A custodial parent may file a petition with their local child support agency. That petition will then be forwarded to the New York City Law Department office in the county where the non-custodial parent resides. This matter will then be litigated in the New York City Family Court located in the same borough.
In short term marriages the presumptive duration of maintenance is 15 to 30 percent of the length the of the marriage, for medium term divorces it is 30 to 40 percent, and long-term marriages it's 35 to 50 percent.
Non-durational alimony in New York will end if either spouse dies or the payee spouse remarries. It can also end if there are changes in the quality of life of either the payor or the payee spouse.
Child support and spousal support are handled in Family Court. Parents must financially support their child until the child turns 21 years old or is emancipated. You can go to Family Court for a court order for child support from the other parent.
New York permanent alimony does not have any set duration in which it will end. Most alimony today is durational rather than permanent except in certain specific situations.
NYC Spousal Support Calculation In 2021, the cap was $192,000. Effective March 1, 2022, the spousal support cap will be $203,000. If the payor-spouse's income is more than $203,000, the court uses the standard formula for the income up to and including the income cap.
Typically, the judge will take 20% of the lower-earning spouse's income and subtract that number from 30% of the higher-earning spouse's income. For example, one spouse makes $100,000, and the other makes $20,000. Thirty percent of $100,000 is $30,000, and 20% of $20,000 is $4,000.
Nevertheless, as mentioned above, a spouse could be denied spousal support for various reasons. The courts have the authority to deny a spouse alimony if they don't need financial support or can work. A judge could also deny a spouse spousal support if the payor does not have enough funds to afford it.
Typically, the judge will take 20% of the lower-earning spouse's income and subtract that number from 30% of the higher-earning spouse's income. For example, one spouse makes $100,000, and the other makes $20,000. Thirty percent of $100,000 is $30,000, and 20% of $20,000 is $4,000.
New York Spousal support rules do take into account spouses who are not in the workforce full-time at the time of the divorce. Typically, they are not expected to get a job right away but neither can they refuse to work full-time and simply receive spousal support for years.