Texas Alimony Laws: Spousal Maintenance and Support (2026)

Texas does not use the word "alimony" in its statutes. Court-ordered post-divorce support is called spousal maintenance, governed by Texas Family Code chapter 8. Eligibility is deliberately restrictive, and the amount is capped at the lesser of $5,000 per month or 20 percent of the paying spouse's average monthly gross income. Duration is tied to how long the marriage lasted.

Information last verified on June 1, 2026.

Estimate your situation: Try our free Texas alimony calculator to estimate spousal support and see the factors a Texas court weighs.

This page covers spousal maintenance and contractual alimony in Texas. For the child-support rules that apply in the same divorce, see Texas child support laws. For a side-by-side look at all 50 states, see Alimony laws by state.

What is spousal maintenance in Texas?

Texas Family Code chapter 8 governs court-ordered post-divorce support between former spouses. The statute uses the term "spousal maintenance" throughout. The word "alimony" does not appear in chapter 8, though Texas courts and attorneys commonly use it in informal discussion.

Spousal maintenance is money paid from one former spouse (the obligor) to the other (the obligee) after the marriage ends. It is separate from the division of marital property and separate from child support. A single divorce decree can include all three, but they are calculated and enforced under different rules.

Texas takes a restrictive approach by design. The legislature created chapter 8 in 1997 with the explicit goal of providing temporary support during a defined transition period, not a long-term income transfer. As a result, the eligibility thresholds, the dollar cap, and the duration limits are all written directly into the statute rather than left to judicial discretion.

Who qualifies for spousal maintenance in Texas?

Under Texas Family Code section 8.051, a court may order maintenance only when two conditions are both satisfied. First, the spouse seeking maintenance must lack sufficient property, including separate property, to provide for that spouse's minimum reasonable needs after the divorce. Second, at least one of the following qualifying circumstances must exist:

Family violence conviction. The other spouse was convicted of, or received deferred adjudication for, a criminal offense that also constitutes an act of family violence against the requesting spouse or a child of the marriage. The offense must have occurred within two years before the filing of the dissolution petition, or while the suit was pending.

Ten-year marriage plus inability to earn. Under section 8.051(2)(B), the marriage lasted 10 or more years and the requesting spouse lacks the ability to earn sufficient income to provide for minimum reasonable needs. This is the only eligibility ground that carries a marriage-length requirement.

Disability of the requesting spouse. Under section 8.051(2)(A), a spouse who is unable to earn sufficient income to provide for minimum reasonable needs because of an incapacitating physical or mental disability may qualify regardless of how long the marriage lasted.

Custodian of a child with a disability. Under section 8.051(2)(C), a spouse who is the custodian of a child of the marriage "of any age" requiring substantial care and personal supervision because of a physical or mental disability may qualify when those duties prevent the spouse from earning sufficient income to provide for minimum reasonable needs. Like the disability ground above, this one has no marriage-length condition, so a spouse from a marriage shorter than 10 years can still be eligible.

The presumption against maintenance

Section 8.053 adds an important procedural hurdle, and it applies to one eligibility ground only. There is a rebuttable presumption that maintenance under section 8.051(2)(B), the ten-year-marriage ground, is not warranted unless the requesting spouse demonstrates diligence in either earning sufficient income to meet minimum reasonable needs or in developing the necessary skills to do so during the period of separation and while the suit is pending. A court may deny maintenance on that ground to a spouse who did not make reasonable efforts toward self-sufficiency. By its terms the presumption does not reach claims based on family violence under section 8.051(1), on the requesting spouse's own incapacitating disability under section 8.051(2)(A), or on custody of a child with a disability under section 8.051(2)(C). If you are relying on the ten-year ground, ask a Texas family lawyer for a free case evaluation on documenting that diligence while the suit is pending (attorney advertising).

How much and how long: the Texas caps

The dollar cap

Texas Family Code section 8.055 limits a maintenance award to the lesser of:

• $5,000 per month, or
• 20 percent of the paying spouse's average monthly gross income.

Gross income is defined broadly and includes wages, salaries, commissions, overtime pay, tips, bonuses, dividends, interest, royalties, self-employment income, net rental income, severance pay, retirement benefits, pension payments, trust income, annuities, capital gains, and unemployment benefits. It excludes return of principal, federal public assistance, TANF payments, foster-care payments, VA disability compensation, Social Security benefits, SSI, and workers' compensation.

