Utah’s child-support rules for work-related child care change for orders a court enters or modifies after January 1, 2027. The statute keeps the old rule that parents share actual, reasonable work-related child care. It adds a second, table-based payment: a minimal child care award that the parent paying child support must pay on top of their base child support obligation. That award is not the same as splitting a daycare invoice. It is a presumed monthly amount tied to combined parental income and each child’s age.
This article explains what changes, how the calculation works, when the award is $0, and what parents should do before January 2027.
What stays the same
The statute still requires courts and administrative agencies to require that parents share equally reasonable work-related child care expenses. If a parent actually incurs child care expenses, the other parent still must pay their half share on a monthly basis after receiving proof of that expense. If the expense stops, the paying parent may suspend the monthly payment without first modifying the order. The statute still presumes that work-related child care belongs in the order when a parent works during extended parent-time and actually incurs care costs. However, that presumption is rebutted if:
– the obligor’s base child support award plus medical expenses already exceeds 50% of the obligor’s adjusted gross income, or
– adding child care would push the obligor’s total child-support obligation over 50% of the obligor’s adjusted gross income.
Courts may also impute a monthly child-care obligation when they impute income to a parent who is providing the care so the parties are not paying a third-party provider. Any imputed amount applies toward actual expenses incurred in the same month.
Verification and notice duties remain. Absent a contrary order, the parent who incurs the expense must give the other parent written verification of the cost and the provider when the parent first hires the provider and later on request. The same parent must notify the other parent within 30 days of a provider change, a change in the monthly cost, or termination of care—unless a protective order or stalking injunction bars contact. The court may deny credit or recovery if the incurring parent fails to follow these rules.
What changes on January 1, 2027
For a child-support order entered or modified on or after January 1, 2027, the order must also require the obligor to pay a minimal child care award to the obligee—unless the court calculated the obligor’s child-support obligation from the low-income table.
That is the core change. Before this date, child care in the order generally tracked actual, documented work-related costs. Starting with new 2027 orders, the statute adds a statutory minimum on top of the equal-share rule for actual expenses. The minimal award is not a substitute for sharing real daycare bills. The statute still requires equal sharing of reasonable work-related expenses. But the table amount is a presumed monthly award that the obligor pays the obligee.
How the court calculates the minimal child care award
The court requires each party to file a proposed minimal child care award before it decides the amount. The calculation uses two inputs only:
1. The parents’ combined adjusted average monthly gross income, calculated the same way the court calculates that figure for the base child-support award under § 81-6-204.
2. Each child’s age on the table in Utah Code 81-6-306.
The court looks up the amount for each child, then adds the amounts. That sum is the presumed minimal child care award.
The statutory table (Utah Code 81-6-306)
The table applies to establish a minimal award on an order first entered on or after January 1, 2027 (if the low-income table was not used) and to modify a minimal award on an order modified on or after that date.
| Combined monthly adjusted gross income | 0–23 months | 2–3 years | 4–5 years | 6–12 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0 – $4,752 | $225 | $263 | $263 | $204 |
| $4,573 – $6,911 | $325 | $313 | $300 | $300 |
| $6,912 – $10,140 | $410 | $338 | $338 | $305 |
| $10,141 – $14,999 | $420 | $345 | $345 | $325 |
| $15,000 and above | $450 | $375 | $375 | $363 |
Example. Combined adjusted average monthly gross income is $8,000. The children are 18 months old and 7 years old. The table amounts are $410 (infant) + $305 (school-age) = $715 presumed minimal child care award per month.
Example. Combined income is $16,000. One child is 4 years old. The presumed award is $375.
The court presumes the table sum is the amount the obligor should pay. A party may rebut that presumption by:
– an agreement the court or agency accepts,
– evidence that favors a different amount, or
– a showing, by a preponderance of the evidence, that a different amount is in the child’s best interest.
