Alimony in Florida

Florida's alimony statute was substantially rewritten by Senate Bill 1416 in 2023. Permanent alimony has been abolished. Under the current version of Florida Statutes § 61.08, the court may award only four forms of alimony, each with its own purpose, duration cap, and amount cap.

The Two Threshold Findings: Need and Ability to Pay

Before awarding any alimony, the court must make two specific findings:

• The spouse seeking alimony has an actual need for support
• The other spouse has the ability to pay

Both findings must rest on the financial affidavits, tax returns, and proof of actual living expenses. Need is not just a function of the lifestyle during the marriage -- it is measured against what the recipient can earn or could reasonably earn with vocational evaluation.

Length-of-Marriage Categories

The 2023 reform created three categories that drive the duration cap:

• Short-term marriage: less than 10 years
• Moderate-term marriage: 10 to 20 years
• Long-term marriage: 20 years or more

The length is measured from the date of marriage to the date the divorce petition was filed.

The Four Forms of Alimony

Temporary Alimony

Awarded during the divorce case under Florida Statutes § 61.071. It ends when the final judgment is entered.

Bridge-the-Gap Alimony

Designed to help a spouse transition from married to single life. Capped at two years. Cannot be modified in amount or duration. Terminates on the death of either party or remarriage of the recipient.

Rehabilitative Alimony

Provides funding for a specific, defined plan to redevelop a career or acquire the education or training needed to re-enter the workforce. The recipient must submit a written rehabilitative plan. Capped at five years. May be modified or terminated on completion or noncompliance with the plan, or a substantial change in circumstances.

Durational Alimony

Provides economic assistance for a set period after a marriage of any length, except a short-term marriage of less than three years, where durational alimony is generally not available. The duration is capped as follows:

• Short-term marriage (less than 10 years): durational alimony may not exceed 50% of the length of the marriage
• Moderate-term marriage (10 to 20 years): may not exceed 60% of the length of the marriage
• Long-term marriage (20+ years): may not exceed 75% of the length of the marriage

The amount of durational alimony is capped at the lesser of (a) the recipient's reasonable need, or (b) 35% of the difference between the spouses' net incomes.

Permanent Alimony Is Abolished

For petitions filed on or after July 1, 2023, courts may not award permanent alimony. Existing permanent alimony awards from final judgments entered before that date remain in effect under the law in place when they were entered, subject to modification.

Retirement and Modification

A payor of durational alimony who reaches normal retirement age and actually retires may move to reduce or terminate alimony. The court considers the payor's age and health, the type of work, the customary retirement age in that field, the recipient's financial resources, the impact on each party, and other equitable factors. Bridge-the-gap alimony is not modifiable. Rehabilitative and durational alimony may be modified on a substantial change of circumstances.

Supportive Relationships and Cohabitation

Under Florida Statutes § 61.14, an alimony award may be reduced or terminated if the recipient enters into a "supportive relationship" with someone with whom the recipient resides. The statute lists factors the court considers, including the duration of the relationship, joint ownership of property, pooling of assets, and shared expenses. Cohabitation alone is not enough -- there must be evidence of mutual economic support.

The Statutory Factors the Court Must Weigh

Once need and ability to pay are established, the court determines the type, amount, and duration of alimony by applying the factors enumerated in Florida Statutes § 61.08(3). These factors are not optional considerations -- the trial court must make written findings on each, and an appellate court will reverse an award unsupported by such findings. The statutory factors include:

• The standard of living established during the marriage and the anticipated needs and necessities of life for each party after the dissolution
• The duration of the marriage
• The age, physical condition, mental condition, and emotional condition of each party, including whether either party is disabled and the resulting impact on the disabled party's ability to provide for his or her own needs
• The resources and income of each party, including the income generated from both nonmarital and marital assets distributed to each party
• The earning capacities, educational levels, vocational skills, and employability of the parties and, when applicable, the time necessary for either party to acquire sufficient education or training to find appropriate employment
• The contribution of each party to the marriage, including services rendered in homemaking, child care, education, and career building of the other party
• The responsibilities each party will have with regard to any minor children the parties have in common, with special consideration given to the need to care for a child with a mental or physical disability
• Any other factor necessary for equity and justice between the parties, which the court must specifically identify in the written findings

The 2023 reform also confirmed that adultery may be considered. The statute permits the court to consider the adultery of either spouse and any resulting economic impact -- for example, dissipation of marital funds spent on a paramour -- when determining the amount of alimony, if any, to be awarded.

Imputation of Income to a Voluntarily Unemployed or Underemployed Spouse

A common litigation flashpoint is the contention that one spouse has deliberately reduced earnings to inflate need or shrink ability to pay. Florida courts have broad authority to impute income -- to treat a party as earning what he or she could earn -- when the party is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed without legitimate justification. The evidentiary path typically involves three components:

• The party's recent work history, including W-2s, 1099s, prior tax returns, and employment applications
• The party's occupational qualifications, including degrees, licenses, certifications, and continuing education
• Prevailing earnings in the community for the relevant occupation, established through a vocational evaluation, salary surveys, Bureau of Labor Statistics data, or job postings

The court must make specific findings before imputing income, including the amount imputed and the factual basis for it. Imputation is not punitive -- it is a reality check used to ensure that the alimony calculation reflects what a party reasonably can earn, not what the party has chosen to declare.

