Hello:

This will depend on what any agreement or court order says for child support.

There is no fixed law on whether child support is payable after a child is age 18. There is an obligation generally to provide support while a child is in school full time, and is unable due to attendance at school to withdraw from parental charge or be financially self-sufficient. The amount of support can decrease if a child has his own means to contribute towards support such as from income, earnings, scholarships or loans. This issue can evolve as a child gets closer to completion of university or begins to attend a graduate program. Many cases have held that a child at an older age such as 24, and with a bachelor's degree, will no longer require parental support, and child support can be terminated. Courts often say that the duty to support a child in school is not necessarily to pay for all schooling that child may desire, but to obtain a basic level of education that might allow the child to be financially self sufficient. This is not absolute, and there are cases where courts have held that a child still needs such support, has reasonable goals in school requiring some further education to attain their career, and parents have means, then support may continue into a graduate degree program. Particularly if the parents are highly educated or had always discussed while marriage was intact in trying to promote that level of education in children, and if they can afford to continue payments, then support may continue even at age 24 and with one degree already obtained.

So it depends if a court here has ordered that support is to continue in these circumstances, given his age and level of education obtained already. Some orders may specifically say that support will continue to age 24, or until completion of x years of University. Other agreements or orders say that support will continue until the child is no longer a "child of the marriage", or a child as defined in the support legislation, and this status ends when the child is no longer attending school or not needing school to be financially self-sufficient or not under parental charge.

The fact that he will be going away to a different university is a significant change in circumstances, and if you wanted to seek a review of any current order of child support this change would very likely entitle such a review.

The court has often ordered child support when a child is attending university away from home, but would expect some indication of why this program is sought, or if there is a reasonable alternative closer to home at a reduced cost. If there is, the court may continue support but decline to make a parent pay towards the increased costs of taking the particular program or living in a different community. But just the fact that a child will live away from a parent does not mean that the child is automatically free of parental charge and able to be financially self-sufficient.