Child maintenance from 18 to 21: studies, work and direct payment

23 September 2026

Arslan Advocaten

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Child maintenance from 18 to 21: studies, work and direct payment

Is your child turning eighteen? The maintenance obligation does not stop automatically. In principle, parents remain responsible for contributing to living and study costs until the child’s twenty-first birthday. From the age of eighteen, the entitlement lies with the young adult (jongmeerderjarige) themselves. Following a course of education is not a general condition for this maintenance obligation. The child’s own income and the actual costs can, however, affect the amount of the contribution.

Nederlands: Lees dit artikel in het Nederlands: Kinderalimentatie van 18 tot 21 jaar: studie, werk en rechtstreeks betalen

Türkçe: Bu makaleyi Türkçe okuyun: 18-21 yaş arası çocuk nafakası: öğrenim, iş ve doğrudan ödeme

Written by Öznur Batur, attorney at Arslan Advocaten, practising in personal and family law. Registered in the specialisation register of the Netherlands Bar (Nederlandse orde van advocaten) for personal and family law and criminal law. Last updated: 19 September 2026. General information is not legal advice on your own situation.

The eighteenth birthday therefore mainly changes who makes arrangements independently and how the financial situation is assessed. This article helps parents and young adults prepare for that transition, avoid misunderstandings about part-time jobs and set out clearly to whom payment is made.

What changes legally on the eighteenth birthday?

A child comes of age and, in principle, makes their own decisions about money and other personal matters. Parental authority ends. The maintenance relationship with the parents continues, but is described differently in law: a contribution towards the costs of living and study.

A contribution set by the court for a minor can, by operation of law, continue as a contribution for the young adult. It is therefore wrong simply to assume that entirely new proceedings are needed at the age of eighteen. Do, however, read exactly what the existing court order provides and whether any special circumstances apply.

The parent with whom the child lives no longer automatically represents the adult child. For consultations with a lawyer, changing an arrangement or collection, it must be clear who is acting and with what authority. Practical help from a parent remains possible, but must respect the independent position of the young adult.

Must payment be made directly to the child?

From the age of eighteen, the young adult is in principle the person entitled to the contribution. Paying directly into their account is then the obvious choice. If the child lives at home and the caring parent continues to pay many of the costs, a different practical arrangement may be appropriate. Record that arrangement clearly, with the child’s consent.

State the account number, the payment date and the purpose. Agree, for example, which part is available for personal spending and what contribution is paid to the household. This prevents the paying parent from believing they have met their obligation while the child says they have received nothing.

Do not make a one-sided arrangement solely between the parents about money to which the adult child is entitled. Also have it recorded who receives any old arrears. Amounts from before and after the eighteenth birthday may have to be treated differently in law.

The maintenance obligation also applies without studying

A common misconception is that parents only have to contribute until the age of twenty-one if their child is in full-time education. The statutory maintenance obligation towards young adults is broader. An obligation can also exist during a gap year, temporary work or while looking for a course.

That does not yet settle the amount. A young adult with sufficient means of their own may need less additional support than someone without income who has demonstrable study and housing costs. The specific need and the parents’ ability to pay remain decisive.

A discussion about motivation or school results must not be translated directly into ‘then I will stop paying altogether’. If the situation changes substantially, examine the financial consequences and the appropriate route for amendment. There are legal ways of assessing exceptional conduct, but a damaged relationship is not a general licence to stop paying.

How is a young adult’s need determined?

For young adults, the costs of living and study are considered. Think of housing, food, clothing, health insurance, transport, education and necessary study materials. The budget must reflect the actual situation and must not contain any items twice.

A student living at home has a different pattern of costs from someone renting a room elsewhere. A budget can also change during the year: tuition fees are paid annually, whereas rent and insurance recur monthly. So convert everything into a clear monthly amount and state which expenses are one-off.

General student standards can serve as a guide, but do not automatically replace an examination of personal need. A substantiated budget shows which costs actually arise and which resources are already available. That way, parents and child can discuss the same figures.

A part-time job: must maintenance go down?

Not every euro from a part-time job automatically leads to one euro less in maintenance. Examine how structural the income is, how many hours are worked and what can reasonably be earned alongside education or other commitments. A temporary summer job is not the same as a fixed income from full-time work.

Record the income with payslips and state whether the hours vary. Also look at the costs associated with the work and whether the chosen calculation fits the current circumstances. A peak month must not be used without explanation as a permanent monthly income.