The court may set the award at zero if a party shows that child care expenses will not be incurred. The obligor also owes nothing for a child’s share in any month that child is in state custody in a state-managed facility.
Automatic age adjustments and when the award ends
If the order uses the 81-6-306 table, the minimal award adjusts automatically as the child moves into the next age bracket. The parties do not need a modification order for that age-based change.
The award for a child ends at the earlier of:
– the child turning 13, or
– the child becoming emancipated under 81-6-213.
Those end dates are built into the statute. They differ from base child support, which generally continues longer.
Who does not receive a minimal award
The court may not order a minimal child care award if it calculated the obligor’s child-support obligation from the low-income table. That exception matters: low-income obligors stay on the existing low-income child-support table and do not pick up this extra presumed childcare line.
The January 1, 2027 trigger is also limited to entry or modification of the order on or after that date. An older order does not automatically change itself on New Year’s Day 2027. A parent who wants the new framework (or who faces a petition that will bring the new framework into the case) needs a new or modified order.
How this interacts with actual daycare bills
Because this new law has yet to take effect (as of writing), there is no precedent from Utah courts interpreting it. However, the intent of the statute appears to be that parents still must split reasonable actual work-related child care 50/50. But, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, the court will still require a monthly minimal childcare payment equal to the amount in the table unless an exception applies. The statute does not say the minimal award replaces the 50/50 split. But how a particular court nets the two amounts will turn on the wording of the order and the facts. Parties should ask the court to state the relationship clearly: what is payable as the minimal award, what is payable as a share of documented invoices, and how (if at all) one offsets the other.
Practical steps for parents before January 2027
If you already have an order. This new statute does not automatically change your existing order. It only applies when a court or agency enters or modifies the order on or after January 1, 2027. A modification petition filed for another reason (income change, parent-time change, emancipation of another child) can bring the new childcare rules into the case.
If you are negotiating or litigating a new order that will be entered in 2027. Gather:
– both parents’ income information used for the Utah Code 81-6-204 worksheet,
– each child’s date of birth,
– proof of actual work-related care (provider contracts, invoices, hours tied to work or training), and
– evidence if you will ask the court to set the minimal award at zero or at a non-table amount (no care needed, state custody, best-interest facts, or an agreed figure).
Each party must file a proposed minimal award before the court sets the number. Prepare that proposal from the table and be ready to explain any requested deviation.
If you pay or receive documented daycare. Keep the verification and 30-day notice habits the statute already requires. Failure to give notice or proof can cost the incurring parent the right to credit or reimbursement.
If the obligor is on the low-income table. Confirm that the support calculation actually uses 81-6-305. If it does, the statute forbids a minimal child care award.
Short timeline
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| May 6, 2026 | Reenacted 81-6-209 and new 81-6-306 take effect as law. |
| January 1, 2027 | Minimal child care award applies to child-support orders entered or modified on or after this date (except low-income-table cases). |
| Child’s 13th birthday or emancipation | That child’s minimal award ends. |
| Child moves to the next age band | Table amount adjusts automatically; no modification petition is required for that change alone. |
Bottom line
Beginning with orders entered or modified on or after January 1, 2027, Utah child-care calculations have two layers. Parents still share actual, reasonable work-related care. But the obligor must also pay a presumed minimal child care award drawn from a five-row income table and four age bands, unless the low-income table applies, the court finds that no care will be incurred, or the court accepts a different figure. The award ages with the child and stops at 13 or emancipation.
Parents who will be in court in 2027 should run the table on their combined income and children’s ages, document real care costs, and ask the order to state how the minimal award and the 50/50 actual-expense share work together.
This article provides general information about Utah Code 81-6-209. It is not legal advice. Child-care awards turn on the date of the order, the child’s age, each parent’s work schedule, and the proof in the file. If you have questions about a Utah child-support or child-care order, contact the attorneys at the Law Office of Wiser & Wiser at 855-254-2600 or Contact Us.
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