Child Support: How Do Private Schools Factor Into the Equation?
Whether private school costs are covered by child support depends on the facts of your case and how North Carolina’s guidelines apply.
When Private School Costs Get Factored In
Many separated parents wonder whether they can afford private school tuition, and whether it factors into child support. North Carolina’s Child Support Guidelines are the statewide presumptive standard for calculating support, but they don’t automatically account for private school costs. Courts may add tuition as an extraordinary expense in certain circumstances, particularly when the child was already enrolled in private school before the separation or when both parents’ income supports it.
What Are the North Carolina Child Support Guidelines?
The North Carolina Child Support Guidelines are the schedule and worksheets the courts use to set child support in every case where the parents’ combined income is under the Guidelines cap. The basic obligation is a number from a table based on combined monthly income and the number of children, split between the parents in proportion to income and adjusted for the custody schedule. The Guidelines then add three categories of expense on top of the basic obligation: work-related child care, the child’s health insurance premium, and “extraordinary expenses.” Private school tuition, if it is included at all, comes in through that last category.
What Are Extraordinary Expenses?
The Guidelines define extraordinary expenses as expenses for attending a special or private elementary or secondary school to meet a child’s particular educational needs, and expenses for transporting the child between the parents’ homes. Other expenses may be treated as extraordinary when the court finds them reasonable, necessary and in the child’s best interest, for example the cost of tutoring, therapy or a competitive activity the child has long participated in. Extraordinary expenses are not automatic. The judge decides whether to include them, and if so, adds the amount to the basic obligation and divides it between the parents in proportion to their incomes.
What Factors Do Courts Consider in Private School Cases?
The statute leaves the decision to the judge’s discretion, and judges do not treat private school as a given. The factors that tend to decide these cases are:
- The child’s history. A child who has attended the same private school for years, particularly with both parents’ agreement while they were together, is far more likely to have tuition included than a child a parent now wants to enroll for the first time.
- The parents’ ability to pay. The court looks at whether the family paid tuition comfortably before separation and whether both households can absorb it now. Tuition that would leave a parent unable to meet basic obligations is rarely ordered.
- The child’s particular educational needs. A documented learning difference, a special program the public school does not offer, a religious education the parents chose together, or a child with an established peer group and academic success at the school all weigh in favor of inclusion.
- Whether the parents agreed. A separation agreement or prior consent order that addresses private school will usually be enforced. Testimony that both parents chose the school, toured it or signed the enrollment contract matters.
- The quality of the available public option. Judges are reluctant to find that a strong public school is inadequate, but they will consider it when the private school serves a need the public school cannot.
But what factors make a judge more likely to make such an award? In practice, continuity and consent carry the day. The strongest case is a child already enrolled, doing well, in a school both parents chose, with tuition the family paid without strain before separation. The weakest is a unilateral decision to enroll a child after separation in a school the other parent never agreed to and cannot afford.
How Private School Tuition Is Handled in an Order
When tuition is included, the order will usually state the annual amount, divide it by twelve and add each parent’s share to the monthly support figure, or direct that each parent pay a percentage of tuition directly to the school as it comes due. The second approach avoids one parent collecting money meant for the school, but it requires clear language about deadlines and what happens if tuition increases. Orders should also say what happens if the child changes schools or a parent’s income changes significantly.
If your combined income exceeds the Guidelines cap, the Guidelines do not apply and the court sets support based on the child’s reasonable needs and the parents’ ability to pay. Private school is treated as one of the child’s needs in that analysis and is often more readily included in high-income cases. Read more on how North Carolina child support is calculated.
Private School & Child Support FAQs
Is private school tuition automatically included in child support?
No. It’s not part of the standard guideline calculation, but a court can add it as an extraordinary expense depending on the circumstances.
What factors matter most?
Courts often look at whether the child was already attending private school, each parent’s income, and whether the expense is reasonable given the family’s circumstances.
Can we agree to split private school costs ourselves?
Yes, parents can agree to share these costs in a separation agreement, which can avoid the need for a court to decide the issue.
Can I be ordered to pay for a private school I never agreed to?
It is possible but uncommon. The court weighs whether the child has an established history at the school and whether the tuition is affordable for both parents. A parent who enrolls a child after separation without the other parent’s consent usually bears the cost unless the court finds a particular educational need.
Does private school tuition count if we make more than the Guidelines cap?
Yes. Above the cap the court sets support based on the child’s reasonable needs and the family’s standard of living, and private school the child has been attending is generally treated as one of those needs.
What about college tuition?
North Carolina child support ends at 18 or graduation from high school, whichever is later, up to age 20. Courts cannot order a parent to pay for college. Parents can agree to college costs in a separation agreement, and that agreement is enforceable as a contract, so the time to address college is when the agreement is drafted.
Can extraordinary expenses be modified later?
Yes, on a showing of a substantial change in circumstances, such as the child leaving the school, a large tuition increase, or a significant change in a parent’s income. See our page on modifying child support.
Are extracurricular activities extraordinary expenses?
They can be, if the court finds them reasonable and in the child’s best interest, particularly for a long-standing activity such as competitive sports, music or dance. Routine activity fees are usually considered part of the basic obligation.
Related Reading
Questions About Education Costs in Your Case?
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