If parents want to adjust a contribution on the basis of the child’s own income, involve the young adult in the arrangement. If an amount is laid down in a court order and no agreement is reached, a court amendment may be necessary. Unilaterally paying less can also create arrears after the eighteenth birthday.

Student finance, allowances and borrowing

For a young adult who is studying, student finance, the healthcare allowance and other resources may play a role. Their significance differs according to the type of provision and personal situation. A grant or allowance is not necessarily the same as borrowed money that must be repaid later.

The mere existence of an option to borrow therefore does not automatically mean that parents no longer have to contribute. Make clear which amounts are actually received, what conditions attach to them and which costs they cover.

Also check the consequences of changes: moving out, stopping a course or working more may affect government provisions. Use current decisions and notices from the bodies concerned. A budget based on outdated entitlements can misrepresent both the need and the parental contribution required.

Both parents remain relevant

The maintenance obligation does not rest solely on the parent who paid maintenance before the child came of age. Both parents may have to contribute according to their financial means. The parent with whom the child lives often also contributes in kind by providing housing, meals and other day-to-day necessities.

Map out such contributions carefully without attributing every household expense entirely to the child. The aim is a realistic division, not an artificially high bill for board and lodging. At the same time, costs that are actually borne should not remain invisible.

If parents have different abilities to pay, the division may be unequal. A new partner or other children can influence the financial assessment, but do not produce a simple standard outcome. In a complex blended family, have the maintenance relationships assessed together.

Moving into student accommodation: can the child decide that alone?

An adult child can in principle decide for themselves where to live. It does not follow, however, that every chosen housing cost must be paid in full by the parents without further scrutiny. The reasonableness of the costs, the course, the travel distance and the financial means are all relevant.

Discuss a planned move in good time. Besides the rent, also consider service charges, energy, furnishing, transport and insurance. Check whether there are any allowances or income to offset these. An incomplete budget can later lead to a conflict that could have been avoided through prior consultation.

Where there is no agreement, need and ability to pay must be assessed. A parent cannot simply refuse all maintenance because they disapprove of the move. Nor can the child expect, without scrutiny, that every more expensive housing choice will be funded.

A workable arrangement for the transition to eighteen

Start collecting information a few months before the birthday. Read the existing court order and draw up an up-to-date budget. Parents and child can then formulate a practical payment arrangement. It should be clear without becoming unnecessarily complicated.

Who receives the contribution, and from what date?
What amount is paid, and on what day?
Which fixed costs are also paid directly?
How is double payment avoided?
How and when are relevant changes reported?
When will those involved review the budget?
What happens to arrears from the period of minority?

Also address indexation and the relationship with the earlier court order. Do not use a general waiver without understanding which rights it affects. Where there is a clear title, recording the arrangement legally can help to prevent enforcement problems later.

What information may be requested?

Anyone who asks for a contribution or wants an amendment must be able to provide relevant financial information. Think of study status, a budget, income and housing costs. That does not mean that parents get unlimited access to all of an adult child’s personal data.

Agree on the documents needed and on secure exchange. A payslip or proof of enrolment may be sufficient for a particular item; full access to all private conversations is not necessary for that. Parents too must substantiate their ability to pay if it is in dispute.

If mistrust arises, have an adviser indicate which information is relevant for the legal assessment. This prevents a financial dispute from turning into a struggle for complete control over the young adult’s life.

If there is no contact with a parent

Having no contact is painful, but contact and maintenance are legally separate questions. A parent cannot in all cases make payment conditional on visits, phone calls or following a particular course. Nor does a young adult have to ‘buy’ a contact arrangement with financial agreements.

There may be exceptional circumstances in which conduct is relevant to the extent of the obligation. That requires a careful legal assessment. Anger about the relationship or the absence of a birthday message alone is not a reliable basis for ending a contribution that has been set.

Keep correspondence businesslike and, if necessary, limit it to financial information. An authorised representative or lawyer can help if direct contact is unsafe or unworkable. Make it clear on whose behalf they are acting.

What should you do if payment is not made?

The young adult can have payment arrears investigated themselves. Gather the existing court order, a monthly overview and bank statements. Check which amounts have still been paid to a parent and whether the child agreed to that.

Subject to conditions, the LBIO (the Dutch National Maintenance Collection Agency) can also collect for young people aged eighteen to twenty-one. Without a usable title, proceedings may be needed first. A lawyer can also assess whether determining or amending the amount is appropriate.

