Child Support Past 18 in Connecticut: High School Graduation and Age Limits

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

In Connecticut, child support generally ends at 18. For an unmarried child who is a full-time high school student, the parents maintain the child until the 12th grade is completed or the child turns 19, whichever comes first, in decrees entered on or after July 1, 1994.

What is the child support age limit in Connecticut?

After a dissolution, annulment or legal separation, the parents of a minor child maintain the child according to their respective abilities if the child is in need of maintenance (C.G.S. 46b-84(a)). The duty to maintain a minor child ends when the child is no longer a minor, at 18, unless subsection (b) or (c) applies.

Does child support continue through high school in Connecticut?

Yes, for an unmarried child of the marriage who has attained 18 and is a full-time high school student: the parents maintain the child according to their abilities, if the child is in need of maintenance, until the child completes the twelfth grade or attains 19, whichever occurs first. This applies only to decrees of dissolution, legal separation or annulment entered on or after July 1, 1994 (46b-84(b)).

What date does Connecticut child support end? Examples

The usual end date is the 18th birthday, and the high school extension is bounded by the 19th:

Try your own date in the Connecticut child support end date calculator.

How does the 19th birthday cap work? Examples

A child who turns 18 in March of senior year graduates in June, so support runs to graduation and not to the 19th birthday. A child who turns 18 in the fall and graduates the next June is supported to graduation too. The 19th birthday bites only for a child who is still a full-time high school student when 19 arrives:

The statute says whichever occurs first: completing the twelfth grade or reaching 19.

What does “need of maintenance” mean?

In deciding whether a child is in need of maintenance and what each parent should provide, the court considers each parent’s age, health, station, occupation, earning capacity, income, estate, vocational skills and employability, and the child’s age, health, station, occupation, educational status and expectation, income, vocational skills, employability, estate and needs (46b-84(d)).

What if my order says something different?

An order can set a different end date or event, so read it. If it needs changing, file a motion to modify. If there is withholding, it continues until the court or the agency ends it; income withholding is ordered with the support order (52-362).

Do arrears end when child support ends?

No. The statutes we read do not end past-due support when current support ends. See the Connecticut child support arrears calculator and how long arrears last.

How do you confirm your end date, step by step?

1. Read the order for an end date or event.
2. Find the 18th birthday in the Connecticut child support end date calculator.
3. If the child will be a full-time high school student at 18, confirm the graduation date and the 19th birthday.
4. Check the balance and arrange any arrears.
5. Ask the court or the agency to end the withholding once support has ended.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• C.G.S. 46b-150d: effect of an emancipation order
• Connecticut Probate Court: Petition for Emancipation of Minor (PC-905)
• C.G.S. 46b-84: parents’ obligation; high school and disability extensions
• C.G.S. 46b-56c: educational support orders
• C.G.S. 46b-224: custody or guardianship transfer and support orders
• C.G.S. 46b-215: support of family; enforcement
• C.G.S. 52-362: income withholding

This is general information, not legal advice. It is based on the cited Connecticut statutes, rules and court opinions, and every case turns on its own facts. Confirm how the law applies to your situation with a licensed Connecticut attorney.