The calculation of child maintenance does not depend on a fixed percentage of salary. If you are facing a separation, divorce, or the end of a cohabitation, it is natural to wonder which incomes count, whether joint custody eliminates maintenance, how self-employment or rented property affects it, and what role the MoCAM model may play.
The starting point is proportionality. I want to help you distinguish a reasoned calculation from a figure chosen by approximation. We will see which elements truly enter into the comparison between parents, why daily expenses do not coincide with extraordinary ones, and when an already established amount can be revised.
Child maintenance follows concrete criteria, not a fixed formula
Both parents contribute to maintenance. Article 316-bis of the civil code links the contribution to the respective financial resources and work capacity, including domestic work. Following the end of cohabitation, Article 337-ter specifies that each parent provides in proportion to their income and that the periodic allowance serves, when necessary, to make this proportion effective. The statutory text can be consulted in the consolidated civil code on Normattiva.
Income is only one of the parameters. The judge considers the child's current needs, the standard of living enjoyed during cohabitation with both parents, the time spent with each, the economic resources of both, and the economic value of caregiving and domestic work. Therefore, two families with similar incomes may have different maintenance allowances: the children's ages, daily organization, housing expenses, and the actual distribution of care change.
Joint custody does not exclude maintenance. Custody generally concerns responsibility for important decisions regarding the children; it does not require that every cost be paid in half nor that each parent bear only the expenses of the days spent with them. If one parent has significantly greater resources or the child lives primarily with the other, a monthly contribution may be necessary even with broad visitation schedules for both.
Which incomes and resources affect the calculation
Overall financial availability matters. To compare the positions of the parents, it is not sufficient to take two amounts indicated in tax returns and apply an arithmetic division. It is necessary to connect the revenues to the resources actually available and the expenses necessary to produce them. The legal requirement indeed demands observing the economic resources of both, not a single isolated accounting item.
Income from employment
Net remuneration is a useful figure, but it must be contextualized. Continuous salary allows for a more immediate reconstruction of periodic income, deductions, and additional monthly payments. Recurring bonuses, reimbursements covering actual work expenses, and predictable changes in remuneration remain relevant. However, it is incorrect to add an occasional item as if it were guaranteed every month, nor to ignore stable income just because it does not appear in the base pay.
Self-employment, business, and profession
In self-employment, revenue and personal availability must be separated. Turnover does not coincide with the money usable for maintenance, because the business may sustain real costs, taxes, and necessary investments. At the same time, the income declared in a single year does not always exhaust the picture: the continuity of collections, accrued fees, expenses actually inherent to the activity, and resources remaining at the parent's disposal all have an impact.
Professional expenses are not automatically deducted. A documented cost necessary to produce income has a different meaning than a personal expense presented as a business cost. The variability of collections must also be read over time: an occasional drop does not equate to a stable reduction in earning capacity, while a lasting and demonstrable contraction can affect the amount of the allowance.
Rental income and assets
Rental yields can increase available resources. A rented property produces income that must be considered alongside other sources of income. To understand its impact, one must distinguish the rent actually collected from charges connected to the property and any documented periods of unrented vacancy. Conversely, it is incorrect to treat an asset that generates no income simply because it exists as a monthly yield.
Assets can also be significant. Properties, liquidity, and other economic utilities do not automatically replace income, but they can help understand the resources a parent has at their disposal. Article 337-ter also allows for investigations into income and contested assets if the economic information is not sufficiently documented. This explains why the reconstruction must be consistent and complete, not entrusted to a single financial statement.
Time spent, care, and housing: why they change the amount
Days with each parent matter, but do not solve the calculation alone. When the child spends balanced periods in both homes, each parent directly bears a part of daily expenses. However, costs remain that do not follow individual overnight stays, such as the share of the primary residence, ordinary clothing, school management, and the concrete organization of the child's life.
Care work has an economic value. Accompanying the child to school, taking care of meals, managing visits, homework, activities, and communications is not a marginal element. The law requires considering the economic value of domestic and care tasks assumed by each parent. This is not about assigning a price to every gesture, but recognizing that a different distribution of time can modify both direct expenses and earning capacity.
The family home affects things only through precise facts. If the child lives primarily in one home, the actual cost of that home can assume relevance in the budget of the parent maintaining it. However, a distinction must be made between rent or mortgage installments actually paid, ordinary management expenses, and disbursements unrelated to the child's needs. The free availability of housing can change the economic comparison, but it does not alone determine either the absence or the amount of the allowance.
Monthly allowance, ordinary expenses, and extra-allowance expenses
The periodic allowance covers ordinary needs. Under the guidelines published by the Milan Court, items such as food, school canteen, share of home costs, utilities, ordinary clothing, recurring stationery, and over-the-counter medicines fall under this category by way of example. This distinction is important: asking again for a separate reimbursement of an expense already included in the allowance can create avoidable disputes. You can consult the Milan Court page on extra-allowance expenses.
