Minnesota changed its approach to spousal maintenance in 2024. The law no longer describes maintenance primarily as “temporary” or “permanent.” Instead, it uses two categories—transitional and indefinite maintenance—and provides starting presumptions based on how long the marriage lasted.
Those changes can make the duration question easier to understand, but they do not turn spousal maintenance into a formula. A court still has to determine whether maintenance is appropriate and consider the financial circumstances of both spouses.
If spousal support may be part of your divorce, understanding the new framework can help you make sense of the issues you may need to address with your Minnesota family law attorney.
The Length of Your Marriage Now Provides a Starting Point
Spousal maintenance, commonly called alimony, is financial support one former spouse may be ordered to pay the other after a divorce. Minnesota’s current law uses the length of the marriage to establish a starting point for how long maintenance should last when the legal grounds for maintenance have been established.
This is known as a rebuttable presumption. That means the law provides a starting assumption, but the facts of a particular case can support a different result.
- Marriages of less than five years: There is a rebuttable presumption that no maintenance should be awarded.
- Marriages of at least five years but less than 20 years: If maintenance is appropriate, there is a rebuttable presumption of transitional maintenance for no longer than half the length of the marriage.
- Marriages of 20 years or more: If maintenance is appropriate, there is a rebuttable presumption of indefinite maintenance.
For purposes of these presumptions, Minnesota measures the length of the marriage from the date of marriage to the date the divorce action begins.
These categories are important, but they do not answer the maintenance question by themselves. A 12-year marriage, for example, does not automatically produce six years of support. The court still considers whether maintenance should be awarded and whether the circumstances justify moving away from the statutory starting point.
Before Duration Comes the Question of Need
A spouse does not receive maintenance simply because the marriage lasted a certain number of years.
Minnesota law allows a court to award maintenance when the spouse seeking it lacks sufficient property to meet reasonable needs, cannot provide adequate self-support, or is caring for a child whose circumstances make it appropriate not to work outside the home.
If maintenance is appropriate, the court then considers the circumstances of the marriage and both spouses’ finances. Those considerations can include financial resources, the time needed for education or training, the standard of living during the marriage, forgone employment opportunities, age and health, retirement circumstances, and the ability of the spouse who would pay maintenance to meet both parties’ needs.
Marital misconduct is not part of that analysis. Minnesota courts do not use maintenance to punish a spouse for causing the marriage to end.
Transitional and Indefinite Do Not Mean the Same Thing
The terminology introduced in 2024 is intended to describe the duration of an award more directly.
Transitional maintenance has a specified end date. It may provide support while a former spouse adjusts financially after divorce, including circumstances in which additional education or training is needed.
Indefinite maintenance does not have a predetermined termination date. It is not a guarantee that payments will continue unchanged forever. An indefinite award may later be modified if Minnesota’s requirements for modification are met.
This distinction matters because a maintenance award can affect financial planning long after the divorce itself is finished. Both spouses need to understand not only the amount of support but also whether the order has an end date and whether it can later be changed.
Life After Divorce Can Change a Maintenance Order
A final divorce does not necessarily freeze a modifiable maintenance award forever. Modification means asking the court to change an existing maintenance order because circumstances have changed.
A substantial change in income or financial need may support a request for modification if that change makes the existing order unreasonable and unfair. Changes in tax law affecting maintenance can also provide a basis for modification.
Retirement received specific attention in the 2024 changes. A person paying maintenance can ask the court to consider a modification based on retirement before actually retiring by identifying the planned retirement date. If the court grants a change, it can take effect when the retirement occurs.
Cohabitation can also affect maintenance in some cases. If the person receiving maintenance lives with another adult after the divorce, the person paying maintenance may be able to request a reduction, suspension, reservation, or termination of the award. Cohabitation does not automatically end maintenance. The court considers the financial circumstances of the living arrangement and other factors required by Minnesota law.
There are also timing restrictions on cohabitation-based requests. Generally, such a motion cannot be brought within one year after the maintenance order unless the parties agreed otherwise or the court finds that an earlier request is necessary to prevent extreme hardship.
Some Maintenance Agreements Limit Future Changes
Spouses sometimes want greater certainty about whether maintenance can be changed later. Minnesota allows spouses to agree to limit or prevent future modification, but simply putting that agreement in writing is not enough.
The court must make required findings concerning the fairness of the agreement, consideration exchanged between the spouses, and full financial disclosure. The agreement must also become part of the divorce judgment and decree or an appropriate post-divorce court order.
Giving up the ability to seek a future modification can have significant financial consequences. A spouse considering that type of agreement should understand what rights would remain if income, health, retirement plans, or other circumstances later change.
Putting the New Rules to Work in a Lake Elmo Divorce
The 2024 framework gives divorcing spouses a clearer place to begin, but marriage length is only one part of a maintenance analysis. Two couples with marriages of the same length can still have very different financial circumstances.
An attorney can review income, property, employment history, retirement plans, and other financial information to explain how Minnesota’s maintenance rules may apply. A lawyer can also help you understand whether the statutory presumption fits your circumstances or whether facts support a different duration.
Coodin Law Office, LLC is a Lake Elmo law office serving individuals and families in Woodbury, Washington County, and surrounding Minnesota communities. If spousal maintenance is an issue in your divorce, contact our law office to discuss your circumstances and the current Minnesota maintenance framework.