Negotiating education expenses for a child in a divorce decree can be contentious, especially if the divorce is acrimonious. In Illinois, child support usually ceases once a child is 18 years old and graduates from high school. After child support obligations cease, some divorced parents may still need to pay higher education expenses. Effective January 1, 2016, Section 513 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act affirms that divorced parents may be required to contribute to their non-minor child’s post-high-school education and living expenses. 

Contingent to the divorce decree, the college contributions that each parent and child are obliged to make can be modified. A divorce attorney understands the complexities of non-minor support and can help modify or enforce the divorce decree.

Stipulations of the Illinois Law 

Section 513 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act includes certain stipulations. Since the financial circumstances of each parent and student may change, the divorce decree can be amended at the court's discretion. A parent may no longer be able to pay tuition and living expenses because of unemployment, illness, or disability. Alternatively, a parent may purposely neglect these obligations.

Divorced and unmarried parents still need to provide financial support to their children. In Illinois, this is accomplished through child support payments. Many parents are confused about their child support rights and responsibilities in Illinois. They do not know how much payments will be or who will receive payments. Parents also have questions about what to do when a parent is not paying child support. Whether you are unmarried, divorced, or intend to divorce soon, it is important to understand how child support is handled in Illinois.

Calculating the Amount of Support

Divorcing spouses are able to reach their own agreements about divorce issues like property division or child custody. However, child support is always decided by the court. The amount that a parent pays is based on a mathematical formula that takes both parents’ financial circumstances into account. The parent with less parenting time (previously called visitation) pays child support to the parent with greater parenting time. Courts can deviate from the child support formula in certain situations, including with one or both parents have an exceptionally high income.

Getting a Child Support Order

Many single parents struggle to make ends meet because the other parent is not helping them pay for child-related expenses. If you want to receive child support from your child’s other parent, you can enroll through the Illinois Healthcare and Family Services Department of Child Support Services. If you are a mother seeking child support from a father, you will need to establish paternity before you can request child support from him.