Self-employment and imputed income for child support in Alabama (2026)
For a self-employed parent, Alabama counts gross receipts minus the ordinary and necessary expenses the IRS allows, except accelerated depreciation, investment tax credits and other expenses the court finds inappropriate (Rule 32(B)(3)). Significant business perks that reduce living costs count as income. A court imputes income to a parent it finds voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, and calculates support on it (Rule 32(B)(5)).
How is self-employment income counted in Alabama?
For income from self-employment, rent, royalties, a business, a partnership or a closely held corporation, gross income means gross receipts minus the ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce the income, as the Internal Revenue Service allows (Rule 32(B)(3)(a)).
Three things are not deducted, even when the IRS allows them (Rule 32(B)(3)(b)):
- the accelerated part of depreciation;
- investment tax credits;
- any other business expense the court decides is inappropriate for working out child support.
Is self-employment tax deducted?
No. Rule 32 works from gross income and lists no deduction for self-employment tax. The same income gives the same figure whether it is wages or business profit:
The other parent's monthly income, wages or business profit
| Other parent's income a month | 1 child | 2 children |
|---|---|---|
| $3,000 | $426.00 | $636.00 |
| $5,000 | $647.00 | $957.00 |
| $7,000 | $809.00 | $1,190.00 |
| $9,000 | $966.00 | $1,411.00 |
Do business perks and reimbursements count?
Yes, when they are significant and reduce personal living expenses: expense reimbursements and in-kind payments received through employment, self-employment or a business count as income (Rule 32(B)(4)).
What is imputed income?
When the court finds a parent voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, it estimates the income that parent would otherwise have and calculates support on it (Rule 32(B)(5)). In deciding how much to impute, the court considers the parent’s specific circumstances, as far as they are known:
- assets, residence, work and earnings history, job skills, education and literacy;
- age, health, criminal record and other barriers to employment;
- the record of looking for work;
- the local job market, employers willing to hire the parent and local earnings levels.
It may take into account a young or disabled child who needs the parent at home. Incarceration may not be treated as voluntary unemployment when an order is set or modified.
What else counts as income?
Income from any source: salaries, wages, commissions, bonuses, dividends, severance pay, pensions, interest, trust income, annuities, capital gains, Social Security, veterans’ and workers’ compensation benefits, unemployment and disability insurance, gifts, prizes and alimony from an earlier marriage (Rule 32(B)(2)(a)). Child support received for other children and means-tested public assistance do not count (Rule 32(B)(2)(b)).
What this guide does not cover
Valuing a business, retained earnings, and how a court decides a parent is underemployed in a particular case. The engine also leaves out:
- Not modeled: deductions for child support and alimony a parent already pays under another order (Form CS-42, lines 1a and 1b), and the discretionary deduction for other children living with a parent (Rule 32(B)(6)).
- Not modeled: the cap on child care at the Department of Human Resources' licensed-care rates, the 10%-of-income test for health coverage, benefits paid to the children on a parent's record, split custody, extraordinary medical, dental and education costs, and deviations (Rule 32(A)).
Run your own numbers
This guide's example: in Alabama, 1 child; the parent the children live with earns $3,000 a month and the other parent $5,000, before tax; 0 days a year with the other parent. The guideline amount is $647.00 a month. Change any number in the calculator and every step of the formula updates.
Open this family in the Alabama calculatorQuestions
How is self-employment income counted for child support in Alabama?
As gross receipts minus the ordinary and necessary expenses the IRS allows to produce the income, except accelerated depreciation, investment tax credits and other expenses the court finds inappropriate (Rule 32(B)(3)).
Is self-employment tax deducted in Alabama?
No. Rule 32 uses gross income and lists no deduction for self-employment tax; Virginia's guideline, by contrast, deducts half of it.
What is imputed income in Alabama child support?
Income a court assigns to a parent it finds voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, estimated from what that parent could earn. The court considers assets, work history, skills, education, health, criminal record and the local job market (Rule 32(B)(5)).
Do business perks count as income?
Yes, when they are significant and reduce personal living expenses (Rule 32(B)(4)).
Sources
- Rule 32(B)(2) to (B)(5), Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration (as amended effective 1 June 2023), archived copy
- Figures on this page are computed by the Coparent Math engine with Alabama's rules in force on 3 Nov 2026 unless a table says otherwise, from:
- Rule 32, Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration, as amended effective 1 June 2023 (archived copy of the court's PDF), checked 3 Nov 2026
- Supreme Court of Alabama, order of 14 January 2022: Rule 32, Form CS-42 and the Schedule of Basic Child-Support Obligations, effective 1 May 2022 (archived copy), checked 3 Nov 2026
- Supreme Court of Alabama, order of 3 March 2023: shared 50% physical custody and Form CS-42-S, effective 1 June 2023 (archived copy), checked 3 Nov 2026
- Administrative Office of Courts: Schedule of Basic Child-Support Obligations effective 5/1/2022 (archived copy), checked 3 Nov 2026
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In the same hub
- Child support at high incomes in Alabama (2026)Alabama's schedule runs to $30,000 of combined monthly gross income. Above that, Rule 32(C)(1) leaves the amount to the court's discretion, and the Committee Comments say the schedule should not be extrapolated, so there is no guideline formula. The calculator shows the top row of the schedule and marks the result as not a guideline figure.
