Partner maintenance: am I entitled and how do I arrange it?
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Detailed explanation, checklist and sources
After marriage or registered partnership, maintenance may be needed when one person lacks sufficient income and the other can contribute. Higher earnings alone do not determine the amount. Check need, capacity, duration and existing agreements separately.
On this page
1. Check the legal basis
Record marriage or registered partnership and any order or agreement. Cohabitation alone does not create the same statutory entitlement; have contractual arrangements assessed. International situations need separate jurisdiction and applicable-law checks.
2. Separate need from payment capacity
Need concerns necessary support, including income the recipient can reasonably earn. Capacity concerns what the other person can afford. Our needs estimate is therefore not the maintenance payable.
3. Have duration checked
The current main rule is half the marriage duration, capped at five years. Children under twelve and certain long marriages linked to AOW age or birth on/before 1 January 1970 can extend it. Older cases and agreements may differ. Have petition, registration, exceptions and end date checked; extension requests have a three-month post-expiry deadline. Extension is not automatic: the court must assess the statutory exceptional circumstances. For a marriage longer than fifteen years at the divorce petition date, a recipient within ten years of AOW age has protection until at least that age. With that marriage duration, birth on/before1 January 1970 and more than ten years until AOW, the period is ten years. For children born of the marriage, the obligation does not end before the youngest is twelve. The longest applicable period prevails; the statutory period starts with divorce registration.
4. Prepare the information
Gather both incomes, expenses, assets, child costs, marriage duration and existing documents. Mark unknown figures. Use the preparation file to organise questions, not determine entitlement or an amount yourself.
5. Record agreements carefully
You can agree with help from a mediator or lawyer. Without agreement, a court decides following a lawyer's petition. Record amount, start, payment date, duration and indexation; an order does not itself arrange transfers.
6. Review changes and tax
Do not unilaterally stop because income falls; seek review. The recipient's remarriage, registered partnership or marriage-like cohabitation can end the statutory obligation; not every new relationship qualifies. Receipt and payment have different tax consequences. Seek help before a lump sum or waiver; our help request submits no court document.
Burgerlijk Wetboek1 ·156,157,160 ↗
The tool shows €650 of need. Must my ex pay exactly that?
No. Need is only one element. Capacity, own income, tax, duration and agreements still require assessment.
Documents to prepare
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- Relationship type and dates
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- Income, earning ability and expenses
- Child costs and other obligations
- Start, end date and indexation
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Contact with a lawyer
You can use the chat and information without a phone number. A contact request requires a phone number, a verified email address and your wish for telephone contact. Our team assesses which partner fits your question. Data is shared only under the stated consent procedure. A partner or engagement is not guaranteed.
View the current application processSources
Need personal assistance? Request a lawyer through our chat. We explain the next step; submitting a request does not engage a lawyer. The links below support the legal information.
Burgerlijk Wetboek1 ·156,157,160 ↗Rechtspraak · Alimentatie ↗Rijksoverheid · Duur partneralimentatie ↗Rechtspraak · Wijzigen en betaling ↗Belastingdienst · Partneralimentatie ↗Rijksoverheid · Bedrag en indexering ↗Sources may be in Dutch. General information about Dutch law, not individual legal advice.