How do I fill out a Child Support Affidavit (F37)?

Last reviewed May 2025 by the Clicklaw editors

The Child Support Affidavit (F37) (PDF) is used in a divorce to tell the court about child support amounts. This form is required when there are children of the marriage, even if you have an existing agreement. The court needs to know the amount that the child support guidelines suggest be paid from one parent to the other.

Setting up the F37

This guide will walk you through the form’s options so that you can set it up for your circumstances.

Some options have specifics in square brackets — for example, “[role]” or “[amount].” You won’t be able to provide that information when selecting your options but will be asked to later in the form.

1. (Names)

  • If you filed for a divorce with a joint application (Form F1), select “Claimant #1” and “Claimant #2” from the drop-down box. Whoever was Claimant #1 on the F1 is still Claimant #1 here.
  • If you filed with a sole application (F3), select “Claimant” and “Respondent” from the drop-down box.
  • Enter the names as they appear on the marriage certificate. Be consistent with how both names are written across all your forms.
  • For the other options, you may want to seek legal advice.

2. (Who is filling out the form)

  • Identify which of the above parties are filling out the form.

3. (How many children) 

  • Select the number of children.

4. (Previous request for a child support order)

  • Tell the court whether or not your Notice of Family Claim (F3), Notice of Joint Family Claim (F1), or Counterclaim (F5) included a request for a child support order. You may need to refer to your filed copy of the form if you’re not sure. You usually would have filed only one of these three forms.

5. (Which party’s income)

  • Select which of the party’s incomes you’ll report on this form.  
  • Check off “(c)” if you and your spouse already have an agreement about child support, which you’ll be attaching.  
  • Sections 15 to 20 of the Federal Child Support Guidelines describe how income is determined.

6. (Child support amount and circumstances)

  • This section has two check boxes that are used differently.
  • The first check box will add a field (in the final form) where you’ll fill in what amount the child support guidelines suggest should be paid by one spouse to the other. The court needs this information even if the parties have agreed to a different amount. You may want to use the simple calculator provided by the Canadian government.  
  • The second check box is used for attaching fact sheets that give the court more information about certain circumstances. Each one refers to a different section of the child support guidelines. You should read the amount of child support sections of the Federal Child Support Guidelines and check any that apply to you:
    • Shared parenting time (custody): section 9, sheet B
    • Split parenting time (custody): section 8, sheet C
    • Support for a child over the age of 19: sheet D
    • Undue hardship: section 10, sheet E
    • One of you has income over $150,000: section 4, sheet F

7. (Does your claim agree with the child support guidelines?) 

  • Choose only one check box. Some of these options refer to the Divorce Act — see the child support section of the act.  
  • First option: You’re asking for an amount of child support that agrees with the amount suggested by the child support guidelines.
  • Second option: You and your spouse agree on an amount of child support (even if this amount is zero), but that amount is different from the amount suggested by the child support guidelines.  
  • Third option: You’re asking for a different amount than the guidelines suggest, but you also have special circumstances, such as the order being temporary, or you have other terms and conditions.
  • Fourth option: You and your spouse have an agreement (which you’ll attach) about the amount of child support. This option refers to section 4(c) of the finished form that you’ll generate, not to #4 on the previous page.
  • Fifth option: You’re not asking for a child support order but have other arrangements for support you’ll describe to the court.

8. (Special or extraordinary expenses)

  • Tell the court whether this form will include any special or extraordinary expenses, as defined in section 7 of the child support guidelines. Read the section to see if it applies to you. If it does, you’ll be attaching fact sheet A.

9. (Medical insurance coverage for the children)

  • Select one or more of the check boxes that tell the court if the child or children have any medical insurance coverage available through you or your spouse.

10. (Previous orders for child support)

  • Tell the court if there are any previous orders for child support. If there are any, you’ll need to attach a copy to this form. This is called attaching an exhibit, which just means providing a copy with the form when you file it.

11. (Previous agreements between parties about child support amounts)

  • This is similar to #10, but for any agreements you have about child support amounts. Note that if you indicated that you have an agreement in #5 or #7 earlier on the form, you’ll need to attach it.

12. (Outstanding child support)

  • Tell the court whether one party currently owes the other any outstanding child support already. Usually this means you already have an earlier order concerning child support.

Once you’re done, press the Generate Form button. Your responses will be used to create the version of the form that you need to finish filling out.

Note that the form will add a blank paragraph 12 at the end. This is for providing the court with any other information not covered above, but it can be left blank if you have nothing to add.

 Helpful resources

 Helpful services

  • Family duty counsel: These are family lawyers who may be available at your courthouse to provide free legal advice or other help. Call the court registry or Legal Aid BC to find out more information.
  • Unbundled legal services (People’s Law School): This website explains how you can hire a lawyer to help with parts of your legal matter (rather than the whole file). It includes a directory of lawyers offering unbundled services in BC.
  • AC Friends of Court: Their volunteers can help with completing court forms. Book an appointment on their website.
  • Courthouse Libraries BC: We are a network of libraries in BC courthouses where you can access public computers, books and other print materials, and legal databases. Reach us at 1-800-665-2570 or email librarian@courthouselibrary.ca.
  • Find more services.