Iowa Ends Court Ordered College Support in Divorce Cases
What the amendment to Iowa Code section 598.21F means for divorcing parents
As of July 1, 2025, Iowa law no longer allows courts to order a postsecondary education subsidy in a dissolution case. That is a major shift from prior law and will likely change how lawyers and families approach college-expense provisions in settlements and decrees.
What the law said before
Before the amendment, Iowa Code section 598.21F gave courts authority to order a parent to contribute to a child’s postsecondary education expenses if good cause was shown. That meant a divorced parent could, in some cases, be ordered to pay part of a child’s college or other qualifying post-high-school educational expenses.
What the law says now
That authority is now gone.
The amended statute says: “The court shall not order either of the parties to pay a postsecondary education subsidy under a temporary order or final judgment or decree.” In plain terms, Iowa courts can no longer impose college-expense support as part of a divorce case. The amendment applies to orders, decrees, and judgments entered or pending on or after July 1, 2025. It is important to note that this amendment is not a basis to modify an order entered before July 1, 2025.
What this likely means going forward
The most immediate result is straightforward: new court-ordered college support is no longer available under section 598.21F. The more difficult question is what happens when parents agree to share college costs. Before the amendment, Iowa appellate decisions recognized that parties in a dissolution case could sometimes make their own agreements regarding future college expenses. That raises an important issue after the amendment: if the court cannot order college support, can parents still voluntarily agree to it and have that agreement enforced?
The early signs suggest Iowa courts will draw an important distinction between:
- a court-imposed obligation, which the statute now prohibits, and
- a voluntary agreement between the parties, which may still be enforceable if properly drafted.
What parents should keep in mind
For families resolving divorce matters now, the practical take-away is that if parents want to share college expenses, they should know that the court will not be able to order it without agreement of the parties. Instead, any agreement should be drafted clearly and specifically, including:
- what expenses are covered,
- how those expenses will be divided,
- whether scholarships and grants are applied first,
- how payments will be made, and
- what happens if there is a disagreement about school choice or cost.
The more definite the agreement, the better the chance it will function as intended.
Bottom line
- courts cannot order a new postsecondary education subsidy under section 598.21F,
- older pre-July 1, 2025 orders are not automatically undone, and
- future disputes will likely focus on whether and how parents can still bind themselves by agreement to share college expenses.
If you are negotiating a divorce settlement and want to address future college costs, careful drafting matters now more than ever. Schedule a consultation at Greenberg Law to review the specifics of your case and plan for the future!