text: my son joined the national guard. he is 18.   does this mean he is considered to be emancipated? we live in indiana.  he plans to attend ivy tech in the fall.  indiana law states that emancipation occurs when you become a member of the armed services.  indiana national guard is a branch of the army national guard,  it is not a state militia.  so i am wondering if this means he will be automatically emancipated and my child support obligations will cease. he's an adult at 18 regardless of military status.  your child support obligations ended the day he turned 18.  if you have a contractual obligation to pay for college or otherwise support him past the age of 18, his enlisting in the military will not nulify the obligations, but you should no longer be paying standard child support to his other parent.