My child does not attend school or work - Child Support

We are frequently asked questions related to the widely – held misconception that child support is not payable for children/young persons over the age of 18. 

Unlike many other jurisdictions, Canada does not automatically cut off child support when a young person reaches "the age of majority". There are a number of important circumstances in which child support for such a young person would continue, and that includes cases in which the young person is medically disabled or attending school with a reasonable plan to complete their education.

There is also a corresponding, widely – held misconception that child support is always payable for young persons under the age of 18, no matter what they do with their time. In other words, many parents believe that they are entitled to receive child support from the non-residential parent even if a 16-year-old young man stops attending school, does not have a job and continues to live with the other parent. In these instances, child support is no longer payable unless there are provable medical reasons why the 16-year-old is neither attending school nor working (unable to support himself or herself financially).

While both provincial and federal legislation in Canada provides us with guidelines as to who is eligible to receive child support and how that child support is to be calculated, it is important to consider the specific facts of each case (and the relevant judicial decisions) to determine child support (if any) for each child. There are many cases in which child support is payable for young persons over the age of 18 and conversely, there are many other cases in which child support is no longer payable for young persons under the age of 18. 

Our strong suggestion is that you contact a family law lawyer and discuss your specific case with him or her – while it is natural for parents  (both recipients and payors of child support) to look for "one size fits all" formulas, and there is a danger to applying such formulas to every case, as one size does not fit all.

Child Support over 18

Many support payors and recipients in Canada think that child support is payable only until a child turns 18. In fact, that is not correct.

In Canada, child support is payable to young persons, even over the age of 18, who for good reason are not able to withdraw from their parents' financial assistance. What are such "good reasons"? There can be two (or a combination of them):

1. a child attends school (for example, university or college, but there may be other schools which would qualify) - depending on the financial resources of the parents, support may continue even after one degree is completed; or

2. for medical reasons, a young person over 18 cannot become financially independent (for example, the child has a long term disability or was involved in an accident and is recovering).

One very common scenario we get questions about is the following:

Fictional Chloe attends Fictional University and is in her 3rd year. Early in the second term, she is in a car accident and is unable to finish the year. By the beginning of the 4th year, she is not able to return to school full-time and can only take a half-course load, for medical reasons. We get asked: is she still entitled to child support? - the answer is "yes" - that is because she is still "a child of the marriage", which is a phrase used to describe a young person who either for medical reasons or because she remains at school cannot become financially independent. In this scenario, it's a bit of both - she is not in school for medical reasons but would otherwise be - child support remains payable even when she is taking less than a full course load.

UPDATE - January, 2018

We are pleased to let you know that our Etsy shop is now OPEN!

Visit it here: SELFREP SUPPORT

In the shop, we make available to you Manuals (E-books) on various topics, to assist you in representing yourself before Ontario's family law Courts.

So far, we have Manuals on preparing an effective:

• Financial Statement (both long-form and short-form); and
• Affidavit.

MORE MANUALS TO COME! 

"When do my child support payments end?"

This frequently asked question has the same answer throughout Canada, namely: "when your child/children are no longer dependant on their parents". Sounds simple but the answer surely requires further clarification.

First of all,  the reasons for this "dependance" may include medical circumstances or the pursuit of education. This post will focus on the second reason.

Let's take a fictional Sally, the 19-year-old daughter of Sam. Sally is attending college on a full-time basis and living with two roomates. She has a part-time job. She uses part of the money she earns for her tuition. Is Sally eligible for child support? - yes. Sally is incapable of supporting herself because she is attending school. She is doing the best she can with her part-time job. The manner in which Sam will pay support for Sally will be suited to her particular academic circumstances and living arrangements (he will contribute to her school expenses and her living expenses rather than pay the table amount of child support) but simply put - Sally is still eligible for support from Sam. The fact that she is over 18 is irrelevant given she is attending school.

John has a son, Peter, who is 22 and completing his last year at university. Peter lives with his Mom, Jenny, and works during the summer on a full-time basis planting trees in BC. He is physically away from Ontario all summer. Is Peter eligible to receive support from John? - yes. This time, because Peter is living with his mother, she will need some contribution to the expenses of her household and either the table amount or a portion of it will be payable by John to Jenny for the periods Peter is living with her. John will also be contributing to Peter's school related expenses.

I have provided you with only two of literally thousands of examples of situations involving older children. These children and their situations generate most questions around child support, similar to the question in the title of this post.

The manner in which child support will be paid for these children, and the amount of that support ,will depend on a host of circumstances, including the following:

1. what is this young adult doing - working, attending school?
2. where is he/she residing?
3. is he/she working and able to contribute to some of his/her own schooling costs?
4. is he/she enrolled in a reasonable program of study, with a reasonable prospect of graduating with a marketable skill?
This area of family law raises some important questions and many of the answers depend on the particular circumstances of each case - seek legal advice to see how these principles apply to your case.

Spring is here!!