Georgia law recognizes that every family is unique. A court may decide that the amount of presumptive child support is insufficient based on the needs of the child. Alternatively, it may decide that the amount is too high based on the parent’s circumstances. The court accounts for these unique circumstances by using “deviations.”
Deviations are a way to change the presumptive amount upward or downward. There are two types of deviations: mandatory deviations, which must be included in the support calculation, and non-mandatory deviations.