa Oklahoma, contact the Tulsa child support attorney at Divorce Law Office of Tulsa: 918-924-5526. We offer low-cost, no obligation consultations. If you prefer you may send your question using the “Ask the Lawyer” form on the right side of this page.