- How much is child support in Alabama by income? (2026)In Alabama the amount depends on both parents' incomes and the number of children. With the parent the children live with earning $4,000 a month and no extra costs, a parent earning $6,000 pays $693.00 for one child and $1,020.00 for two.
- Child support for more than one child in Alabama (2026)Alabama's schedule gives a figure for 1 to 6 children at each combined income, and each extra child adds less than the one before. With incomes of $4,000 and $6,000, the other parent pays $693.00 for one child, $1,020.00 for two and $1,190.00 for three.
- Child support with 50/50 custody in Alabama (2026): Form CS-42-SWhen a court orders shared 50/50 physical custody, Alabama uses Form CS-42-S: the schedule amount is multiplied by 1.5, child care and health insurance are added, each parent owes their income share of the total less their own costs and half the shared amount, and the parent who owes more pays the difference. Anything short of about half the time uses the ordinary worksheet; a court may deviate for extra time, but there is no formula for it.
- Health insurance and child care in Alabama child support (2026)Alabama adds the children's share of the health insurance premium and work related child care to the basic schedule amount, splits the total by income, and credits each parent with what they pay. Child care counts up to the cost of licensed care on the Department of Human Resources' schedule, and health insurance is reasonable in cost up to ten percent of the paying parent's gross income.
- Back child support (arrears) in Alabama: interest, enforcement and jail (2026)In Alabama, child support judgments entered on or after 1 September 2011 carry interest at 7.5 percent a year, and older ones at 12 percent or 6 percent depending on the date (Code of Alabama § 8-8-10; Department of Human Resources). The Department of Human Resources (DHR) collects arrears through income withholding, state and federal tax refund intercepts, credit reporting, liens, license suspension and passport denial, and a court can jail a parent for contempt. Support can be modified only for installments that accrue after a petition to modify is filed, interest can be rebated only with the written agreement of the person owed it, and arrears stay owed after the child turns 19.
The same topic in other states
- Self-employment and imputed income for child support in Florida (2026)For a self-employed parent, Florida counts business income as gross receipts minus the ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce it (Fla. Stat. § 61.30(2)(a)3), and deducts income tax and self-employment tax to reach net income (§ 61.30(3)(a) and (b)). Income is imputed to a parent whose unemployment or underemployment the court finds voluntary, and automatically, at a presumed median income, when a parent's income is unknown or the parent does not take part (§ 61.30(2)(b)).
- Self-employment and imputed income for child support in Georgia (2026)For a self-employed parent, Georgia counts gross receipts minus the ordinary and reasonable expenses needed to produce the income, leaving out excessive promotional, travel, vehicle or personal expenses, depreciation on equipment, home office costs and accelerated depreciation (O.C.G.A. § 19-6-15(f)(1)(B)). Half of self-employment tax is then deducted. A court can impute income when there is no reliable evidence of income, or when a parent is willfully or voluntarily unemployed or underemployed (§ 19-6-15(f)(4)).
- Self-employed and imputed income in New York child support (2026)New York counts the income a parent reported, or should have reported, on the most recent federal tax return. For self-employed parents, accelerated depreciation and personal entertainment and travel deductions are added back. A court may also impute income: from resources such as assets, perks and money from family, or from former income if a parent reduced their income to avoid support. Imputation requires specific written findings based on the parent's circumstances (Family Court Act § 413(1)(b)(5)).
- Self-employment, imputed income and what counts in Texas (2026)In Texas, self-employment income counts after the ordinary and necessary expenses needed to produce it, and a court may exclude depreciation or other expenses it finds inappropriate (Texas Family Code § 154.065). If a parent earns significantly less than they could because of intentional unemployment or underemployment, the court may apply the guideline to earning potential (§ 154.066); with no evidence of income at all, it presumes the federal minimum wage for a 40 hour week (§ 154.068).
- Self-employment and imputed income in Virginia child support (2026)For a self-employed parent, Virginia counts gross receipts minus reasonable business expenses, and deducts half of any self-employment tax paid; the parent claiming the expenses has to prove them (Code of Virginia § 20-108.2 C). When a parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, a court can base support on the income that parent could earn, within limits set by § 20-108.1 B 3.