Family guide

Blended families and shared custody: splitting the kids’ costs

With shared custody, each parent pays part of the children’s costs, often without knowing exactly how much the other has spent. In a blended family, you also need to keep each parent’s children’s costs apart. Here is how to organize the split, what child support and “extra” costs usually cover, and how to keep a clear record. This guide stays general: rules depend on your country, and your court order or parenting agreement always comes first.

In short

  • Child support generally covers a child’s everyday costs; a court order or parenting agreement can also say who pays for specific extra costs.
  • Shared custody does not automatically rule out child support, for instance when the parents’ incomes are far apart.
  • Whatever is not set in writing is worth agreeing in advance: the list of shared costs, the split rule, prior agreement for big expenses.
  • A shared record of expenses, with who paid, prevents most disagreements.

Child support and extra costs: the general picture

Rules differ from one country to another. In the UK, gov.uk explains that child maintenance can be arranged privately between parents, if both agree. In France, service-public.gouv.fr describes child support as covering the child’s everyday costs: food, clothes, transportation, housing, leisure, school lunches. A court order or parental agreement can also assign specific costs, for example:

  • medical costs not covered by health insurance;
  • school trips, language or educational trips;
  • school fees (lunches, boarding);
  • driving lessons, a phone plan;
  • childcare;
  • sports, arts and other extracurricular activities.

The same French page notes that support can be a monthly amount, direct payment of certain costs (for example split equally between the parents), or both, and that it can be owed under shared custody as well. The amount depends on both parents’ resources, the custody arrangement and the child’s needs.

List what is shared

In shared custody, each parent usually covers day-to-day costs during their time: meals, outings, small purchases. Disagreements rarely start there. They start with one-off costs, or bills one parent pays for the whole year:

An example split to discuss between parents

Groceries, meals, outings

Often
Each parent during their time
To agree on
—

School lunches, after-school care

Often
Shared
To agree on
Who pays the bill, how the other pays back

Back to school, supplies, clothes

Often
Shared
To agree on
A cap, who buys what

Activities (sports, music)

Often
Shared if agreed together
To agree on
Prior agreement before signing up

Uncovered medical, orthodontics

Often
Shared
To agree on
Quote shared before, receipts after

School trips, driving lessons

Often
Shared
To agree on
Prior agreement

This table is not a rule, just a starting point. Whatever your order or agreement says takes priority.

Pick a split rule

  • Equal shares: simple, fair when incomes are close.
  • By income: each parent pays a share proportional to their income, for example 60/40. The split by income calculator gives the percentages.
  • What is written in your order or agreement, when it says something: then that is the rule to follow.

Whatever the rule, agree on prior approval for big expenses (a camp, braces) and on a rhythm to settle up, say monthly or quarterly, with receipts.

In a blended family

When a parent lives with a new partner, two budgets overlap: the new couple’s, and the one shared with the other parent for the kids. Mixing them quickly gets confusing.

  • Keep the two circles apart: the blended household’s expenses on one side, the costs shared with the other parent on the other.
  • Decide what the stepparent covers, if anything: it is the couple’s choice, to discuss openly.
  • Record child-specific costs separately when the whole household does not share them. How to make a family budget helps structure the rest.

Tracking the kids’ costs in SAVY

A shared record both parents can see prevents “I told you so” moments and lost receipts. In SAVY, you do it with a household dedicated to the kids:

  1. Create a “Kids” household and invite the other parent.
  2. Add each shared expense with who paid: school lunches, back to school, activities, pharmacy. A clear description (“March school lunches”, “Football club fee”) and the default categories, such as Health or Leisure, are enough to find your way around.
  3. Check the balance: SAVY works out who owes whom, and “Mark as settled” resets it after a transfer.
  4. Log school lunches or a monthly activity as a recurring expense.

On the free plan, expenses are split equally and each of you can create 1 household of your own, on top of the ones you join by invitation: if one parent creates the “Kids” household, the other keeps their own slot free for daily life. For a 60/40 split or exact amounts, or to create several households yourself, you need SAVY Plus, paid by the household’s owner and unlocked for all its members. SAVY does not replace a court order or an agreement: it is a shared expense log.

Frequently asked questions

What does child support cover in shared custody?

It depends on your country and your order or agreement. In France, for example, child support covers the child’s everyday costs, and an order or agreement can add specific costs such as uncovered medical bills or school trips. Shared custody does not automatically rule out child support.

How should separated parents split extra child costs?

Follow your court order or parenting agreement first. Otherwise, many parents split them equally or by income, with prior agreement for big expenses and regular settling up with receipts.

Can we split child costs 60/40 in SAVY?

Yes, with SAVY Plus: an expense can be split by percentage, shares or exact amounts. On the free plan, each expense is split equally between the members you pick.