§ 19-6-15.1.Support proceedings for dependent adult children
Chapter 6. Alimony and Child Support · Article 1. General Provisions · Last amended 2024 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-6-15.1
Plain-English Summary
Georgia added this section in 2024. Under § 19-6-15(e), the duty to support a minor child generally ends at the age of majority, with a limited extension for a child still in secondary school that can’t run past age 20. This section reaches a different group: adult children who can’t support themselves. A “dependent adult child” is an unmarried person who has reached the age of majority and can’t support himself or herself because of a physical or mental incapacity that began before he or she reached that age. The incapacity must predate adulthood; one that starts later doesn’t qualify.
Four kinds of people may bring the case: either parent; a nonparent custodian; a guardian appointed to receive support for the adult child; or the adult child, or his or her agent under a durable power of attorney. The case must follow the jurisdiction rules in § 19-6-26. It may be filed any time after the child reaches 17 years and six months of age, unless an order for support was established while the child was a minor; the section doesn’t say what timing applies in that case. Ordinarily the amount is set in a separate support proceeding. There is one shortcut: if a court already has jurisdiction over the parties on a support issue, the parents may agree in writing to dependent adult child support in that existing case, but only if they submit the agreement to the court for approval before the child reaches 18 years of age.
Once the child is 18, support ordered after that point is paid only to the adult child or to his or her court-appointed guardian advocate, guardian, or agent under a durable power of attorney. The court may, in its discretion, irrevocably assign the support to a special needs trust set up under the federal Medicaid trust provisions the section names, so the adult child can keep means-based government benefits. The court may not route this support through the family support registry created by § 19-6-33.1.
The companion section, § 19-6-15.2, tells the court how to set the amount, and § 19-6-15(q) says the regular child support guidelines don’t apply to this kind of support.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I get child support in Georgia for my disabled adult child?
Yes, if the child qualifies as a “dependent adult child.” That means an unmarried person who has reached the age of majority and can’t support himself or herself because of a physical or mental incapacity that began before reaching that age. Either parent, a nonparent custodian, an appointed guardian, or the adult child (or his or her agent under a durable power of attorney) may bring the case. Whether support is ordered, and how much, is up to the court under § 19-6-15.2.
When can I file for support for a dependent adult child in Georgia?
The case may be filed any time after the child reaches 17 years and six months of age. That timing rule applies unless an order for support was established during the child’s minority, and the section doesn’t say what timing governs in that situation. Parents who already have a support case open can instead put a written agreement into that case, as long as they submit it to the court for approval before the child reaches 18 years of age.
Does the disability have to start before my child turned 18?
The incapacity must have begun before the child reached the age of majority. The definition covers an unmarried adult who is incapable of self-support because of a physical or mental incapacity that began before the age of majority. An incapacity that begins in adulthood falls outside this section, so the timing of the condition’s onset matters to the case.
Who receives support payments for an adult disabled child in Georgia?
Support ordered after the child reaches 18 years of age goes only to the adult child or to his or her court-appointed guardian advocate, guardian, or agent under a durable power of attorney. The court may instead irrevocably assign the support to a qualifying special needs trust to protect means-based government benefits. The court may not order the payments sent through the family support registry under § 19-6-33.1.
Will support payments affect my adult child’s SSI or Medicaid eligibility?
The statute gives the court a tool to guard against that. It may, in its sound discretion, irrevocably assign the support to a special needs trust established under the federal Medicaid trust provisions the section cites, to maintain the adult child’s means-based government benefits. Section 19-6-15.2 also requires the court to consider how its order would affect eligibility for programs and benefits. How any particular benefit program treats the payments is governed by that program’s own rules.
Amendment History
Laws 2024, Act 479, § 4, eff. July 1, 2024.