Terminating Child Support

Answer:

In New York State, child support runs to the age of 21. What you do when your child is about to turn 21 depends on how you are paying child support. If you have an agreement and a judgment of divorce that requires a direct payment of child support and doesn’t involve the Support Collection Unit, you can simply stop on your child’s 21st birthday unless your agreement says support runs past that date. If it’s direct pay, you can just stop paying. If your child support is being paid through the Support Collection Unit, it would be a good idea for you to file a petition seeking to terminate child support six to four months prior to the end date of the support obligation. You want to make sure that family court and the Support Collection Unit are on the same page and that your support will not run past the age when your child turns 21.