Quick answer: When does child support end? In most states at 18, though many extend it to graduation or age 19 or 20 if the child is still in high school, and a few run it to 21, such as New York and Mississippi. Support can end earlier on marriage, military service or other emancipation, and can continue past the usual age for a disabled child. Unpaid support stays owed.
On this page:
- The general rule
- How the age differs by state
- High school and the extra months
- Does child support cover college?
- Disabled adult children
- Early endings: marriage, military and emancipation
- What stays owed after support ends
- Finding your date
The general rule
The Legal Information Institute notes that states generally do not impose an obligation to pay support for a child after the child has reached the age of 18. That is the starting point, and most of the variation is about what extends or shortens it. Extensions come from school enrollment, a disability, or the parents’ own agreement. Early endings come from marriage, military service or a court finding of emancipation, when a minor becomes legally independent before reaching the age of majority. Your own order may also name an end date, so read it first.
How the age differs by state
| State | Support generally ends | Source |
|---|---|---|
| New York | At 21; parents of a child under 21 are chargeable with support | Family Court Act 413 |
| Mississippi | At emancipation, which occurs at 21 unless the judgment says otherwise | Miss. Code 93-11-65(8) |
| Colorado | At 19 without a motion, with exceptions for a written agreement, disability and high school | C.R.S. 14-10-115 |
| Texas | At 18 or high school graduation, whichever is later | Fam. Code 154.001 |
| Virginia | At 18, or until 19 or graduation, whichever first occurs, for a qualifying high school student | Va. Code 20-124.2(C) |
| Wisconsin | At 18, or before 19 if the child is pursuing a high school diploma course | Wis. Stat. 767.511(4) |
| West Virginia | At 18, continuing for an unmarried full-time secondary student living with a parent, not past 20 | 48-11-103 |
| Vermont | The age of majority or the end of secondary education, whichever is later | 15 V.S.A. 658(c) |
Because the ages differ so widely, the Child Support End Date Calculator finds the date from the child’s birth date under your state’s rule.
High school and the extra months
A child who turns 18 before graduating is the most common reason for an extension. The wording matters. Texas allows support past 18 only if the child is enrolled in an accredited secondary school in a program leading toward a diploma and is meeting the attendance requirements. Virginia continues it for a full-time high school student who is not self-supporting and lives in the home of the parent receiving support, until 19 or graduation, whichever first occurs. Wisconsin stops before the child’s 19th birthday, and West Virginia at 20 for a student making substantial progress toward a diploma. Colorado ends support at 19, with an exception for a child who is still in high school.
Does child support cover college?
Usually not by default. Washington is one state that lets the court order postsecondary educational support, and it may not do so beyond the child’s 23rd birthday except in exceptional circumstances such as a disability. In Colorado, courts cannot order college support for orders under its end-of-support rule, but parents can agree to it in a court-approved written stipulation. Where the statute is silent, support runs to the usual end date and college costs are for the parents to agree. If you are planning for tuition, put the agreement in writing and ask a licensed attorney whether it can be enforced.
Disabled adult children
Many states keep support going for a child who cannot support himself or herself because of a disability. Texas allows an order for an indefinite period if the child is disabled as the chapter defines it, Virginia allows support past 18 for a severely and permanently disabled child who cannot live independently and lives in the supported parent’s home, and Colorado lets the court order support to continue beyond 19 for a mentally or physically disabled child. West Virginia preserves its existing case law on disabled children. Ask your state agency or an attorney how to request this before the usual end date.
Early endings: marriage, military and emancipation
Support can end sooner than the age limit. Mississippi lists marriage, joining the military full-time and a felony sentence of two years or more among the events that emancipate a child, and Texas lets the court order support only until the child is emancipated through marriage or a court order removing the disabilities of minority, or by other operation of law. Wyoming ends an ongoing obligation when the child is legally emancipated or reaches the age of majority, when the child dies, or when the parents marry or remarry each other (Wyo. Stat. 20-2-313). Emancipation is usually a legal finding, not just a milestone, so do not stop paying on your own; ask the court or agency to confirm.
What stays owed after support ends
Ending support does not erase what is already due. Mississippi provides that arrears are not terminated by emancipation, and New York provides that a modification cannot reduce arrears accrued before the application. Under federal law, each installment of support is a judgment by operation of law once it is due. See what happens if you do not pay child support and use the Child Support Arrears & Interest Calculator for the balance.
Finding your date
Start with the Child Support End Date Calculator, then check how your amount was set in how child support is calculated. If your circumstances change before the end date, see whether you can modify child support. The family law calculators cover every state, and our methodology page explains how each figure is verified. For advice on your own case, talk to a licensed family law attorney in your state.