Gap year, voluntary service or work and travel: who pays support?

Does child support continue during a school exchange?

Yes, child support continues during a school exchange. An exchange year does not interrupt your child’s schooling, and your child remains entitled to support just as before. Ongoing support under the Düsseldorf table is still owed, even if your child spends a year living with a host family. The Higher Regional Court of Cologne decided this in the case of a ten-month exchange in the United States and left the table amounts unchanged. How the amount is worked out is explained in Child support: how to read the Düsseldorf table.

If you and the other parent have joint Sorgerecht (custody), both of you must consent to the exchange. A year abroad is a matter of substantial significance § 1687 (1) sentence 1 BGB. Which documents your child needs for the trip is described in Traveling with children: which travel documents do I need?

Who pays the costs of the exchange

Who pays the program fee, flights and insurance depends on how these costs are classified. Sonderbedarf (special needs) means only an irregular, exceptionally high need that could not have been foreseen § 1613 (2) no. 1 BGB. An exchange, however, is usually planned months in advance, so many courts do not accept its costs as special needs.

The costs may then count as Mehrbedarf (additional needs), meaning an extra need that arises over a longer period. Without prior consent, the other parent only has to contribute if the stay is objectively justified and financially reasonable for them. Both parents then bear these costs in proportion to their incomes § 1606 (3) sentence 1 BGB.

Courts do not rule consistently on this point. An agreement is therefore safer than any dispute. Talk to the other parent before you sign the contract with the exchange organization, and get their commitment in writing.

Is there support for a year abroad after finishing school?

After finishing school, your child only receives support for a year abroad if the year serves their education or training. An adult child is entitled to support during an appropriate education or training for an occupation § 1610 (2) BGB. The Federal Court of Justice allows young adults a phase of orientation in which delays have to be accepted. So what counts is what your child does during that year.

• Work and travel, au pair, traveling. As a rule, there is no claim here. Your child is not in education or training and usually earns their own money. The claim revives once vocational training or a university degree begins afterward. Kindergeld (child benefit) also usually stops during this period.
• Voluntary service. For the Freiwilliges Soziales Jahr (voluntary social year) and similar services, the Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt recognizes in principle a claim to support for education OLG Frankfurt, decision of April 4, 2018, 2 UF 135/17. The condition is that the service also serves career orientation. The case law of other Higher Regional Courts is not consistent. The pocket money from the service reduces your child’s need. As a rule, child benefit continues to be paid; for a service abroad, only under narrower conditions, for example if the sponsoring organization is based in Germany.

If your child is still a minor when the year begins, the other parent continues to owe child support in any case. Your child’s own income from the service is then partly credited against it.

Semester abroad and studying abroad

Support for education or training continues during a semester abroad. Without an agreement, however, parents only have to bear the extra costs of tuition fees, travel and a higher cost of living if three conditions are met together. The stay must be objectively justified for the educational goal and financially affordable for the parents. In addition, the extra costs must appear reasonable overall KG, decision of September 18, 2012, 17 WF 232/12.

For a full degree abroad, courts apply stricter standards. Also look into Auslands-BAföG, the federal student aid for studying abroad. Because the costs are higher, it can also fund students who get nothing in Germany because of their parents’ income.

Who claims the support

Until your child turns 18, the parent your child lives with claims the support. After that, the claim belongs to your child, and both parents owe them cash support in proportion to their incomes § 1606 (3) sentence 1 BGB.

If the other parent lives abroad, enforcement follows its own routes, described in Parent living abroad: how your child still gets child support.

The next step

At our firm, maintenance cases are handled by attorney Mieke Karcher. The first consultation costs up to €190 plus VAT, at most €226.10 in total. If we take on your case, this fee does not apply. How further fees are calculated is explained on our costs page. Our child support calculator gives you a first figure for ongoing support, and our page on separation and maintenance describes the overall framework.