When you enter retirement, you will no longer receive an employee’s paycheck every month. Since spousal support, otherwise known as alimony, is generally calculated based on a person’s working income, one might think that with retirement will come the end of alimony obligations.
The answer to whether you will be obligated to pay alimony after you have retired will depend on the type of alimony you have been ordered to pay. The type of alimony that you were ordered to pay is probably based on many factors, including your former spouse’s role in the household as well as the terms of the divorce.
Temporary alimony
Temporary alimony is the most common type of alimony awarded. This will be awarded to a spouse when it is recognized that the divorcing spouse can work toward earning an income over time, after he os she has gained training or once the children are no longer dependent on care. In the case of temporary alimony, it is possible that the former spouse paying alimony will be relieved of his or her obligations once retired.
Permanent alimony
Often, permanent alimony is awarded to a divorcing spouse in a situation where both spouses have already reached retirement age. This is because both spouses will be subject to a pension going forward, and, therefore, the spouse awarded alimony will not be able to train for another profession.
If you want to know more about your alimony obligations as a retiree in Georgia, it is important to understand all aspects of the law. It may be possible to request an alimony modification if circumstances have changed.