Tax Treatment After the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

For divorce or separation instruments executed after December 31, 2018, alimony is no longer deductible by the payor and no longer includable in the recipient's gross income under federal law. This represented a fundamental shift from decades of prior tax practice. The practical effect is that every after-tax dollar of alimony costs the payor a full pre-tax dollar -- the federal subsidy that historically encouraged generous alimony settlements is gone. Pre-2019 awards generally remain governed by the prior deduction-and-inclusion regime, but a modification of a pre-2019 award can inadvertently bring it under the new rules if the modification expressly states that the new tax treatment applies. Skilled drafting in the marital settlement agreement is essential to preserve the intended tax treatment.

Securing Alimony With Life Insurance

Under Florida Statutes § 61.08(6), the court may order the payor to purchase or maintain a life insurance policy, a bond, or otherwise secure the alimony award with assets, to the extent necessary to protect the recipient from the payor's death. The court must make specific findings on the availability and cost of insurance, the payor's insurability, the financial impact on the payor, and the special circumstances warranting the security. A blanket order requiring insurance without such findings is reversible error. The amount of insurance ordered must be proportionate to the unpaid alimony obligation, not the full marital lifestyle indefinitely.

Lump-Sum Alimony

The 2023 reform eliminated lump-sum alimony as a separate statutory category, but a court retains authority to order any form of alimony to be paid in a single payment or installments rather than periodic monthly payments, where the unique facts of the case warrant it. Lump-sum payments are useful when the payor's income is irregular, when there is hostility likely to produce repeated enforcement litigation, or when the recipient has an immediate need that periodic payments cannot meet. Once made, a lump-sum payment is final and is not subject to modification or termination on remarriage, supportive relationship, or death.

The Financial Affidavit and Mandatory Disclosure

Every Florida alimony case requires each party to file a sworn financial affidavit on Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure Form 12.902(c) (long form) where gross annual income is $50,000 or more, or Form 12.902(b) (short form) where it is less. The affidavit is the central evidentiary document in every alimony hearing. It must list:

• All sources of monthly gross income, including wages, self-employment, bonuses, commissions, dividends, interest, rental income, pension and retirement distributions, Social Security, and any in-kind compensation
• Allowable deductions, including federal income tax actually withheld, FICA, mandatory union dues, mandatory retirement contributions, and health insurance premiums
• All actual monthly living expenses, broken down into housing, transportation, food, clothing, insurance, medical, and other categories
• All assets and liabilities, including bank accounts, brokerage accounts, real estate, vehicles, business interests, retirement accounts, credit card balances, loans, and contingent liabilities

Mandatory disclosure under Florida Family Law Rule 12.285 requires production of three years of tax returns, the most recent pay stubs, bank and brokerage statements, credit card statements, loan applications, and a host of other documents within 45 days of service of the initial pleading. A party who under-discloses, even inadvertently, gives the other side leverage that often determines the case.

Temporary Relief During the Pending Divorce

An alimony case rarely waits until trial. Most spouses who need support file a motion for temporary relief under Florida Statutes § 61.071 within weeks of the petition. At the temporary relief hearing -- typically a one- or two-hour evidentiary hearing -- the court can order interim alimony, temporary attorney's fees and costs, exclusive use and possession of the marital home, and temporary support for the children. The standards are the same need and ability to pay, but the evidentiary record is condensed. A poorly prepared temporary hearing often sets the pattern for the entire case, because the trial court is reluctant to disturb the status quo once it is established.

Enforcement of an Alimony Order

An entered alimony order is a money judgment, but it is also enforceable through the full coercive power of the family court. The principal enforcement tools include:

• Income deduction orders under Florida Statutes § 61.1301, which require the payor's employer to withhold alimony directly from wages and remit it to the recipient or to the State Disbursement Unit
• Civil contempt, which can include incarceration where the court finds that the payor has the present ability to pay and has willfully refused to do so -- the recipient must establish the failure to pay, after which the burden shifts to the payor to prove inability
• Writs of garnishment against bank accounts, brokerage accounts, and accounts receivable
• Judgment liens on real and personal property under Florida Statutes § 55.10
• Suspension of driver's licenses and professional licenses for delinquent obligors
• Interception of federal and state tax refunds through the Florida Department of Revenue

Arrearages accrue statutory interest at the rate set by the Chief Financial Officer of Florida, and that interest compounds the urgency of timely enforcement. A recipient who delays years before pursuing arrearages risks laches and proof problems, even though alimony arrearages are generally not subject to a fixed statute of limitations during the life of the order.

Common Defenses to an Alimony Claim

A spouse facing an alimony demand has several legitimate defensive positions to consider, and the choice among them should be made early. The most common include:

• No need: the requesting spouse has sufficient income, assets distributed in equitable distribution, or earning capacity to meet reasonable needs without support
• No ability to pay: the payor's actual income, after taxes and necessary expenses, leaves no surplus from which to pay alimony
• Short-term marriage: durational alimony is generally unavailable for marriages under three years, and the duration caps reduce exposure on marriages of less than 10 years
• Imputation of income to the requesting spouse when that spouse has deliberately suppressed earnings
• Enforceable prenuptial or postnuptial agreement that waives or limits alimony, subject to challenge on procedural and substantive unconscionability grounds
• Dissipation of marital assets by the requesting spouse, which can be used to reduce or offset alimony exposure

Appellate Review of Alimony Awards

A Florida alimony award is reviewed for abuse of discretion. The trial court has broad latitude, but its discretion is not unlimited. An appellate court will reverse where the trial court failed to make the written findings required by Florida Statutes § 61.08(2) and (3), where the findings are unsupported by competent substantial evidence in the record, or where the award exceeds the statutory caps on amount or duration. Because the appellate record is built at trial, a meticulous closing argument referencing each statutory factor and each piece of supporting evidence is critical to preserving the award -- or to setting up reversal.

Call 786-522-1411 to discuss alimony in your Florida divorce.