Vermont Alimony Guidelines: How Spousal Maintenance Works

Vermont calls it "spousal maintenance" rather than alimony, but the concept is the same: court-ordered financial support from one spouse to the other after divorce. Unlike child support, Vermont has no formula or calculator for maintenance — it's determined by judicial discretion based on statutory factors.

The Two Types of Spousal Maintenance

Vermont recognizes two distinct forms of maintenance under 15 V.S.A. § 752:

Rehabilitative maintenance is short-term support designed to help a spouse become self-sufficient. It typically covers the time needed to complete education, job training, or career re-entry. A spouse who left the workforce for ten years to raise children might receive rehabilitative maintenance for two to four years while they earn a degree or professional certification.

Compensatory maintenance is long-term or permanent support for marriages of significant duration where a major income gap exists. This applies when one spouse sacrificed career advancement to serve as the primary homemaker or caregiver, creating an earning disparity that education alone won't close. In a 25-year marriage where one spouse earned $150,000 while the other stayed home, compensatory maintenance may continue indefinitely or until a significant change in circumstances.

How Judges Decide: The Statutory Factors

To award maintenance, the court must first find that the requesting spouse:

1. Lacks sufficient income or property to meet their reasonable needs, and
2. Cannot support themselves through appropriate employment (or is the custodian of a child whose condition makes outside employment inappropriate)

If both conditions are met, the judge weighs several factors to determine the amount and duration:

• The financial resources of the requesting spouse, including marital property received in the division
• The time and expense needed to acquire education or training for appropriate employment
• The standard of living established during the marriage
• The duration of the marriage — longer marriages typically support larger awards
• The age and physical/emotional condition of each spouse
• The ability of the paying spouse to meet their own needs while paying maintenance

Vermont does not use a formula. Two cases with identical income levels can produce different maintenance awards based on marriage length, health, and the sacrifices each spouse made during the marriage.

The Critical Deadline You Can't Miss

This is the single most important rule about Vermont spousal maintenance: you must request it at the time the divorce is finalized. If the final decree doesn't include a maintenance award — or the parties don't explicitly reserve the right to request it in their stipulation — neither spouse can ever request maintenance in the future.

There is no second chance. If you think you might need maintenance but aren't sure, include a reservation clause in your Final Stipulation (Form 400-00878) that preserves the right to request it later. Failing to do this closes the door permanently.

Modification After the Decree

If maintenance was awarded, either party can request a modification by showing a "real, substantial, and unanticipated change of circumstances" since the original order. Common triggers:

• The paying spouse loses their job or suffers a significant income reduction
• The receiving spouse gets a substantial raise or remarries
• A health crisis changes either party's financial situation

Modification requires filing a post-judgment motion (Form 600-00228) and paying a $90 court fee. The burden of proof is on the party requesting the change.

Maintenance automatically terminates when the receiving spouse remarries, unless the divorce decree specifically states otherwise.

Tax Treatment

Since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, spousal maintenance payments are no longer tax-deductible for the payer or taxable income for the recipient in divorces finalized after December 31, 2018. This applies to all Vermont divorces finalized today.

This means the paying spouse bears the full tax burden of the maintenance amount. Factor this into negotiations — a $2,000 monthly maintenance payment costs the payer $2,000 after tax, while the recipient receives $2,000 tax-free.

Maintenance vs. Property Division

Vermont handles these as separate issues, but they interact. A judge who awards a larger share of marital property to one spouse may award less maintenance, and vice versa. The total financial picture — property division plus maintenance — is what the court aims to make equitable.

Property division is final and cannot be modified after the decree. Maintenance can be modified. This distinction matters when negotiating: taking more property in exchange for less maintenance gives you certainty, while accepting less property with more maintenance creates ongoing financial dependency on your ex-spouse.

For a complete guide to evaluating your maintenance situation — including a financial needs worksheet — see the Vermont Divorce Filing Process Guide.

See more Vermont guides →