Alimony in Florida is calculated based upon need and ability to pay. The American Association of Matrimonial Lawyers provides a guideline, which takes 30% of the payer’s gross annual income minus 20% of the payee’s gross annual income to estimate the alimony. The court’s must look at whether the spouse requesting alimony has a need and then determine if the other spouse has the ability to satisfy, all or part, of that need. Typically, courts look at the surplus or deficit on each party’s financial affidavit when determining if alimony should be awarded. While there is no set formula for alimony in Florida, there are some guidelines provided.
Alimony is a big issue in many divorce or modification cases. Parties usually ask how much alimony am I going to have to pay? Or, if they are the spouse receiving alimony, how much alimony am I entitled to? In Florida, there is no set formula to calculate alimony. The legal standard in determining alimony is need and ability to pay. This means that the court must determine whether the spouse receiving alimony has a need and whether the spouse paying alimony has the ability to pay to satisfy all or part of that need. As this definition is rather ambiguous, the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers developed a formula to calculate alimony. This formula is merely a guideline and is not legally enforceable in Florida. Additionally, most judges do not follow the formula, but may consider it as a guideline in making their determination.
Permanent alimony or lifetime alimony may be awarded following a marriage of long duration (17+ years) or following a marriage of moderate duration (7-17 years) if such an award is appropriate upon consideration of the statutory factors, or following a marriage of short duration if there are exceptional circumstances. Typically, permanent alimony is only awarded when the length of the marriage exceeds 17 years. However, there are circumstances where permanent alimony may be awarded when the duration of the marriage is less than 17 years.
- Durational alimony may be awarded when permanent periodic alimony is inappropriate. The length of an award of durational alimony may not exceed the length of the marriage. Many courts will order durational alimony for a duration equal to half (½) the length of the marriage. However, the court has discretion to award alimony for up to the full duration of the marriage. Again, the length will be determined by arguing the circumstances and statutory factors.
- Bridge-the-gap alimony may be awarded to assist a party by providing support while the party transitions from being married to being single. Bridge-the-gap alimony is designed to assist a party with legitimate identifiable short-term needs, and the length of an award may not exceed 2 years.
- Rehabilitative alimony may be awarded to assist a party in becoming self-supportive. The length of the alimony award may not exceed the rehabilitation plan, which usually includes a plan to acquire education or training to develop appropriate employment skills or credentials.
- Temporary alimony is paid during the duration of the case to provide temporary support while the case is ongoing. Temporary alimony does not exceed the length of the case.
- Effective January 1, 2019, alimony will no longer be tax deductible to the person paying the alimony and taxable as income to the recipient.The individual paying alimony will no longer receive an off the top deduction. Alimony will become much more expensive for the individual that is required to pay the alimony. However, alimony will no longer be counted as income to the spouse that is receiving the alimony. The new alimony tax laws only apply to divorce finalized after January 1, 2019. The bill is not retroactive and will not impact current alimony agreements.