Maintenance for my adult son.
April 8, 2011 | 30,00 EUR | answered by Bernhard Müller
My son will be turning 19 in a few days and is currently attending a vocational high school. He will be taking the qualification for university entrance in spring/summer 2011. Additionally, he has already repeated the 10th grade in order to meet the admission requirements for the vocational high school. I have no contact with him as he does not wish for it. He now wants to pursue a vocational training (occupational therapist). Furthermore, I have 3 other children, 2 of whom live in a boarding school for which I have to pay about 1500 euros in child support. Since the underage children have priority, my question is whether I can ask him to start a vocational training now in order to help me out financially.
Dear questioner,
According to § 1609 BGB, unmarried minor children are ranked first, while adult children who no longer live in the household of their parents or one parent are ranked fourth.
However, this only applies to the amount owed as maintenance. This is determined by the Düsseldorf Table.
If the costs for a boarding school exceed the amount owed according to the Düsseldorf Table, the minor children are not given priority due to this additional need. This is because it is not legally owed. Rather, it is the parents' private decision to send their children to a boarding school, which should not come at the expense of other maintenance recipients.
Although your 19-year-old son is obliged to start a training immediately and complete it quickly, the decision of whether this will be a school education as an occupational therapist or another vocational training is up to your son.
You cannot demand that he pursue a different education than the one he prefers.
Only if he does not immediately secure the school training place he prefers, can you demand that he takes on other jobs during the waiting period.
The obligation to provide maintenance extends until the end of the first training. If he earns money during the training, his income will be taken into account for the maintenance requirement.
However, you can demand that he clarifies whether there is BAföG or vocational training assistance according to §§ 59 ff SGB III for the school education as an occupational therapist.
If his training is eligible for assistance, you can demand that he takes advantage of this support.
It is advisable to request that he submits the necessary applications and then provides you with either the approval notices or, if his school education is not eligible for support, the rejection notices.
If he is entitled to support, the support would be credited towards the maintenance requirement.
Best regards,
Bernhard Müller Attorney at Law
