North Carolina Alimony Calculator 2026

North Carolina Alimony Formula & Factors

North Carolina has no alimony formula. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 50-16.3A the court awards alimony to a dependent spouse from a supporting spouse when that is equitable, and exercises its discretion over the amount, length and manner of payment. It must consider sixteen factors, including marital misconduct, earnings and earning capacity, ages and health, the length of the marriage, the standard of living, education, assets and liabilities, contributions as a homemaker, relative needs and tax consequences. A dependent spouse who engaged in illicit sexual behaviour during the marriage and before separation cannot be awarded alimony.

What the Illustrative Estimate Is

Because North Carolina law gives no figure to calculate, the dollar amount on this page is an illustration only. It uses the reference method recommended by a commission of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) and adopted by its Board of Governors in March 2007: 30% of the payor's gross income minus 20% of the recipient's gross income, limited so that the recipient ends up with no more than 40% of the couple's combined gross income. The method is set out in Mary Kay Kisthardt's article in the Journal of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (vol. 21, 2008) and summarised by Maryland's highest court in Boemio v. Boemio (2010).

The AAML method is not North Carolina law and North Carolina courts are not bound by it. It lists its own reasons to depart from the result, such as a spouse caring for a young or disabled child, age or health, or a career given up for the other spouse. It was written when alimony was still tax-deductible for the payer, and it does not apply when combined gross income is above $1,000,000 a year. Treat the figure as a starting point for a conversation with a lawyer, not as a prediction.

North Carolina Alimony Rules at a Glance

Worked Example: North Carolina Alimony Calculator

Take gross incomes of $8,000 and $3,000 a month. Under the AAML reference method, 30% of $8,000 is $2,400 and 20% of $3,000 is $600, a difference of $1,800. The limit is 40% of the combined $11,000, which is $4,400, less the recipient's own $3,000: $1,400. The illustrative amount is the lower figure, $1,400 a month ($16,800 a year). This is an illustration, not an amount set by North Carolina law.

For a 12-year marriage the same reference method multiplies the length by 0.75, giving about 9 years. That too is an illustration; North Carolina law sets no schedule.

These are the figures the calculator shows when the page first loads. A real order depends on evidence a calculator cannot see.

North Carolina Alimony Duration Rules

North Carolina law sets no schedule for how long alimony lasts. The award may be for a specified or an indefinite term.

The duration this page shows is an illustration only. It uses the same AAML reference method: the length of the marriage multiplied by 0.3 for marriages of up to 3 years, 0.5 for more than 3 and up to 10 years, and 0.75 for more than 10 and up to 20 years, with open-ended support suggested after more than 20 years.

Is Alimony Taxable in North Carolina?

For federal income tax, alimony or separate maintenance paid under a divorce or separation agreement executed after 2018 is not deductible by the payer and is not included in the recipient's income. Payments under an agreement executed before 2019 are generally still deductible by the payer and taxable to the recipient, unless the agreement was later modified and the modification expressly adopts the new rule (IRS Topic No. 452). Child support is never deductible and is not income.

This page does not cover North Carolina state income tax. State rules are set separately and can differ from the federal rule, so check with the state tax agency or a tax adviser.

Modifying North Carolina Alimony

Whether an order can be changed depends on its wording and on the type of support. In most cases either spouse can ask the court to modify periodic payments after a substantial change in circumstances, unless the decree or the spouses' agreement makes the support non-modifiable.

Read the order itself and N.C. Gen. Stat. § 50-16.3A before relying on a general rule, and get advice from a family lawyer licensed in North Carolina about your own case. Nothing on this page is legal advice.

Last updated: October 2026. Sources: N.C. Gen. Stat. § 50-16.3A (North Carolina General Assembly); AAML Commission recommendations (Kisthardt, 21 J. Am. Acad. Matrim. Law. 61); IRS Topic No. 452.