Support Payments After a Divorce in New York
Divorce changes the lives of everyone in a family. It separates a life that was built by two people. This is a complex task, as a couple’s life together can be tied together in several different ways. It is because of this that one spouse may be required to make payments to the other even after the divorce is official. Two types of payments that are made from one spouse to another can be spousal support and child support.
Spousal Support
Spousal support is commonly referred to as alimony. When a couple combines their lives, their finances are often intertwined. This can make it difficult to separate them. In some cases, one spouse is the breadwinner of the family while the other is the caretaker. This can sometimes leave one spouse in an unfair situation after a divorce, as they do not have an income of their own to sustain themselves.
When this happens, one spouse may owe court-ordered financial support payments to the other spouses for a required period of time after their divorce. This allows the dependent spouse the chance to live on their own while they begin to gain independence.
Child Support
When a couple has children together, child support must be determined during the divorce. When a parent has physical custody, the child mostly lives with them. This requires that parent to provide the child with consistent shelter, clothes, food, and more. These expenses can become very expensive for one parent to handle. Because of this, a non-custodial parent is required to continue financially assisting their child after a divorce.
Child support payments must be made from one parent to another in order to support their children and allow them to maintain the life they are accustomed to living. This money is to be used solely for matters relating to the child.
In New York, a parent is required to pay child support until a certain age. This age can vary on a case to case basis. Typically, the age of emancipation is 21 years old in New York. However, there are some cases in which a court may extend support payments. An example of this can be if a child decides to seek higher education. To end support payments, a parent must file with the court to declare that their child is emancipated. If the court agrees, the payments can be terminated.
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