Duration caps

Section 8.054 ties the maximum duration of maintenance to the length of the marriage:

A critical limitation: section 8.054 requires the court to limit maintenance "to the shortest reasonable period" that allows the receiving spouse to meet minimum reasonable needs. The table above shows the maximum; courts are expected to order less when circumstances allow a shorter transition.

The exception is a spouse who qualifies because of an incapacitating physical or mental disability or because of the substantial-care needs of a disabled child. In those situations, maintenance may continue beyond the caps and is subject to periodic review rather than a fixed end date.

The section 8.052 factors

Within the caps, the court weighs the factors listed in section 8.052 to set the specific amount and duration. The eleven factors are:

1. Each spouse's ability to independently provide for minimum reasonable needs.
2. Education and employment skills of the spouses, and how long it would take the requesting spouse to obtain needed training or education.
3. Duration of the marriage.
4. The requesting spouse's age, employment history, earning ability, and physical and mental health.
5. The effect of child-support obligations on each spouse's ability to meet their own needs.
6. Excessive or wasteful spending, concealment, or fraudulent transfer of community property.
7. Contributions of one spouse to the other's education, training, or career advancement.
8. Property that each spouse brought to the marriage.
9. The requesting spouse's contribution as a homemaker.
10. Marital misconduct, including adultery and cruel treatment.
11. Any history or pattern of family violence.

No single factor is controlling. Courts weigh them together in light of the statutory caps.

Contractual alimony vs. court-ordered maintenance

Parties to a Texas divorce may negotiate a private agreement for one spouse to pay the other a sum after the divorce. When that agreement is incorporated into a court order, it is sometimes called "contractual alimony" or an "agreed maintenance order."

Contractual alimony is important for two reasons. First, it can exceed the chapter 8 caps. Because the parties are agreeing to the terms rather than asking a court to impose them, there is no statutory limit on the amount or duration they can set. A couple could agree that one spouse pays $10,000 per month for 20 years, and a Texas court may incorporate that agreement into a final decree even though a court could not have ordered those terms on its own.

Second, enforcement is more limited for amounts above the chapter 8 ceiling. Under section 8.059(a-1), a court may not enforce by contempt any provision of an agreed order for maintenance that exceeds the amount or duration a court could have ordered under chapter 8. Amounts within the statutory limits can be enforced by contempt; amounts above those limits must be enforced through other judgment-collection methods. This distinction matters in practice: contempt can lead to jail time; ordinary civil enforcement cannot.

Contractual alimony is also available in situations where a spouse would not have qualified for court-ordered maintenance at all, for example in a marriage that lasted fewer than 10 years with no family violence. The parties are free to agree on any terms they choose.

How spousal maintenance ends or changes

Automatic termination

Section 8.056 provides that a maintenance obligation ends automatically on the death of either party or upon the remarriage of the spouse receiving payments. No court action is required. Arrearages that accrued before the termination date remain collectible even after the obligation ends.

Cohabitation

A court may terminate maintenance if the receiving spouse cohabits with another person with whom that spouse has a dating or romantic relationship in a permanent place of abode on a continuing basis. Cohabitation does not automatically end the obligation; the paying spouse must file a motion and obtain a court order.

Modification

Under section 8.057, either party may ask the court that issued the order to modify or terminate it. The moving party must show a material and substantial change in circumstances that occurred after the order was entered. The court looks again at the section 8.052 factors when deciding whether and how to modify. Any modification applies only to payments that come due after the modification motion was filed, not to amounts already owed.

Two important limits apply. Under section 8.057(c)(2), a court may not increase maintenance to an amount or duration that exceeds the amount or the remaining duration of the original order, so time already elapsed under that order cannot be added back on. And a modification motion based on changed circumstances is not an admission of those changes for any other purpose in the same case.

Note also that section 8.057(d) closes the door on creating a maintenance obligation after the fact. A loss of employment, or circumstances that leave a former spouse unable to provide for minimum reasonable needs because of an incapacitating physical or mental disability, are not grounds for the institution of spousal maintenance for that former spouse's benefit when they arise after the divorce or annulment. The subsection limits only the institution of a new obligation. It does not restrict modification of an existing maintenance order, which stays available to either party under section 8.057(c) on a proper showing of a material and substantial change in circumstances.

