Child support is generally intended to help with the costs of raising the child—including food, clothing, shelter, and education—but laws vary from state to state and are often unclear on the extent to which child support payments are intended to help the custodial parent pay for half of school supplies, health care, braces, dental care, uninsured medical care, transportation (car), daycare, sports camps, cheerleading camps, school trips, social activities, and extracurricular activities.

Most state laws (statutes) don’t identify the specific child-rearing costs to which the custodial parent is required to contribute payment from child support and other resources—and because these issues are frequently the source of parental conflict, parents should identify all expected future costs and agree to the process for sharing them.

Because child support obligations generally end when the child turns 18, moves to attend college, dies, or gets married, college expenses are generally not child support obligations. But because college tuition and the associated living expenses are substantial, some parents attempt to address these costs in divorce or other legal proceedings. Depending on the age of the child at the time of divorce and the parents’ financial resources, the funding of a 529 plan (qualified tuition plan) for the child is one option for parents to consider.

In Indiana, child support is designed to cover the costs associated with raising a child, such as food, clothing, shelter, and education. However, Indiana law does not provide an exhaustive list of specific expenses that child support must cover. Instead, the Indiana Child Support Guidelines offer a framework for determining the amount of support, which takes into account the needs of the child and the ability of parents to pay. These guidelines presume that the child support calculated will cover basic needs and some additional expenses, but they do not explicitly mandate how the custodial parent must use the funds for specific costs like school supplies, healthcare, or extracurricular activities. Parents are encouraged to discuss and agree upon the handling of these additional expenses during custody proceedings. Regarding college expenses, Indiana law does not typically consider these as mandatory child support obligations. However, parents can voluntarily agree to contribute to post-secondary education costs, and such agreements can be incorporated into the legal arrangements. One common method for planning for college expenses is through the establishment of a 529 college savings plan, which can be arranged privately between parents outside of the child support framework.