Under New Jersey law, both parents have a legal obligation to support their unemancipated children.  When the parents are separated, the parent who is not primarily living with the child (the “non-custodial parent”) can be ordered by the Court to pay child support. That child support obligation will continue until the child is considered to be emancipated by the Court or turns age 19 (see more information below). 

Once child support has been set by a court, if neither party takes any action in Court regarding child support, New Jersey child support payments collected through Probation automatically terminate when a child turns 19. (This is not the same as emancipation).  The Probation Department sends out a notice 180 days before the child’s 19th birthday. You may answer the notice with information that supports the continuation of support, such as proof that your child is disabled or is a full-time student in college or high school. If no answer is received, Probation will send a second notice 90 days before the child’s 19^th birthday.  If no response is received to the second notice, support will automatically end as of the child’s 19^th birthday.

If you are paying child support directly to the custodial parent and not through Probation, you must file a motion with the Court to stop the support when the child becomes emancipated. More on how to do that below.

A child can be considered emancipated and child support may end before a child turns 19 if the child gets married, enters the military, turns 18 and graduates high school and does not continue their education (or drops out of school), or gets a full-time job and no longer depends on parental support. You will need to file a motion with the Court to end child support if one of these situations applies.

The Probation Department won’t collect child support after a child turns 23, but it will collect back child support that is owed (arrears).  In the case of a disabled child who needs support to continue after age 23, the Court can order child support to continue if the child has a severe physical or mental incapacity that causes the child to be dependent upon a parent.

You will need to file a motion or application with the Court if you want to terminate child support, or request that child support extend beyond your child’s 19^th birthday. The forms you need are available online from the New Jersey Courts website, https://www.njcourts.gov/ along with step-by-step instructions.  There are two different packets of forms.  Your relationship with the other parent determines which set of forms you need to use.

How to file court papers

There are three ways to file court papers. 

• They can be filed electronically through a system called Judiciary Electronic Document Submission (JEDS). Information on how to file through JEDS can be found here.
• You can deliver your papers to the County Courthouse.
• You can mail your forms to the County Courthouse.

Addresses for the County Courthouses can be found here.

If You are Divorced – File a Motion Under the FM Docket

If you were ordered to pay child support as part of a divorce, you should carefully read the instructions and fill out the forms in the Family-Multipurpose Post-Judgment Motion Packet that can be found here.  You must complete all applicable forms in the packet, and another form called a Case Information Statement (if there are minor children).  You can find that form here.  You are responsible for filing and serving the other party with a copy of your motion.  Make sure that you keep a copy of your motion.

In your motion, you will state the reasons you are asking to terminate or continue the child support obligation.  If you have proof to support your claim, attach it to the motion. You can request “oral argument” where you appear in Court to explain your position but the Court does not always grant requests for oral argument so you should write down everything that you want the Court to know about your case in the event that your request is not granted. 

The fee for filing an FM motion is $50.  If you cannot afford this fee, you may submit a fee waiver request when you file your motion. A Judge will then decide if you are required to pay a filing fee.  The Court will notify you of the Judge’s decision.

The other party will have 15 days from the hearing date to file either an Answer to your motion (to oppose or agree with your request) or a Cross-Motion (to request the Court decide a related matter, like custody or parenting time). Then you will have eight days from the hearing date to file any response.

If You Were Never Married or are Married but Separated – File an Application for Modification Under the FD Docket

If you were never married, or you are married but separated, you will need to read and fill out the forms in the packet titled: “How to File a Request to Modify a Non-Dissolution ‘FD’ Court Order Previously Issued by the Court.”  The forms are available here.

There is a form titled “Application for Modification of Court Order.”  Use it to request termination or continuation of child support. Check off the reasons for that request on the list of options provided.

In the section marked “Additional Information Sheet,” you can include additional reasons for your request to terminate or continue child support.  You should also attach any proof that supports your claim.

The fee for filing an FD modification application is $25.00.  If you cannot afford this fee, you may submit a fee waiver request when you file your application.

You are not required to serve the other party with your motion. In FD cases, the Court will notify the other party and set a date for the application to be heard. No response is required to be filed in FD cases, but the other party will have 15 days from the hearing date to file a response to your application if they choose.

On your hearing date you may appear before a Family Part Judge or a Child Support Hearing officer (CSHO). If you appear before a judge, then the judge will make a decision based on the testimony and evidence presented.  If you appear before a CSHO, they will make a recommended decision on your application based on the parties’ testimony and evidence submitted during the hearing.  If both parties agree with the recommendation, then you will both sign the recommended order and you will receive a copy of the order signed by a judge in the mail.   If either party disagrees with the CSHO’s recommendation, that party can request to be seen by a judge.  You will either see a judge that day or you will be given a date to come back to Court to appear before a judge

If your child support order was entered under a domestic violence restraining order, click here for the appropriate forms.  Note that any application by a defendant to modify a child support order contained in a FRO must be sent to the Family Court to serve on the other party.  Any attempt by a defendant in the FRO to send papers directly to the other party could be considered a violation of the FRO.

If you disagree with the Order and believe that there is other information that should have been considered with your request, you may file a Motion for Reconsideration and include this new information. The motion must be filed within 20 days of receiving the signed Order.  If the judge denies the motion for reconsideration, then you will have 45 days to file an appeal to the Appellate Division.

You can find more information at:

https://www.njchildsupport.org/Services-Programs/Custodial-Parents/Termination/Emancipation