Entitlement to Educational Maintenance after Completing Secondary School when Undertaking a Voluntary Social Year
The question of whether there is an entitlement to educational maintenance from parents during a subsequent Voluntary Social Year (FSJ) after completing an eight-year secondary school education involves considerable complex legal dimensions. The Waldshut-Tiengen District Court (Case No. 6 F 74/18) addressed this issue in its decision dated July 29, 2019, discussing the fundamental principles of continuity of education and the conditions for maintenance obligations for adult children within the context of § 1610 of the German Civil Code (BGB).
Structure and Scope of the Educational Maintenance Claim
Maintenance Law Framework for Adult Children
According to § 1610 paragraph 2 BGB, children in principle have an entitlement to maintenance until the completion of an appropriate education corresponding to their aptitude and inclination. For adult children, these maintenance claims depend on a focused and seriously pursued educational phase that is closely connected in time to the acquisition of the general school leaving certificate. According to case law, a FSJ generally does not constitute such an education but serves primarily for vocational orientation and personal development.
Targeted Education and Permissible Orientation Phases
However, case law acknowledges that after completing school education, a limited period for vocational and personal orientation is permissible under maintenance law. Within the framework of a FSJ, such an orientation period may be present, provided that the transition between school education and the planned start of a seriously pursued further vocational training (e.g., studies or vocational training) takes place. It is decisive that the FSJ primarily serves to prepare for a specific training and does not constitute a permanent alternative career or life choice.
Decision Criteria in Individual Cases
Discretionary Scope and Reasonableness Aspects
According to § 1610 paragraph 2 BGB, parents are not obligated to finance arbitrary or repeated orientation phases. The courts therefore examine to what extent the completed FSJ is closely connected in time and purpose to a serious educational intention. Relevant factors include:
- The specific timeline between school graduation, the start, and end of the FSJ,
- the identifiable delays in education caused by the FSJ,
- a well-founded plan for further education after the FSJ,
- and the duration and nature of the FSJ concerning personal development and vocational orientation.
Differentiation: Orientation Year Versus Education-Equivalent Activity
An FSJ can individually be regarded as maintenance-relevant “waiting time,” but it is not automatically qualified as an educational phase within the meaning of § 1610 paragraph 2 BGB. Furthermore, the person entitled to maintenance must seriously and without culpable delay commence the training undertaken after the FSJ. Only in these circumstances can there be a maintenance claim for the period of the FSJ. An independent maintenance claim solely based on the FSJ without the connection to starting education does not exist.
Consequences of the Decision by the Waldshut-Tiengen District Court
Significance for Forward-Looking Maintenance Planning
The decision clarifies that when asserting educational maintenance for adult children during orientation phases such as the FSJ, the overall circumstances are always decisive. An automatic entitlement to financial maintenance during an FSJ cannot be derived from the law and established case law. Rather, the individual education planning of the child, the close temporal and spatial connection, as well as the specific educational intention, are decisive for the existence of a claim.
Essential Consideration Factors
For parents obligated to pay maintenance, the decision provides the opportunity to examine on a case-by-case basis whether and to what extent maintenance payments can be demanded for the FSJ. Conversely, adult children must demonstrate that the FSJ represents a sensible, necessary, and not excessively prolonged intermediate step toward seriously planned vocational training. If the orientation phase lasts too long or lacks a clear educational intention, the entitlement to educational maintenance lapses.
Conclusion and Outlook
The maintenance law evaluation of voluntary services after school completion remains a compact field of differentiated individual case decisions. An FSJ can – under strict conditions – still be covered by the maintenance claim as part of an orientation phase, but only if a financially needy, concrete preparation for education is evident and the period can be assigned to the purpose of targeted education commencement. Ultimately, the quality and consistency of the education planning in the specific individual case remain decisive.
For affluent individuals and families facing questions regarding education financing and the scope of their own maintenance obligations, an individual analysis of the overall situation is always recommended in case of uncertainties. The internationally operating law firm MTR Legal Attorneys supports clients in family law with detailed expert assessments and well-founded structuring of maintenance claims. Further information can be found under Legal Advice in Family Law.
