Divorce and alimony: overview
- Separation maintenance and post-marital maintenance must be assessed independently of one another.
- Post-marital maintenance is only an option if a spouse cannot take care of himself due to his circumstances.
- In addition, maintenance only has to be paid if the performance of the maintenance debtor is also given in view of his income.
Difference maintenance separation and post-marital maintenance
The Entitlement to separation support ends at the time of the divorce at the latest. As the name suggests, separation maintenance explicitly refers to the period of separation.
The post-marital spousal support is independent of separation support to assess and must also be claimed again or even sued.
Separation maintenance is based on the premise that a Spouse with little or no income does not fall into a financial hole due to the separation. This gives you the chance to make ends meet during the separation year and to position yourself for the future after the divorce so that you can take care of yourself.
Divorce and maintenance: Where can a maintenance obligation arise?
- Between spouses during a marriage
- Between registered life partners during the partnership
- Between spouses or life partners after separation
- Between spouses or life partners after divorce
- Between relatives (blood relatives)
- Between the parents of an illegitimate child
Divorce and maintenance: principle of personal responsibility
To § 1569 BGB the principle is that every spouse is given responsibility after the divorce, to take care of his own maintenance. Only when he is unable to do so does he arrive Right to post-marital maintenance towards the other spouse in question.
Usually arise from the division of roles in marriage marital disadvantageswho can establish a right to maintenance. It used to be the rule that the woman quit her job after the wedding and looked after the house and children.
In return, the husband took care of the spouse's livelihood. Section 1570 BGB grants spousal support for the care of a childif the spouse cares for and educates the child for at least three years after birth.
However, if the Before childless and a spouse continued to work after the marriage and only became unemployed during the separation, this usually applies general life risk.
Post-marital spousal support for a partner who is also unemployed after the divorce is therefore only possible in exceptional cases if the latter Partner has lost the job completely without fault and remains unemployed even through no fault of her own. Anyone who would basically be able to take care of themselves is not entitled to maintenance.
By the way: In the case of mutually acceptable divorces, the use of an online divorce is recommended. So you can save time and money and avoid long journeys. The BRIGITTE cooperation partner is an example of various online providers Legalbird.
Requirements for maintenance:
- Neediness: The need describes the inability to maintain oneself appropriately in accordance with section 1602 of the German Civil Code. Living expenses cannot be adequately covered either from reasonable work or from existing assets.
- Performance: Those who can provide maintenance without endangering their own reasonable maintenance are deemed to be efficient. The productivity itself is based on the actual income as well as the reasonable use of one's own workforce. A fictitious income can also be calculated as a basis or usable assets can also be included.
Forms of need
After the divorce, every spouse has to take care of himself. There are exceptions above all for the care of children together. There are also exceptional cases due to old age, illness, ailments, unemployment maintenance, top-up maintenance, training maintenance or divorced maintenance for reasons of equity.
- Childcare maintenance: Anyone who is unable to work after divorce due to small children is entitled to childcare support (§1570 BGB). This applies for a minimum of three years after the child is born. After that, the person receiving maintenance is obliged to work again, if not full-time.
- Maintenance due to unemployment: As already mentioned, it is important in this case that the maintenance spouse can demonstrate that it is not possible for him to find a new job. This form of spousal support is only an option if it is not due to age or illness.
- Increase maintenance: If a spouse has a higher income that has significantly shaped the living conditions in the marriage, an increase in maintenance may be an option. This also comes into play as a supplement to other forms of maintenance.
- Maintenance due to illness: If someone is unable to pursue a professional activity due to an illness, illness maintenance is an option. The disease must be demonstrated with medical certificates.
- Training maintenance: Those who dropped out of training shortly before or during marriage or did not take up training can receive maintenance until a new training is completed in the event of a divorce. However, he has to start or continue an apprenticeship as soon as possible. This training should also be necessary for the spouse to gain a foothold in the job market.
- Fair maintenance: This form of maintenance comes into question if there are other serious reasons that prevent a spouse from gainfully employed and it would be grossly unreasonable not to pay maintenance.
Calculation of maintenance
The amount of post-marital maintenance is primarily determined by the family courts based on the maintenance law guidelines of the corresponding higher regional courts determined. First, the maintenance-relevant income of both spouses must be determined, in the same way as separation maintenance.
Taxes, social security contributions, work-related expenses of 5 percent and pension costs are deducted from gross income up to 23 percent of gross income. In this respect, the ex-partner Child support according to the Düsseldorf table (see below), this must also be deducted.
If the divorced spouse who is subject to maintenance is not employed, the result is Maintain three-sevenths of adjusted net income (almost 43 percent). For the deductible, the amount of 1,200 euros applies as security. However, the specific calculation of maintenance is always different and depends on the individual case.
Claim maintenance
If maintenance claims are not voluntarily fulfilled, then they can be brought before the court. The jurisdiction lies with the family courts, which are also responsible for divorces. This regulates in detail Family Procedures Act (FamFG).
The claims are no longer enforced as in the past, but instead requested by an application. In a so-called maintenance procedure, it is up to the judge to make a decision on maintenance. The decision can be changed later if the underlying relationships of the spouses also change.
Divorce and maintenance: when does the entitlement expire?
The maintenance obligations end with the death of the person entitled to maintenance or the person obliged to maintain them. If divorced maintenance can still be claimed for the past, the claims on the heirs are transferred as a liability.
Divorce and maintenance: everything for child support
Child maintenance results from the situation that parents are obliged to support their children. If the parents separate and divorce, the parent who looks after the child in the household fulfills his or her duty through provided meals and accommodation. The other spouse has child support in financial form to pay.
The parent subject to maintenance is entitled to Deductible (personal use)in order to secure its own existence. This self-maintenance is:
- In the case of non-employed maintenance persons: 960 euros
- In the case of employed maintenance persons: 1,160 euros
- Towards adult children: 1,400 euros
How much is child support?
The Dusseldorf table has the function of making child maintenance understandable. The table is updated every two years and used by all family courts.
The Düsseldorf table measures what the parent's dependent parent receives on adjusted net income and how old the child is. There are four ages:
- 0 – 5 years
- 6 – 11 years
- 12-17 years
- Children of legal age
It will Half of child benefit is allocated to each parent. In the Düsseldorf table you can see exactly how high your basic value of maintenance is depending on the age of the child and your adjusted net income.
You can also find important information about the divorce application, the divorce costs and the general process of a divorce from us.