Alimony, also called spousal support or spousal maintenance, is money one spouse is ordered to pay the other during or after a divorce. The purpose is to limit the financial harm a divorce causes to the lower-earning spouse, especially after a long marriage or where one spouse left the workforce. There is no national alimony statute. Every state writes its own rules about who qualifies, how much is paid, and for how long, so the answer in your case depends heavily on where you file.
This post explains what alimony is, the main types, the factors courts weigh, how long it lasts, when it can be changed or ended, and how the federal tax treatment changed after 2018.
What is alimony?
Alimony is a transfer of income from one former spouse to the other, set by a court order or by a written agreement the court approves. It is separate from child support, which is money for the children and is calculated under a different formula in every state. It is also separate from the division of property, which splits what the couple already owns. A judge can order alimony, property division, and child support in the same case, and the three interact: a spouse who receives a large share of marital property may receive less alimony, or none.
Alimony is not automatic. The spouse asking for it generally has to show a need for support and that the other spouse has the ability to pay. In a short marriage between two earners with similar incomes, courts often award nothing.
The main types of alimony
States use different labels, but most awards fall into a handful of recognizable categories.
Temporary alimony, often called pendente lite support (Latin for "pending the litigation"), is paid while the divorce is still in progress. It keeps the lower-earning spouse afloat until the case is final. It ends when the divorce is finalized and is replaced, if appropriate, by one of the post-divorce types below.
Rehabilitative alimony is the most common post-divorce form. It supports a spouse for a defined period while that spouse becomes self-supporting, for example by finishing a degree, completing job training, or re-entering the workforce after years of raising children. It is tied to a plan and a timeline.
Durational alimony is support for a set number of years, used in many states for marriages of moderate length where permanent support is not warranted but a fixed bridge is. The duration is often capped at a fraction of the length of the marriage.
Permanent alimony continues indefinitely, until the recipient remarries or one party dies. It has become much less common. Several states, including Florida, have moved away from permanent alimony in favor of durational awards, so do not assume it is available where you live.
Reimbursement alimony repays a spouse who supported the other through an investment in earning capacity, classically by paying the bills while the other spouse attended medical or law school. It compensates a past contribution rather than meeting a current need, and it is usually a fixed sum.
What factors do courts weigh?
Because alimony is discretionary, statutes give judges a list of factors rather than a single formula. The specifics vary by state, but the recurring factors are similar:
- The length of the marriage. Longer marriages are far more likely to produce alimony, and longer awards.
- Each spouse's income, earning capacity, education, and employability.
- The standard of living established during the marriage.
- The age and the physical and emotional health of each spouse.
- Contributions to the marriage, including non-economic contributions such as homemaking and raising children, and contributions to the other spouse's career or education.
- The financial resources of each spouse after property is divided, including separate property.
- Childcare responsibilities that limit a spouse's ability to work.
Some states add marital fault, such as adultery, to the list; many no-fault states forbid the court from considering it. A handful of states have adopted formulas or guidelines that produce a presumptive amount and duration based on income and the length of the marriage, but even those usually let a judge deviate for good reason.
How long does alimony last?
Duration depends on the type of award and the length of the marriage. Temporary alimony lasts only until the divorce is final. Rehabilitative alimony lasts as long as the rehabilitation plan reasonably requires. Durational alimony runs for the fixed term in the order. Many states use a rough guideline that ties duration to a percentage of the marriage length, with longer marriages (often those past a 20-year mark) more likely to support open-ended or longer awards.
Most alimony also ends automatically on certain events regardless of the term: the death of either spouse, or the remarriage of the recipient. In many states, support can also be reduced or terminated if the recipient begins living with a new partner in a marriage-like relationship, sometimes called cohabitation. The exact trigger and the proof required differ by state.
When can alimony be modified or terminated?
Unless the parties agreed to make it non-modifiable, most alimony can be changed if there is a substantial change in circumstances that was not anticipated when the order was entered. Common examples include the paying spouse losing a job or retiring, the receiving spouse getting a significantly better-paying job, a serious illness, or the recipient's remarriage or cohabitation. The spouse seeking the change has to file a motion and prove the change; alimony does not adjust on its own.
Parties can also limit modification by contract. A marital settlement agreement can make alimony non-modifiable in amount, duration, or both, and courts generally enforce those terms. Lump-sum alimony, paid all at once or in fixed installments that total a set figure, is typically not modifiable because it is treated as a fixed obligation rather than ongoing support.
Is alimony taxable?
The tax treatment changed for agreements signed after 2018. Under the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, for any divorce or separation agreement executed after December 31, 2018, alimony payments are not deductible by the paying spouse and are not counted as income to the recipient. This reversed roughly 75 years of prior law, under which the payer deducted alimony and the recipient reported it as taxable income.
For agreements executed on or before December 31, 2018, the old rules generally still apply: the payer can deduct the payments and the recipient includes them in income, as the IRS explains in Topic No. 452. There is a wrinkle for older agreements that are later modified. If a pre-2019 agreement is modified after 2018 and the modification expressly states that the new federal treatment applies, the post-2018 rules take over.
This shift matters in negotiation. Because the payer no longer gets a deduction, the after-tax cost of alimony rose for higher earners, which has pushed settlement numbers and bargaining dynamics in many cases. Child support, by contrast, has never been deductible by the payer or taxable to the recipient, and that did not change. State income tax treatment is separate from federal treatment and can differ, so confirm how your state handles it before relying on a number.