Alimony is a term used to describe court-ordered payments made to a spouse or former spouse as part of a divorce or separation arrangement.
Alimony, also known as spousal or maintenance payments in some regions of the United States, is a pre-determined amount paid to a spouse or former spouse on a regular basis after a divorce or separation. A legal decree or court ruling specifies the payment arrangements and requirements for alimony.
Key Points
- Alimony payments are monetary transfers from one ex-spouse to another that are legally required to sustain the other’s living.
- In most circumstances, payments are made when one spouse earns more money than the other.
- The payer may face civil or criminal prosecution if he or she refuses to pay or does not keep up with alimony payments.
- If both spouses have equal annual wages or if the marriage is very fresh, alimony payments may not be made. At the outset of the alimony decree, a judge—or both parties—might specify an expiration date after which the payer is no longer obligated to provide financial support to their spouse.