It is not uncommon for people going through a divorce to assume specific events will occur as the result of the divorce. In Florida, one of those assumptions may be that a spouse will be granted divorce alimony through the court, which is often also known as maintenance.
However, based on the laws of the state, divorce alimony is only granted in very specific situations. There are also different durations to receive alimony and different options for payment, all which need to be carefully considered based on the individual’s financial and tax situation.
Duration and Purpose
For purposes of maintenance payments, the duration of the marriage will be important. The three categories are those marriages less than 7 years, marriages of 7 to 17 years and long-term marriages of more than 17 years.
Short term types of alimony include temporary, bridge-the-gap and rehabilitative alimony. These are determined by the court prior to the divorce (temporary alimony) or to address adjustment during the transition as well as provide alimony during training for educational or vocational employment.
Typically, the short to medium length marriages will include bridge-the-gap and rehabilitative training to allow for adjustment and training. It may also include durational alimony that is provided for the length of time of the marriage. For example, if the couple was married for 4 years, the maximum time for this alimony would be 4 years.
Permanent alimony is typically provided for medium to long-term marriages and when one spouse does not have the ability to live to the standards set during the marriage. This will end should the receiving spouse marry or have the financial support of someone else living with them, even if they are not married.
Rehabilitative alimony, used to provide financial support for training after the divorce, is the only type of divorce alimony that continues even if the receiving spouse marries.
