Contribution alimony (iştirak nafakası) requires the parent who does not carry out the child's day-to-day care to contribute to the child's maintenance and education costs in proportion to their financial means. The amount is not set by salary alone; the child's needs, both parents' living conditions, caregiving and the child's own income are assessed together. It is also not automatic that the full cost of a private school is placed on one parent, or that it is recovered separately from alimony in every case. [1]
Divorce does not end the responsibility of a mother or father toward the child. However, daily care, monthly payments and periodic costs such as school fees are not shared in the same way. A sound alimony calculation makes these contributions visible and prevents the same expense from being counted twice. This guide focuses on the costs of a minor child; the claim of an adult student for support for education calls for a different legal assessment.
Which needs does contribution alimony cover?
Read together, Articles 182, 327 and 330 of the Turkish Civil Code (TMK) take the child's needs for housing, food, clothing, health, education and development as the starting point. Alimony is not only a school instalment or spending on food. Transport suited to the child's age, social activities and learning tools may also fall within the budget, depending on the concrete circumstances. Even so, a choice that is documented does not create an unlimited payment obligation. [1]
The child's interest and ability to pay are assessed together
Reasonable continuity in the child's life matters. Regular private schooling before the divorce, a health need or a sport the child is continuing may be considered. The court examines whether the need is genuine, together with the parents' ability to sustain these expenses. The fact that a cost existed in the past does not mean that the whole amount is automatically accepted; the fact that a new cost is starting does not mean that it is automatically rejected.
The child's own income is also taken into account. However, the existence of property registered in the child's name does not, as a rule, remove the parents' duty of maintenance. Using the child's assets for expenses is a matter subject to the specific conditions of TMK Article 327 and the judge's permission. It is wrong to treat property registered in the child's name as a resource that may be spent freely on family costs. [1]
Daily care is also an economic contribution
Taking the child to school, being present during illness, and following homework and the daily routine is labour that goes beyond a money transfer. It cannot be decided that the parent who exercises custody contributes only if bank receipts show it. On the other hand, having custody does not entirely remove the financial contribution duty of a parent who has the means to pay. Caregiving and financial contribution are considered together. [1, 2] A similar distinction is discussed in What Happens to Alimony When Custody Changes?
Who can request alimony and before which court?
TMK Article 329 allows the parent who actually cares for the child to claim alimony against the other parent on the child's behalf. A child who has the capacity of discernment may also bring an alimony action; for a child without that capacity, the claim is brought where necessary through a trustee (kayyım) or a guardian (vasi). This arrangement follows from alimony being a right belonging to the child. Disputes over representation between the parents must also be resolved separately. [1]
The competent court is the family court; where there is no family court, the civil court of first instance acts as a family court. Child maintenance during divorce proceedings and an independent action brought after the divorce do not share the same case structure. In an alimony action brought after the divorce, the venue rule of TMK Article 177 on the place of residence of the alimony creditor is taken into account. The child's place of residence and representation must be determined correctly. There is no general mandatory mediation precondition for an alimony claim. [1, 5]
During divorce proceedings the child's subsistence is protected by interim alimony (tedbir nafakası). The period that follows once the divorce becomes final is assessed for contribution alimony. If the start date and the transition are unclear in the judgment, the operative part (hüküm fıkrası) should be examined first; interim and contribution alimony for the same period should not be added together as if they were two separate debts.
How is contribution alimony calculated?
The law sets neither a fixed percentage of salary nor a per-child tariff that applies to everyone. Two parents earning the same salary may have different housing costs, other caregiving obligations, rental income or different health needs for the child. Tables built from income ranges found online do not predetermine the court's decision. [1]
Separate regular and periodic costs
Entering monthly food costs and an annual school registration fee in the same column can make the budget look higher than it is. For calculation purposes, annual amounts may be shown as a monthly equivalent. However, this does not change the payment date in the school contract, nor the nature of the debt in the court decision.
| Expense group | Suitable documents | Points to note in the calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Food and clothing | Regular expenses, information on age and needs | Not all of the household's consumption is attributed to the child |
| Housing and bills | Lease agreement, utility bills | A reasonable share attributable to the child is explained |
| School and transport | Contract, payment plan, transport document | The annual fee and the monthly instalments are kept apart |
| Health and therapy | Physician's recommendation, invoice, insurance coverage | An amount that has been reimbursed is not claimed again |
| Courses and social activities | Registration, attendance and payment records | Need, continuity and financial means are examined together |
For example, spreading an annual education cost over 12 months in the budget does not justify adding the same annual amount again as an "additional expense". For each expense, the case file should show the period, the total fee, the amount actually paid and the person who paid it. This arrangement makes both the claim and the defence open to review.
