Key Takeaways:
- Spousal support is court-ordered payments intended to help a dependent spouse ease financial hardship.
- There are many factors that determine if payments are necessary, such as the length of the marriage, standard of living, age, earning potential, health, and more.
- There are three types of spousal Support in Oregon. Transitional, compensatory, and maintenance.
- Transitional spousal support awarded to one party to help them back to single life.
- Compensatory support can be awarded when one party makes sacrifices or financial contributions to further education or career prospects for the other.
- Maintenance support is ordered when there is a sizeable disparity in earning power.
- Spousal maintenance can be temporary or continue indefinitly.
- The court may award a combination of any of the three types.
You encounter many expenses in the process of ending your marriage. Not only do you have to pay attorney’s fees, court costs, and charges for filing paperwork, but others follow in the wake of divorce. One of the biggest common expenses is when the court awards spousal support to your ex.
There are expenditures associated with setting up a new home, your tax status changes, and you may wind up paying all the bills from a single paycheck for the first time in years. If there are children involved, you may have to pay child support. But when the court orders spousal support, this is one of the most significant expenses you face.
What Is Spousal Support?
Also called alimony or spousal maintenance, spousal support is court-ordered payments intended to help a dependent spouse get back on their feet or ease financial hardship.
After the property division has been handled, if one spouse has additional needs, spousal support often plays a part.
If each side can maintain roughly the same lifestyle enjoyed during the marriage, this may not come to pass. But if there is a substantial gap or any of multiple other factors, it does.
Related Reading: Dividing Debt During Divorce in Oregon
What Factors Affect Support Payment Amounts?
The court considers many things when determining spousal support. Among others, the list includes:
- Length of the marriage.
- Standard of living experienced during the marriage.
- Age of the requesting spouse.
- If one spouse financially supported the other.
- If a spouse has a physical disability.
- The mental and emotional health of the dependent party.
- Outstanding financial obligations.
Related Reading: How is Property Divided in Divorce?
What Types Of Spousal Support Are There?
Oregon has three types of spousal support. Less formulaic than child support, the amount and duration of the payments vary a great deal depending on the situation. In most cases, the number is based on need and what is just and equitable given the circumstances.
Transitional Support
Transitional spousal support is precisely what it sounds like. It’s awarded to one party to help smooth over the move from marriage back to single life. Shorter in duration and not usually as long-term a commitment, this is most common in brief and mid-length marriages.
Transitional support usually comes into play to help one spouse get training or education that aids in advancing job prospects and earning potential.
Related Reading: Common Financial Mistakes in Divorce
Compensatory Support
Less common than the transitional variety, the court may award compensatory support in some cases. If the division of property skews substantially to one party, this comes into play.
In situations where one party contributed a great deal to the career and future financial prospects of the other, the judge may also award this. For example, if you worked full-time to support your partner through college. Then the court may order this type of support.
Of the three types, this is the least common.
Related Reading: What You Should Know About the Cost of Divorce
Maintenance Support
When it comes to longer marriages, the court often mandates you or your spouse pay maintenance support. This type of payment is awarded most often when there is a sizeable disparity in earning power. In many cases, this is a gap that may never close.
The court can order temporary maintenance support, but these payments can continue indefinitely and remain open-ended. This is especially true when one spouse may be unable to find suitable future employment due to health issues or other reasons.
While these are the three types of spousal support, the court can also award a combination. For example, the court may order larger payments during the post-divorce transition period. But once situations become more settled, that may shift to a smaller amount.
Related Reading: Support Modification Facts
How Are Spousal Support Payments Taxed?
The sweeping tax plan Congress passed at the end of 2017 made substantial changes to divorce settlements, specifically how the government taxes spousal support.
Prior to December 31, 2018, these payments constituted income for the receiving party. The government taxed them as such. These financial disbursements were considered an ‘above-the-line’ deductible for the paying spouse.
As of January 1, 2019, for new court orders that include spousal support provisions, the party paying spousal support is not able to deduct this amount. Instead, the recipient must now pay taxes on this amount.
So, if you have a spousal support order that was in place before 2019, the old regulations still apply. However, if you modify a pre-existing order, the modification will be subject to the new laws.
Related Reading: Creating an Effective Divorce Strategy
What if One Spouse Remarries?
In general, spousal support doesn’t automatically change in cases where either party remarries. Even if the household income drastically shifts.
In some cases, the court may alter the original agreement, but if you’re looking for this, you generally have to file a case to modify the existing orders. To accomplish this, you must prove a substantial change in circumstances. But even then, courts are often reluctant to change a preexisting order.
In the best of circumstances, support modification is still a long, expensive uphill battle.
Related Reading: Can My Ex Come After My New Spouse’s Income?
How Can You Protect Yourself?
Because spousal support modification is so difficult, it’s critical to be vigilant when establishing it in the first place.
Once the amount is set, it can be time-consuming and costly to alter. So be patient and make sure you completely understand the situation before signing anything.
Financial matters following divorce have a huge impact on your life moving forward. No one wants to start their next chapter in a hole. As things can become so tangled, it will likely be in your best interest to consult an experienced attorney. This may give you the best chance for an optimal outcome.