Can Child Support Be Sent Directly to the Child?

QUESTION
Can child support be sent directly to the child?

ANSWER:
Child support for a minor child is generally paid to the parent who has been granted personal custody of the child by a court decision (typically in proceedings on the adjustment of parental rights and obligations).

Court decisions ordering the payment of child support usually specify that it is to be paid “to the hands of the mother/father” (e.g., Regional Court Banská Bystrica, Case No. 11CoP/15/2022).

However, the court may allocate part of the child support to the creation of so-called savings. According to § 63(3) of Act No. 36/2005 Coll. on the Family (the “Family Act”):
“If the financial circumstances of the obligated parent allow, (…) the court shall specify, when determining child support, the amount intended for savings and order the obligated parent to deposit that amount into a special account in the name of the minor child, to be opened by the parent with custody. Funds on the account may only be used with the court’s consent.”

Once the child reaches the age of majority, child support may be paid directly to them.

QUESTION
I have a 19-year-old daughter who lives with her mother, but she has been earning her own income for a year now while still studying in high school. Is her father still obliged to pay child support to the mother? And second, when my support obligation ends, does it need to be officially or formally terminated?

ANSWER:
Regarding the first question — your daughter is already an adult under the law, capable of making her own decisions and managing her affairs. For this reason, she no longer requires a legal representative or someone to manage her property on her behalf. Therefore, you may pay child support directly to your daughter, even if the court decision states that the support is to be paid “to the hands of the mother.” Ultimately, the entitled person in a support obligation is the child, not the parent. The fact that your daughter is still studying at secondary school does not prevent direct payment to her.

Regarding the second question — under § 62(1) of the Family Act, the parental duty to support a child (including an adult child) lasts until the child is “capable of supporting themselves.” This ability is assessed comprehensively, taking into account age, health condition, education, employability, and similar factors. Even gaining employment or completing secondary school (which may enable employment) is not, by itself, a reason to automatically terminate the obligation. Both legal theory and court practice generally hold that the duty continues until the completion of university education in a specific study program, at which point the child is presumed prepared for a career and thus “capable of self-support.”

Under § 78 of the Family Act, “court decisions on support may be changed if circumstances change.” A legitimate change of circumstances would include completing university and obtaining employment, which establishes the ability to be self-supporting (see, e.g., Regional Court Prešov, Case No. 24CoP/144/2021).

If your obligation was established by a court, it must likewise be terminated by court decision. If you conclude, based on the above criteria, that your child is now able to meet their living needs independently and the support is no longer serving its purpose, you may file a petition for termination of child support for an adult child. In this petition, you should describe the reasons why continued support is no longer appropriate and state the date from which you request the obligation to be terminated.

If you need assistance preparing the petition, you can contact us at office@akmv.sk.