Indiana courts can order divorced or separated parents to help pay for a child’s college or vocational school under Indiana Code 31-16-6-2, and this obligation is separate from regular child support. When it comes to college expenses for divorced parents in Indiana, the biggest risk is timing: for any child support order issued after June 30, 2012, the petition asking the court to divide college costs must be filed before the child turns 19. Miss that date and the court loses the power to help, no matter how strong the case would have been.
The Filing Deadline That Ends Most Cases
Indiana ties the deadline for a post-secondary education petition to the age of the child and the date of the underlying support order.
- If the original child support order was issued after June 30, 2012, the petition for educational expenses must be filed before the child turns 19.
- If the original order was issued before July 1, 2012, the petition can be filed up until the child turns 21.
Both the parent and the child have standing to file.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code Title 31 Family Law and Juvenile Law 31-16-6-6 For most families today, 19 is the operative age. That means the practical planning window is the child’s senior year of high school, not freshman year of college.
There is one narrow exception. If a petition was previously denied only because the child was already over 18, and the original support order was issued after June 30, 2012, the statute allows a later petition to be filed and decided on its merits.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code Title 31 Family Law and Juvenile Law 31-16-6-6 This provision was written to catch families squeezed by the 2012 rule change.
How the Court Decides Whether to Order Contributions
Issuing an educational support order is entirely discretionary. No parent has a right to receive one, and no parent is automatically shielded from one. Indiana’s Child Support Guidelines describe college funding as a group effort involving both parents and the student, resting on the principle that children of separated parents should not lose educational opportunities they would have had in an intact home.2Indiana Courts. Indiana Child Support Rules and Guidelines
The statute directs judges to weigh three things: each parent’s financial capacity, the student’s own ability to contribute, and the child’s academic aptitude and ability.3Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-16-6-2 – Expenses for Childs Education and Health Care; Title IV-D Fees
Each Parent’s Finances
The judge looks at income, earning ability, assets, and debts. The Guidelines say plainly that if paying for college would create a substantial financial burden on a parent, the court should not order a contribution. At the other extreme, if the family’s FAFSA produces a zero expected family contribution, the Guidelines direct courts not to award post-secondary expenses at all, because the federal aid formula has already found the family lacks the resources.2Indiana Courts. Indiana Child Support Rules and Guidelines
The Student’s Own Share
Courts expect the student to carry part of the cost. Scholarships, grants, student loans, education savings, trust funds, and earnings from part-time or summer work all get counted. The Guidelines tell judges to consider “all cost-reducing programs available to the student,” so a child who has skipped financial aid applications will find it harder to win a favorable order.2Indiana Courts. Indiana Child Support Rules and Guidelines
Academic Record
Grades and test scores matter. The statute makes the child’s aptitude and ability a factor, and in practice a student who has shown academic commitment is a stronger candidate for parental support than one who has not.3Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-16-6-2 – Expenses for Childs Education and Health Care; Title IV-D Fees
What the Order Can Cover
An educational support order can pay for the reasonable costs of an undergraduate program: tuition, mandatory fees, books, necessary supplies, and room and board when the child lives on campus or away from a parent’s home. It applies to colleges, universities, and vocational or trade schools.
Two hard limits shape what the order will actually pay.
The obligation stops at the undergraduate level. The Indiana Supreme Court has held that the post-secondary education statute does not reach graduate school, law school, medical school, or other advanced degrees. Parental duties under this law end with a bachelor’s or equivalent program.
The court can cap contributions at the in-state public rate. The Guidelines give judges discretion to limit each parent’s share to what it would cost to attend an Indiana state-supported college or university. If the child chooses an expensive private or out-of-state school, the judge may hold each parent’s contribution to the in-state number. The cap is not automatic; when family income and academic achievement justify a higher figure, the court can allow it.2Indiana Courts. Indiana Child Support Rules and Guidelines
Conditions the Student Has to Keep Meeting
An educational support order is not open-ended. The Guidelines recommend that every order include conditions the student must satisfy to keep receiving support, and courts routinely include them.
Chief among these is a minimum level of academic performance. The statute does not name a specific GPA, but most orders set one, and a student who falls below it risks losing the support. The Guidelines also suggest requiring the student or custodial parent to give the noncustodial parent a copy of the child’s high school transcript and each semester’s college grades.2Indiana Courts. Indiana Child Support Rules and Guidelines That transparency keeps both parents in the loop and gives either side grounds to seek a modification if performance slips.
Filing the FAFSA every year is a practical requirement even when the order does not spell it out. The court needs current aid information to set each party’s share, and skipping the FAFSA makes it impossible to assess the grants and loans the student could be using.
How to File the Petition
The petition is filed in the court that handled the original divorce, paternity, or child support case. Either parent or the child can file, either in person at the clerk’s office or through Indiana’s electronic filing system, depending on local rules.
A strong petition puts a full financial and academic picture in front of the judge. Plan to bring:
- Each parent’s income, earning ability, assets, and liabilities.
- The child’s high school transcripts and college acceptance documents.
- A cost breakdown from the institution the child plans to attend, covering tuition, fees, room, and board.
- FAFSA results, scholarship awards, grant letters, and any education savings or trust fund details.
Once filed, the petition has to be served on the other parent. The court then sets a hearing where both sides present evidence, and the judge decides whether to order contributions, in what amounts, and under what conditions.
Enforcement If a Parent Stops Paying
Educational support orders sit outside Indiana’s Title IV-D child support enforcement system. The Department of Child Services has stated that IV-D services do not cover the establishment, modification, enforcement, or accounting of post-secondary educational expense orders.4Indiana Department of Child Services. DCS IV-D Policy Manual Chapter 20 Section 03 – Post-Secondary Educational Expenses
If the other parent stops paying, you go back to court yourself. A judge can issue a garnishment directed to the non-paying parent’s employer, but that is a separate mechanism from the standard income withholding used for regular child support.4Indiana Department of Child Services. DCS IV-D Policy Manual Chapter 20 Section 03 – Post-Secondary Educational Expenses Because enforcement runs through private action rather than a state agency, collecting can take more effort than collecting standard support.
Federal Tax Benefits That Offset the Cost
Parents ordered to pay college expenses have two federal tax tools worth planning around.
The American Opportunity Tax Credit provides up to $2,500 per year for the first four years of undergraduate study. The full credit is available when modified adjusted gross income is $80,000 or less, or $160,000 for joint filers; a reduced credit is available up to $90,000, or $180,000 joint. The student must be enrolled at least half-time in a degree program.5Internal Revenue Service. American Opportunity Tax Credit Only the parent claiming the child as a dependent can take the credit, so coordination between divorced parents matters.
Payments made directly to a qualifying educational institution for tuition are also unlimited and tax-free for gift tax purposes. They do not count against the $19,000 annual gift tax exclusion. The exemption covers tuition only, not room and board, books, or fees. If you are paying tuition under a court order, sending the money directly to the school rather than reimbursing the other parent preserves this treatment.