Spousal Support After Separation: What Happens if You Stopped Working to Support Your Spouse or Raise a Family?

Spousal support is one of the most important financial issues that can arise after separation or divorce. It is not automatic. A spouse seeking support must first establish entitlement, and the court then considers the appropriate amount and duration of support.

The Divorce Act and the Family Law Act

In British Columbia, spousal support may be ordered under the Divorce Act applies to married spouses who are divorcing or have divorced. The Family Law Act can apply to both married spouses and unmarried spouses, including common-law spouses.

One important difference between the two statutes is the limitation period. A spouse claiming support under the Divorce Act is not subject to a specific limitation period for bringing a spousal support claim. Under the Family Law Act, however, limitation periods do apply. Married spouses must bring a claim within two years of divorce or a declaration of nullity. Unmarried spouses must bring a claim within two years of separation.

When deciding whether to order spousal support, the court looks at the financial reality of both parties. Section 15.2(4) of the Divorce Act requires the court to consider each spouse’s condition, means, needs, and other circumstances. This includes the length of the relationship, the roles each spouse performed during the relationship, and whether there is any agreement dealing with support.

The objectives of spousal support are set out in Section 15.2(6) of the Divorce Act. These include recognizing economic advantages or disadvantages arising from the marriage or its breakdown, relieving financial hardship caused by the separation, and promoting self-sufficiency where reasonable and practical.

The Family Law Act contains similar objectives. Section 162 provides that, when determining entitlement to spousal support, the parties to an agreement or the court must consider:

whether support is needed to recognize economic advantages or disadvantages arising from the relationship or its breakdown
to address financial consequences arising from the care of a child beyond child support
to relieve economic hardship caused by the breakdown of the relationship; and
where practicable, to promote each spouse’s economic self-sufficiency within a reasonable period of time.

In many cases, a spouse cannot wait until trial or final settlement to receive support. The Family Law Actallows the court to make interim orders before the final issues are resolved. Section 216(1) gives the court authority to make interim orders for appropriate relief, including temporary support where the circumstances justify it.

Interim Spousal Support

Interim spousal support is temporary support ordered before trial or final resolution. Its purpose is to address immediate financial need while the parties work toward settlement or trial.

At the interim stage, the court usually does not have a complete evidentiary record. For that reason, interim support is often described as a form of “rough justice.” In Wallace v. Cummins, 2020 BCSC 2158, the court described interim support as an imperfect but necessary way to provide relief before the final issues can be fully determined.

The spouse seeking interim support must still show a basic entitlement. In C.T.W. v. M.L.W., 2024 BCSC 2228, the court stated that interim support should only be awarded where a prima facie case for entitlement has been made out.

In other words, the court will usually only order temporary spousal support if the spouse asking for support can show, at least on a preliminary basis, that they may be entitled to receive it.

In practical terms, interim support usually focuses on two questions:

Does the applicant have an immediate financial need?
Does the other spouse have the ability to pay?

The court may then use the Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines as a guide to determine the appropriate interim range, subject to the evidence and the circumstances of the case.

Compensatory Spousal Support

Compensatory support is intended to compensate a spouse for economic disadvantages arising from the relationship or its breakdown.

A common example of compensatory spousal support is where one spouse stopped working, reduced their hours, gave up career opportunities, or delayed education or advancement in order to raise children, manage the household, or support the other spouse’s career. In those circumstances, the spouse seeking support may argue that they suffered an economic disadvantage because of the roles adopted during the relationship. At the same time, the other spouse may have received an economic advantage by being able to continue working, build a business, advance professionally, or increase earning capacity while the other spouse carried more of the family responsibilities.

This does not automatically guarantee spousal support, but it is a strong basis for claiming entitlement on compensatory grounds. The longer the relationship, the longer the absence from the workforce, and the greater the impact on the spouse’s earning capacity, the stronger the claim for compensatory support may be.

This commonly arises where one spouse:

stayed home to care for children;
reduced work hours for family responsibilities;
moved for the other spouse’s career;
gave up education, training, or career advancement; or
contributed to the other spouse’s economic success while sacrificing their own earning capacity.

The central idea is fairness. If one spouse came out of the relationship economically stronger because the other spouse took on family responsibilities or made career sacrifices, compensatory support may be appropriate.

Non-Compensatory Spousal Support

Non-compensatory support is based on need, dependency, and the economic interdependence created by the relationship.

In Zacharias v. Zacharias, 2015 BCCA 376, the Court of Appeal explained that non-compensatory support focuses on the parties’ needs and means. It is based on the idea that spouses, by virtue of marriage, may have an ongoing responsibility to care for one another.

This type of support can be especially important after a long relationship, or where one spouse cannot realistically become financially independent right away. This may happen because of age, illness, disability, time spent out of the workforce, or limited job opportunities.

The law recognizes that, in some relationships, one spouse may continue to need financial help after separation even if they did not give up a specific career opportunity during the relationship. In Bracklow v. Bracklow, 1999 SCC 420, the Supreme Court of Canada confirmed that spousal support is not only about compensating a spouse for sacrifices made during the marriage. Support may also be based on financial need and the economic dependency created by the relationship.

The British Columbia Court of Appeal has also recognized that spouses may have an ongoing responsibility to help address the financial gap created by separation. In Chutter v. Chutter, 2008 BCCA 507, the Court referred to the idea that marriage can create a social and financial obligation between spouses.

Contractual Spousal Support

Contractual support arises from an agreement between spouses. This may include a marriage agreement, cohabitation agreement, or separation agreement.

A support agreement can be very important, but it is not always the final word. Courts may still review agreements in certain circumstances, particularly where there are concerns about financial disclosure, fairness, vulnerability, or whether the agreement continues to meet the objectives of the legislation.

Contractual entitlement may also support an interim application. In Chen v. Zhang, 2024 BCSC 558, the court recognized that entitlement to spousal support may be based on compensatory, non-compensatory, or contractual principles.

High-End Spousal Support

Once entitlement is established, the amount of support is often assessed with reference to the Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines. The Guidelines usually produce a low, mid, and high range.

The court may order support at the high end of the range where the facts justify it. In Zandbergen v. Craig, 2024 BCCA 278, the British Columbia Court of Appeal confirmed that spousal support must be assessed based on the parties’ actual means, needs, and circumstances. The court considered the payee spouse’s ongoing need for support and inability to be self-sufficient.

This confirms that when calculating spousal support, the court looks at the real financial circumstances of both spouses, including need, ability to pay, economic disadvantage, and the practical likelihood of self-sufficiency.

Getting Advice About Spousal Support

Spousal support is not one-size-fits-all. It may be ordered on an interim basis, as compensation for economic disadvantage, based on financial need, because of an agreement, or through a combination of these grounds.

Where one spouse stopped working, reduced their hours, or gave up career opportunities to raise a family or support the other spouse, that may be an important factor in establishing entitlement to compensatory spousal support. In other cases, support may be based on financial need, ongoing dependency, or the terms of an agreement between the spouses.

The court looks at the whole relationship, the financial consequences of separation, the parties’ present circumstances, and the objectives of the legislation. In many cases, the most important questions are whether one spouse has a need, whether the other has the ability to pay, and whether the relationship created an economic disadvantage that should be addressed.

If you are seeking spousal support, or if your former spouse is claiming support from you, it is important to get legal advice early. The evidence you provide about income, expenses, health, parenting responsibilities, career sacrifices, and financial need can make a significant difference to the outcome.