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Updated for 2026 guidelines

The New York Child Support Cap: $193,000 in Combined Income

New York’s Child Support Standards Act runs its percentages on combined parental income up to $193,000 a year. Past that line, the law hands the decision to a judge.

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New York cap facts

Guideline model
Percentage of combined parental income, paid pro ratasource
Statute
FCA Sec. 413; DRL Sec. 240(1-b)source
Combined income cap
$193,000 a year, effective March 1, 2026source
Above the cap
Court discretion: the same percentages or the Sec. 413(1)(f) factors, with written reasonssource
Cap adjustment cycle
Every 2 years, next through February 28, 2028source
Full state calculator
New York child support calculatorsource

How the CSSA cap works

New York’s Child Support Standards Act (CSSA) sets flat percentages of the two parents’ combined income: 17 percent for 1 child, 25 percent for 2, 29 percent for 3, 31 percent for 4, and no less than 35 percent for 5 or more. The noncustodial parent pays their pro rata share of that basic obligation, based on their share of the combined income.

The percentages are mandatory only up to a combined income ceiling. That ceiling is published on the annual Child Support Standards Chart and indexed to inflation every two years under Social Services Law Sec. 111-i(2)(b). The chart effective March 1, 2026 sets it at $193,000 a year in combined parental income, up from $183,000 for 2024 through early 2026.

Above $193,000 combined, the CSSA percentages are no longer automatic. A court can still apply the same percentages to the income above the cap, or it can instead weigh the statutory Sec. 413(1)(f) factors, such as the child’s standard of living and each parent’s resources. Either way, the court has to explain its reasoning in writing, a rule the Court of Appeals set out in Cassano v. Cassano.

One detail catches people by surprise: the cap limits the size of the basic obligation, not each parent’s share of it. Even when combined income is capped for the formula, each parent still pays their share of the capped obligation based on their real, uncapped income.

At the cap: combined income of $193,000, 2 children

  1. Say the noncustodial parent earns $150,000 a year in CSSA income and the custodial parent earns $43,000, for a combined income of exactly $193,000, with 2 children in the case.
  2. The 2-child CSSA percentage is 25 percent. 25 percent of the full $193,000 combined income is a basic obligation of $48,250 a year.
  3. The noncustodial parent’s share of combined income is $150,000 divided by $193,000, about 77.7 percent. That share of the $48,250 basic obligation is $37,500 a year.
  4. Divided over 12 months, the noncustodial parent’s guideline child support is $3,125.00 a month.

The steps above follow the calculation method described on our methodology page.

Above the cap: combined income of $250,000, same 2 children

  1. Now say the noncustodial parent earns $200,000 a year and the custodial parent earns $50,000, for combined income of $250,000, well past the $193,000 ceiling, still with 2 children.
  2. The mandatory 25 percent formula only runs on the first $193,000 of combined income. 25 percent of $193,000 is the same $48,250 basic obligation as at the cap; the extra $57,000 in combined income does not enlarge it.
  3. But the noncustodial parent’s share of income is now $200,000 divided by $250,000, 80 percent, higher than the 77.7 percent share at the cap. That larger share of the same $48,250 obligation is $38,600 a year.
  4. Divided over 12 months, the mandatory guideline amount is $3,216.67 a month, higher than the at-cap example even though the size of the capped obligation itself did not change.
  5. A court can still order more on the $57,000 above the cap, applying the same percentages or the Sec. 413(1)(f) factors, but it must say in writing which approach it used and why, per Cassano v. Cassano.

The steps above follow the calculation method described on our methodology page.

New York cap history

  1. CSSA enacted with an $80,000 combined income cap.source
  2. Cap indexing to CPI-U every 2 years began under Social Services Law Sec. 111-i.source
  3. Combined income cap set at $183,000 for the 2024 to 2026 chart cycle.source
  4. Combined income cap raised to $193,000 on the current Child Support Standards Chart.source

New York cap FAQs

What is the New York child support income cap in 2026?

The CSSA’s mandatory percentages apply to combined parental income up to $193,000 a year, effective March 1, 2026 on the current Child Support Standards Chart. That figure is up from $183,000, which applied from March 2024 through February 2026.

Does a New York court have to use the same percentages above the cap?

No. Above $193,000 combined income, a court can apply the same CSSA percentages to the extra income or instead weigh the Sec. 413(1)(f) factors, things like the child’s standard of living and both parents’ resources and future earning capacity. Cassano v. Cassano requires the court to explain in writing which approach it used.

Why did my guideline number go up even though the cap did not change?

The cap limits the size of the basic child support obligation, not the noncustodial parent’s share of it. If the noncustodial parent’s share of the two parents’ real, uncapped income rises, their share of the capped obligation rises too, even with combined income fixed at $193,000 for the formula.

How often does the $193,000 cap change?

The cap is indexed to the Consumer Price Index every 2 years under Social Services Law Sec. 111-i(2)(b) and is reissued each March on the Child Support Standards Chart. It has climbed from $136,000 in 2010 through $183,000 in 2024 to $193,000 in 2026. The current figure runs through February 28, 2028.

Is the child support cap the same as the spousal maintenance cap?

No. New York’s DRL Sec. 236 maintenance guideline has its own payor income cap, $241,000 a year effective March 1, 2026, which moves on the same 2-year cycle but is a separate figure from the $193,000 child support combined income cap.

Does shared custody change how the cap applies?

No. New York has no statutory shared-custody formula. Under Bast v. Rossoff the CSSA percentages, and the $193,000 cap on them, apply the same way in shared-custody cases, with the higher earner treated as the noncustodial parent under Baraby v. Baraby.

How to use the New York cap number

This page explains one mechanic: how the CSSA’s mandatory percentages behave once combined parental income crosses $193,000 a year. For a full estimate, including the self-support reserve and the poverty-guideline minimum orders, use the New York child support calculator linked below.

The $193,000 child support cap is separate from the $241,000 payor income cap in New York’s spousal maintenance formula. The two numbers move on the same 2-year cycle but are not the same figure, and this page covers the child support cap only.

Above the cap, this tool shows only the mandatory portion computed on the capped $193,000. It does not predict what a judge will add on the income above that line, since that call depends on the Sec. 413(1)(f) factors argued in a specific case.

What this estimate includes

  • The exact CSSA mechanic: percentages are mandatory only up to $193,000 combined income
  • A worked example at the cap and a second one above it, showing why the noncustodial parent’s dollar amount can still rise even though the capped obligation itself does not
  • The cap’s history since the 1989 CSSA and its 2-year indexing cycle

What it leaves out

  • The self-support reserve and below-poverty minimum orders (use the New York calculator)
  • The DRL Sec. 236 spousal maintenance formula and its separate $241,000 payor cap
  • Any prediction of what a judge awards on income above $193,000 combined; that is a Sec. 413(1)(f) factor finding, not a formula

Official sources

Official sources last verified: .

Reviewed by SupportDecode Editorial Team Page content reviewed Sources Methodology Update log

Changelog: page first published with the $193,000 a year in combined parental income cap. Material changes are dated in the update log.