The payslip is only part of real ability to pay
Wages, rent, commercial activity, company relationships and other regular income can all be investigated. Assets and income are not the same thing; however, a significant difference between registered income and living conditions must be explained. A claimant who presents an estimated earning as precise information, or a defendant who relies only on a low payslip, may not be enough. The court should be asked to obtain concrete records from the relevant institutions. [2]
The nature of the debts also matters. Mandatory housing costs, health costs and the needs of other children the parent is obliged to support may be taken into account. On the other hand, it cannot be assumed that every new credit instalment comes before the child's maintenance. The date, purpose and genuineness of a debt must be explained.
Are private school fees included in alimony?
Private school costs may form part of the child's educational need. First, the existing judgment and any approved protocol (onaylı protokol) are checked for what they say. If the school fee was already taken into account when the monthly alimony was set, requesting the same amount a second time creates a problem. If a separate payment obligation was clearly established, its scope, period and relationship to the other alimony items are examined. [1, 3]
Does a unilateral choice of school bind the other parent without limit?
One parent signing a school contract alone does not mean the other parent must pay every fee unconditionally. The earlier education arrangement, the child's adjustment, the reason for changing schools, the parties' past acceptance, economic capacity and more reasonable alternatives are considered in the concrete file. The child's interest cannot be used as a reason why the amount of an expense may not be discussed at all.
A private school fee may not include meals, transport, uniforms or courses. When preparing a request, the scope of the contract should be set out; the phrase "school expenses" should not leave different items unclear. The actual debt, rather than the list price before discounts or scholarships, should be the basis.
Can direct payments to the school be deducted from the monthly alimony?
Unilaterally replacing the monthly alimony set in a court judgment with direct payments to the school is not a safe method. What the payment relates to, the creditor's acceptance and the content of the judgment all matter. Where the bank transfer note states the child's name, the period and the type of expense, proof becomes easier; but the note alone does not create a legal right of set-off. Where there is a dispute, the payment account and the scope of the judgment are assessed together.
What points do the Court of Cassation decisions highlight?
Investigation of real income and school expenses
In the decision of the 3rd Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay 3. Hukuk Dairesi) dated 18 February 2016, E.2015/16775, K.2016/2159, the consistency of the income investigation with financial records and the adequate examination of school expenses are important. The decision supports regarding caregiving as a contribution. No general rule can be drawn from it that one parent bears the full cost of every private school fee. The strength of a file lies in documents that make the needs and means concrete. [2]
Explicit regulation of education payments alongside monthly alimony
In the decision of the 2nd Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay 2. Hukuk Dairesi) dated 4 March 2026, E.2025/10739, K.2026/2494, it was stated that where education expenses regulated separately in the protocol are brought within contribution alimony, a single maintenance obligation should be determined for the father. Instead of an unclear separate education debt, the chamber asked that the expenses be disclosed, the financial situation be investigated, and an enforceable amount be set that also covers the educational need. This concrete outcome is important; but obtaining such a decision does not automatically invalidate all earlier final rulings on school payments. [3]
The majority opinion in the same decision accepts that a claim in an independent contribution alimony action may be increased by amendment (ıslah), and the dissenting view should also be noted. The decision does not say that the procedure can be changed without limit in every file. The investigation stage, whether an amendment has previously been used, and the clarity of the claim are examined separately. [3]
How are changing needs and termination assessed?
