Divorce Act

Marginal note:Guidelines

• 26.1 (1) The Governor in Council may establish guidelines respecting orders for child support, including, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing, guidelines

  • (a) respecting the way in which the amount of an order for child support is to be determined;

  • (b) respecting the circumstances in which discretion may be exercised in the making of an order for child support;

  • (c) authorizing a court to require that the amount payable under an order for child support be paid in periodic payments, in a lump sum or in a lump sum and periodic payments;

  • (d) authorizing a court to require that the amount payable under an order for child support be paid or secured, or paid and secured, in the manner specified in the order;

  • (e) respecting the circumstances that give rise to the making of a variation order in respect of a child support order;

  • (f) respecting the determination of income for the purposes of the application of the guidelines;

  • (g) authorizing a court to impute income for the purposes of the application of the guidelines; and

  • (h) respecting the production of information relevant to an order for child support and providing for sanctions and other consequences when that information is not provided.

• Marginal note:Principle

  (2) The guidelines shall be based on the principle that spouses have a joint financial obligation to maintain the children of the marriage in accordance with their relative abilities to contribute to the performance of that obligation.

• Definition of order for child support

  (3) In subsection (1), order for child support means

  • (a) an order or interim order made under section 15.1;

  • (b) a variation order in respect of a child support order; or

  • (c) an order made under subsection 18.1(15) or 19(13) in respect of a child support order.