How long must a marriage last to qualify for alimony?

In the state of Washington, alimony is known as maintenance and is awarded when two spouses have been married for a certain length of time. In order to qualify for maintenance, a couple must have been married for at least five years. If the marriage has lasted less than five years, then maintenance is only granted in exceptional circumstances. If the marriage has lasted between five to ten years, then the court may award a couple maintenance for up to half their marriage length. For instance, if a marriage has lasted seven years, a court may consider awarding maintenance for half of that time, or three and a half years. If a marriage has lasted for more than ten years, then the award of maintenance is considered open-ended and the court may decide to award more than half the total length of the marriage. The court will also take into account the finances of both parties and make sure that neither is unduly disadvantaged by the divorce. In the state of Washington, there is a presumption that maintenance will not be awarded in marriages that have lasted less than five years. In these cases, the court will have to be convinced that there are exceptional circumstances that warrant the awarding of maintenance.

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How long must a marriage last to qualify for alimony?

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