Extraordinary expenses have different characteristics. The Milan guidelines qualify as extra-allowance expenses those presenting at least occasional or sporadic nature, burdensome character, or discretionary nature. Therefore, it is not enough to call an expense "extraordinary" to obtain its separate reimbursement: one must understand whether that item is already covered by the monthly contribution, whether it is necessary for the child, and what percentage of sharing is established by the agreement or provision.
Prior consent is not needed for every disbursement. The Milan indications distinguish, for example, certain prescribed and documented healthcare expenses or textbooks from other expenditures for which prior agreement is required, such as certain private treatments, private school, university accommodation, sports activities, and study trips. For expenses subject to agreement, the page provides for a written and reasoned dissent within ten days of the request; it also establishes deadlines for sending expense documents and for reimbursement. These indications must be read together with the text of the agreement or order applicable to the individual relationship.
What the MoCAM model can and cannot do
MoCAM does not replace legal criteria. The model associates household characteristics with estimated consumption based on statistical surveys. The document published by the Genoa Court describes it as based on Bank of Italy surveys but expressly chooses not to use it in its proposed approach, pointing to difficulties in identifying social class and capturing a child’s particular expenses. Citing the document therefore does not imply court endorsement of MoCAM or make the model a calculator of the legally payable amount.
An estimate is useful if the starting data are realistic. Entering incomplete income, failing to distinguish ordinary and extra-allowance expenses, or ignoring care time produces an unreliable result, even if the mathematical calculation is correct. MoCAM can help organize a discussion and formulate an initial hypothesis, but it does not decide what concrete needs that child has or how to divide particular costs.
The Milan guidelines cited here perform a different function. The institutional page of the Milan Court does not set a standard allowance amount; it primarily clarifies which expenses are normally included in the periodic contribution and which can be treated separately. For this reason, using a cost estimate and a clear classification of expenses together is more useful than seeking a universal figure.
Agreement, revision, and failure to pay
An agreement can regulate the amount and payment methods. Parents can agree on the contribution, payment dates, percentage breakdown of extra-allowance expenses, and the methods for exchanging requests and receipts. The agreement must be precise enough to prevent the same expense from being considered ordinary by one parent and extraordinary by the other after a few months. If a judge intervenes, the agreements are evaluated in light of the children's best interests.
Modification requires a justified change. A stable loss of income, a new need of the child, a concrete change in the time spent, or the attainment of economic independence may make it necessary to re-examine the previous arrangement. Article 473-bis.29 of the civil procedure code allows for the revision of economic contribution provisions at any time when justified grounds supervene; the text is reported in legislative decree no. 149 of 2022 on Normattiva.
It is not advisable to unilaterally reduce the established amount. The fact that income changes does not authorize, on its own, a unilateral modification of what is provided by a judicial order or an effective agreement. One must first verify the nature of the title, the date from which the change takes effect, and the possibility of reaching a new agreement or requesting a revision. Keeping documents on income, expenses, and care time helps discuss verifiable facts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I calculate the allowance with a percentage of income?
No, there is no fixed legal percentage. Income is a central element, but the calculation also considers the child's needs, previous standard of living, time spent, resources of both parents, and the value of care. A percentage can be a starting point for discussion, not the definitive answer provided by the law.
Do rental yields affect the maintenance allowance?
Yes, they can affect it as an economic resource. The rent actually collected and its weight in the parent's overall budget must be considered. However, it is incorrect to assimilate gross rent without distinction to net available income: charges connected to the property and the actual rental situation must be taken into account.
If the child stays half the time with each parent, does the allowance disappear?
Not necessarily. Balanced periods of stay reduce or modify certain direct expenses, but do not cancel an eventual resource gap or the costs that remain concentrated in one of the homes. The allowance may be necessary to maintain a contribution proportionate to the parents' economic possibilities.
Are sports activities included in the monthly allowance?
It depends on the applicable title and the specific expense. The Milan Court guidelines include sports activities, clothing, and relevant equipment among extra-allowance expenses requiring prior agreement. A ratified agreement or provision may however provide for a different discipline, to be read before requesting reimbursement.
Can I request a modification if my income decreases?
Yes, if supervening justified grounds exist. An effective and not merely occasional reduction in earnings can ground a request for revision, but it must be connected to concrete data and the family's overall economic arrangement. Until a new effective agreement or a modification provision is in place, it is not prudent to unilaterally reduce payments.
Orienting oneself before defining a new amount
A good calculation makes relevant facts visible. Before proposing or accepting a figure, it is useful to distinguish stable and variable income, ordinary costs and extra-allowance expenses, actual times spent by the children with each parent, and the content of any agreements already signed. If these elements are contested or the amount no longer reflects the current situation, you can contact me to frame the available alternatives.