When most people think of child support and the associated responsibilities, they believe parental responsibility ends when their child turns 18 or graduates from high school. However, this is not necessarily true. Many parents continue that support through court-ordered child support payments requiring them to assist their child pay their college tuition. In Illinois, this is very common and is generally referred to as support of non-minor children for educational expenses. In most cases, a judge will issue this order based on the parent's financial situation and whether they can contribute to their child's college fund.
If you are a parent and are interested in whether you and your ex-spouse could be required to contribute to your child's college expenses, consider contacting an experienced family law attorney who can help guide you through the process of ensuring you can develop a plan to help support your child so they can receive a college education
What to Know About Child Support and College Expenses
It is well documented that college is very expensive. As stated previously, the court will look at each parent's assets and income when determining how much each parent may be required to pay toward college expenses. In addition, the court will also look at the income and assets of the college student when making these determinations. If it is found that the student can contribute to help pay for their college expenses using their own income or inheritance, they may be ordered to do so. Notably, to standardize the process, Illinois courts use the average cost of a student attending the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as the primary standard for their calculations. Parents will not be ordered to pay a total for a child’s education that exceeds the cost of tuition, room, and board at the UIUC, even if the cost of education at the child’s chosen school far exceeds that of UIUC.
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