Child Support for an Adult Child in University in Nova Scotia

Many parents assume child support stops at a set birthday, and many students assume it carries on until graduation, but the Federal Child Support Guidelines set the table amount for a child under the age of majority. Neither assumption is automatically right. What happens depends on the child's circumstances and on the order or agreement in place.

This article explains how a Nova Scotia court approaches support for an adult child who is studying, which factors matter, and what to do if you are paying or receiving support.

This article covers the law of Nova Scotia.

Support does not end automatically in every case

The usual table support formula applies to a child under the age of majority. After that, Nova Scotia's Guidelines give the court two options for a child who has reached the age of majority: apply the Guidelines as if the child were a minor, or, if that is inappropriate, set an amount based on the child's condition, means and needs and each parent's ability to contribute.

So being in university can matter, but it does not guarantee that support continues in the same form. Your existing order or agreement may also set out when support ends, so read it first.

Table amount and school-related costs

Table support is based on the payor's annual income, determined under the federal Guidelines starting from the T1 General total income. The court may look at income over the last three years and may impute income it considers appropriate. Nova Scotia uses the table for the province where the payor ordinarily lives.

On request, the court can also add section 7 amounts. These include child care, the child's share of medical and dental insurance premiums, health-related costs above insurance of $100 or more a year, extraordinary primary or secondary school costs, post-secondary education, and extraordinary extracurricular activities.

Section 7 expenses are shared by the parents in proportion to their incomes, after deducting any contribution from the child. The court must also take into account any subsidies, benefits, or tax deductions or credits relating to the expense.

Factors a court looks at

When the Guidelines are not simply applied, the court focuses on the child's condition, means and needs and each parent's ability to contribute. In practice, that means looking at questions like these:

• What does the program cost, including tuition, books and housing?
• What can the student contribute from savings, scholarships, loans or work? Any contribution from the child is deducted before section 7 costs are shared.
• What income does each parent have, using recent years where helpful?
• Are there subsidies, benefits, or tax deductions or credits connected to the expense?
• Would paying cause a parent undue hardship, such as unusually high debts or duties to support others?

Undue hardship claims are not easy to make out. The claim fails if the household claiming hardship would have a higher standard of living than the other.

Shared and split parenting

For a child who has reached the age of majority, the court may apply Nova Scotia's Guidelines as if the child were a minor, or, if that is inappropriate, set an amount based on the child's condition, means and needs and each parent's ability to contribute. For a child, where each parent has the child at least 40% of the time over a year, the court considers the table amount for each parent, the increased costs of shared parenting, and each parent's and the child's circumstances, and this is not an automatic set-off. Where there are two or more children and each parent has the majority of time with at least one child, the order is the difference between what each parent would otherwise pay. Whether these parenting-time rules shape support for an adult student depends on your situation, so it is worth confirming with a lawyer.

What to do next

If support is ordered, the Maintenance Enforcement Program is a free Nova Scotia service that helps with paying and receiving court-ordered maintenance. The payor sends money to the program, which passes it to the recipient. Enrolling an order is optional, but the program cannot enforce an order that is not enrolled.

• Find your order or agreement and check what it says about when support ends.
• Collect the student's program costs and proof of enrolment.
• Gather recent income tax returns and notices of assessment for both parents.
• List what the student can contribute from savings, scholarships, loans or work.
• Talk to a lawyer about whether to ask for a change, or to respond to a request.
• Ask about legal aid if cost is a barrier, since family matters under the Divorce Act are covered by the legal aid tariff.

Frequently asked questions