Do not let different people claim the same amounts at the same time without coordination. Distinguish between old arrears, current instalments and any recalculation. You will find more practical steps under maintenance not paid.

What happens on the twenty-first birthday?

The special maintenance obligation towards young adults in principle ends at the age of twenty-one. That does not mean that a question of maintenance can never arise again. Another statutory ground, particular need or a specific agreement on further support may be relevant.

So read any agreements about completing a course. A promise to contribute for the duration of a course of study can have independent significance. The exact wording and the circumstances determine what the parties may expect of each other.

Discuss the transition well in advance and distinguish between the statutory obligation, a contractual agreement and voluntary help. This prevents a study budget from suddenly disappearing because those involved assumed different end dates.

Example: a student living at home with a fluctuating income

In a fictitious example, Dani turns eighteen and starts a course. Dani lives at home and works in a shop from time to time. The paying parent wants to stop the entire contribution because Dani can now work. The other parent wants to keep receiving the full amount into the old account.

A better approach starts with the existing court order and a budget. This includes study expenses, insurance, transport and the contribution to the household. The fluctuating income is shown separately. Dani has a say in the payment route and consents to an agreed portion going to the parent Dani lives with.

If a permanent job later materialises, the budget is reviewed. It is not the birthday or a single payslip, but the combination of legal entitlement, need and ability to pay that determines whether an adjustment is needed.

Drawing up a budget with the young adult

A workable budget starts with actual expenses. Divide these into fixed monthly costs, annual costs and one-off expenses. Tuition fees or a necessary laptop cannot be treated in the same way as rent that recurs every month. Agree on how a one-off expense is shared and whether prior consultation is needed.

Then list the child’s own resources: structural wages, relevant allowances and the actual contributions of both parents. Indicate which amounts are uncertain. A young adult who only works during the holidays does not have the same income every month. An average can be helpful, but must be substantiated and adjusted if necessary when the work stops.

Make the overview something you can discuss together without parents checking every small expense. The aim is to determine what reasonable additional support is needed. Agree, for example, that major changes will be reported and that the budget will be reviewed at an agreed moment. That provides independence as well as sufficient financial clarity.

Dropping out of a course or taking a gap year

A change of course can raise new questions about costs and planning. Ask what the specific situation is: a temporary break, a switch, work or recovery after illness. The legal maintenance obligation until the age of twenty-one does not disappear merely because enrolment at an educational institution ends.

The need may, however, change. Tuition fees may no longer be payable, while other costs continue. A full-time job may provide more of the child’s own means than a limited student job. So assess the new budget and how stable the income is. An announced intention to look for work is not the same as wages received.

Parents and child can agree on sharing relevant information and reviewing the situation after a few months. Frame the arrangement around concrete financial facts. Avoid a general sanction under which every unsatisfactory study result automatically leads to zero payment. Such an arrangement cannot simply replace the statutory maintenance question.

If consultation reaches deadlock, an independent calculation is often more helpful than a discussion about who is making the right life choice. A lawyer can assess the existing title, need and ability to pay and explain whether an application for amendment is necessary. This keeps the dispute focused on the financial legal relationship and avoids needlessly mixing the child’s adult freedom of choice with the obligation to pay.

Frequently asked questions

Does my child have to study to receive maintenance until the age of twenty-one?

No. Studying is not a general condition for the statutory maintenance obligation from eighteen to twenty-one. The child’s own income and specific need can, however, lead to a lower amount.

Can a parent continue to collect on behalf of an adult child?

Not automatically. The young adult has their own position. For representation and payment arrangements, it must be clear that the child consents and what authority a parent has.

Does an existing court order automatically end at the age of eighteen?

Not necessarily. The law provides for contributions set by the court for minors to continue as contributions for young adults. Have the exact court order and circumstances checked before you stop paying.

Can income from a part-time job be deducted in full?

There is no general rule that every euro earned is deducted in full. The nature, extent and stability of the income and the child’s need must be assessed.

Who applies for an amendment?

From the age of eighteen, the independent position of the young adult must be taken into account in the proceedings. A lawyer can assess who is the applicant or an interested party and which ground for amendment fits the existing title.

Where can we get help with the transition?

Bring the court order, the current budget and income details for assessment. Through family law at Arslan, you can discuss the payment route and any amendment. For the basic calculation, the explanation of child maintenance is also relevant.