TMK Article 331 allows alimony to be redetermined or removed when circumstances change. A start of schooling, mandatory treatment, a genuine change in income, or the existing amount becoming inadequate may be subject to this. If the judgment includes an annual increase, that provision is applied first; a new action brought because of a new need is kept separate from the automatic increase. [1]
| Situation | First review | Result to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| New school or health expense | Whether the expense is necessary, its cost, and whether it is already included in the earlier calculation | Treating every invoice as a separate alimony debt |
| Reduction in income | Continuity, genuineness and other sources of income | Stopping payment before a decision is made |
| Change in custody or actual care | The new care arrangement and the existing judgment | Assuming the old judgment disappears without any step |
| The child reaches adulthood | Date of majority and educational need | Automatically turning contribution alimony into education alimony |
Contribution alimony ends, as a rule, at majority. If education continues, a separate need for support may arise under TMK Article 328(2) (separate support need). The decision of the 3rd Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation dated 17 November 2016, E.2016/4171, K.2016/12901, is important for this distinction. An earlier judgment should not be assumed to apply in the same way to the period after majority. However, unpaid instalments that arose before majority do not disappear merely because the child has grown up. [1, 4]
Which mistakes should be avoided when preparing the case file?
First, the divorce judgment, information on its finality, the protocol and any later decisions changing it should be brought together. Then the child's current costs and each parent's contribution should be calculated for the same period. Comparing a school fee from one year with a salary from another year can be misleading.
Personal contact with the child and the duty to pay alimony are separate obligations. A dispute over visits should not be used as a reason to stop payments; and non-payment should not be used as a tool to obstruct the child's relationship with the other parent. Each such claim is pursued through its own legal remedy.
When gathering evidence, records should be requested through the court rather than accessing another person's account without permission or obtaining private correspondence unlawfully. The amount claimed, its basis and its start date should be stated clearly; where appropriate, security may be assessed under the conditions of TMK Article 334. Details on enforcing unpaid alimony and on increase actions can be read in the articles of this series devoted to those topics. [1]
Conclusion
The right starting point for contribution alimony is to see the child's real costs and every contribution by both parents in the same calculation. Private school fees, caregiving and direct payments should each be explained separately, and the judgment should establish a workable total obligation. When earlier decisions, cost documents and the current financial position are reviewed together in preparing a case, the risk of both an incomplete claim and a double recovery is reduced.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is contribution alimony paid by the father alone?
No. The mother and father share the duty of maintenance. Depending on the child's care arrangement and the parties' financial means, the mother may also be required to pay alimony. [1]
Can a fixed percentage of salary become alimony?
There is no fixed percentage that applies to all cases in the law. The child's needs and the conditions of both parties are examined together. [1]
Can alimony be requested if the parent with custody works?
Yes. Working does not automatically remove the other parent's duty to contribute; income and caregiving are taken into account in determining the amount. [1, 2]
Must the other parent pay the entire private school fee?
Not in every case. The need, financial means, the earlier arrangement and the scope of the court judgment are examined. If a contract or judgment places the entire school fee on one parent, that is assessed separately. [1, 3]
Can school transport and meal money be requested apart from alimony?
The existing judgment, the protocol, and whether these costs are included in the alimony calculation all matter. The same item should not be claimed a second time. [3]
Can a parent who is not allowed to see the child stop payments?
A dispute over personal contact does not automatically stop the duty to pay. A problem with contact with the child should be resolved through its own application process. [1]
If no alimony was requested for the child in the protocol, can it be requested later?
The child's future right to maintenance cannot be entirely removed by the parents' waiver. A claim can be brought after assessing the current need and financial means. [1]
Does becoming unemployed automatically end alimony?
No. The genuineness and continuity of the unemployment, other sources of income and the ability to pay are examined. The appropriate legal route must be followed to change the existing decision. [1]
Do old debts disappear when the child turns 18?
No. The end of contribution alimony does not remove unpaid instalments that arose before majority. Education support after majority is assessed separately. [1, 4]
Is mediation mandatory before an alimony action?
There is no general mandatory mediation requirement for an alimony claim. The type of action, representation and venue conditions should nevertheless be examined. [1, 5]
Sources and legal bases
- Turkish Civil Code No. 4721, in particular Articles 177, 182 and 327–334.
- Court of Cassation 3rd Civil Chamber, 18 February 2016, E.2015/16775, K.2016/2159. Official full text.
- Court of Cassation 2nd Civil Chamber, 4 March 2026, E.2025/10739, K.2026/2494. Official full text; majority and dissenting opinions reviewed together.
- Court of Cassation 3rd Civil Chamber, 17 November 2016, E.2016/4171, K.2016/12901. Official full text.
- Law No. 4787 on Family Courts, Articles 2 and 4; Law No. 6325, Article 1.