Child Support in a Tennessee Divorce: The Income Shares Guidelines
Tennessee family law · Last reviewed November 2, 2026
Tennessee child support is set under the Child Support Guidelines, rules of the Department of Human Services in chapter 1240-02-04 of the Tennessee Rules and Regulations. The version in force took effect on October 1, 2021, after a one-day stay of its original September 30 date, and it is the version the Secretary of State's rules index publishes today.
In an agreed divorce, you still calculate support under the Guidelines and attach the completed worksheet to your agreement and parenting plan. The court must make written findings to depart from the Guidelines amount.
The income shares model
Tennessee uses an income shares model. In the Guidelines' words, it:
presumes that both parents contribute to the financial support of the child in pro rata proportion to the actual income available to each parent.
In practice: add both parents' adjusted gross incomes, find the basic child support obligation for that combined income and the number of children on the schedule, and give each parent a share in proportion to income. Then adjust for parenting time, health insurance, work-related child care and other items the worksheet lists.
The numbers that matter
| Rule | What the Guidelines say |
|---|---|
| Parenting-time adjustment | A reduction applies when the alternate residential parent has 92 or more days a year with the child; support can increase when that parent has fewer than 69 days |
| Self-support reserve | Protects a low-income paying parent: $957 gross a month, 90% of the 2020 federal poverty level for one person |
| Minimum order | At least $100 a month, except where the payer's only income is SSI, a child's federal benefit brings support below it, or the parenting-time adjustment does |
| Incomes above the schedule | The schedule ends at $28,250 combined monthly income; above that, a formula applies (for one child, $2,231 plus 6.81% of the excess) |
| Special expenses | Can be added as a deviation when they exceed 7% of the basic obligation |
| Modification | Needs a significant variance: at least a 15% difference between the current and proposed amounts |
The minimum order rule says every parent should contribute, with "a minimum child support order of at least one hundred ($100) per month" unless an exception applies.
How long support lasts
Support usually continues to 18. A 2026 law, Public Chapter 870, effective April 27, 2026, rewrote § 34-1-102(b): if a child is still enrolled in an accredited high school at 18, support continues until the child graduates or the child's class graduates, whichever comes first, but never past the child's 19th birthday, unless the child is disabled. Support for a disabled adult child is governed separately by § 36-5-101(k).
The official calculator
The Department of Human Services publishes the official child support calculator and worksheets: an Excel workbook that must be downloaded and saved to work, a web-style calculator that produces a completed worksheet, and an iPhone app. We haven't built our own calculator, because the schedule and worksheet run to dozens of pages of tables and adjustments that a simplified tool can't reproduce exactly.
Frequently asked questions
How is child support calculated in Tennessee?
Under the income shares Guidelines: both parents' incomes are combined, the schedule gives a basic obligation, and each parent pays a share in proportion to income, adjusted for parenting time, insurance, child care and other expenses.
Does more parenting time lower child support in Tennessee?
It can. The parenting-time adjustment applies when the alternate residential parent has 92 or more days a year with the child.
What is the minimum child support in Tennessee?
$100 a month, with exceptions, for example when the payer's only income is SSI.
Does child support stop at 18 in Tennessee?
Not if the child is still in high school. Support continues until graduation or the class's graduation, whichever is first, but since April 2026 never past 19, except for a disabled child.
How do I change a child support order?
You ask the court to modify it. The Guidelines generally require a significant variance, a difference of at least 15% between the current and the newly calculated amount.
Where is the official Tennessee child support calculator?
On the Department of Human Services website, under Child Support Guidelines.