Is spousal maintenance taxable in Texas divorces?

Federal tax treatment under the TCJA

The federal tax rules changed permanently for divorce agreements executed after December 31, 2018. Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017:

• The spouse who pays spousal maintenance cannot deduct the payments from federal taxable income.
• The spouse who receives spousal maintenance does not include the payments in federal taxable income.

For divorce or separation instruments executed on or before December 31, 2018, the prior rules continue to apply: the payer deducts the payments and the recipient reports them as income, unless the agreement is later modified and specifically adopts the new tax treatment. Because Texas divorces after January 1, 2019 use post-TCJA agreements, the deduction is not available for most current cases.

Contrast with child support

Child support is never deductible by the payer and never taxable to the recipient, regardless of when the divorce occurred. This has always been the rule under federal law and the TCJA did not change it. In a Texas divorce with both a spousal maintenance order and a child support order, only the maintenance component was ever subject to the deductibility rule, and only for pre-2019 agreements.

For tax questions specific to your situation, consult a tax professional or review IRS Topic No. 452 and IRS Publication 504.

General information only. This article explains Texas spousal maintenance law as written in the statutes and does not constitute legal advice. Spousal maintenance outcomes depend on the specific facts of each case and the judgment of the court. Texas law can change, and this page may not reflect the most recent legislative amendments. Consult a licensed Texas family-law attorney before making decisions about maintenance in your divorce.

Sources

The statutes and federal guidance cited in this article are listed below.

Last updated: June 1, 2026.

More Texas Laws

• Texas Child Custody Laws
• Texas Child Support Laws
• Texas Common Law Marriage Laws
• Texas Divorce Laws

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Texas have alimony?

Texas does not use the word alimony in its statutes. Court-ordered post-divorce support is called spousal maintenance and is governed by Texas Family Code chapter 8. The same concept can also arise by agreement of the parties, in which case it is often called contractual alimony.

How long do you have to be married to get spousal maintenance in Texas?

Only one eligibility ground carries a marriage-length requirement. Under section 8.051(2)(B), a spouse relying on a general inability to earn sufficient income must have been married 10 years or longer. The other grounds have no length condition: a qualifying family violence conviction under section 8.051(1), the requesting spouse's own incapacitating disability under section 8.051(2)(A), and being the custodian of a child of the marriage of any age who requires substantial care because of a disability under section 8.051(2)(C). A spouse from a marriage shorter than 10 years can qualify on any of those three.

How much is spousal maintenance in Texas?

The amount is capped at the lesser of $5,000 per month or 20 percent of the paying spouse's average monthly gross income (Tex. Fam. Code sec. 8.055). Within that cap, the court sets the specific amount based on the 11 factors in section 8.052, including each spouse's income and earning ability.

How long does spousal maintenance last in Texas?

Duration is capped by marriage length under section 8.054: up to 5 years for a marriage of 10 to fewer than 20 years, up to 7 years for 20 to fewer than 30 years, and up to 10 years for 30 or more years. A separate 5-year cap applies to sub-10-year marriages when eligibility is based on family violence under section 8.051(1). Courts must order the shortest reasonable period, not the maximum.

Can spousal maintenance be modified in Texas?

Yes. Either spouse may ask the issuing court to modify or terminate maintenance by showing a material and substantial change in circumstances after the order was entered (Tex. Fam. Code sec. 8.057). Under section 8.057(c)(2) a court cannot increase maintenance to an amount or duration exceeding the amount or the remaining duration of the original order. Separately, section 8.057(d) provides that a job loss or an incapacitating disability arising after the divorce is not a ground for instituting maintenance that was never ordered in the first place.

Is Texas spousal maintenance taxable?

For divorce agreements signed after December 31, 2018, no: the payer cannot deduct payments and the recipient does not owe federal income tax on them under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Agreements signed on or before that date follow the older rules where the payer deducted payments and the recipient reported them as income.

What is contractual alimony in Texas?

Contractual alimony is a private agreement between divorcing spouses for one to pay the other after the divorce. It is not subject to the chapter 8 caps on amount or duration, so the parties can agree to terms a court could not order. However, a court may not enforce by contempt any portion that exceeds what a court could have ordered under chapter 8 (Tex. Fam. Code sec. 8.059).