§ 19-6-5.Factors in determining amount of alimony; effect of remarriage on obligations for alimony
Chapter 6. Alimony and Child Support · Article 1. General Provisions · Last amended 1982 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-6-5
Plain-English Summary
Georgia has no formula for alimony. Instead, this section lets the finder of fact — the jury, or the judge when no jury hears the case — grant permanent alimony to either spouse, paid from the corpus of the estate or otherwise. So an award can come from property and savings, not only from future income.
In deciding the amount, if any, the finder of fact must consider eight factors: (1) the standard of living established during the marriage; (2) how long the marriage lasted; (3) each spouse’s age and physical and emotional condition; (4) each spouse’s financial resources; (5) where it applies, how long either spouse needs to get enough education or training to find appropriate employment; (6) each spouse’s contribution to the marriage, including homemaking, child care, and helping with the other spouse’s education and career; (7) the spouses’ condition, including separate estates, earning capacity, and fixed liabilities; and (8) any other relevant factor the court finds equitable and proper. The statute assigns no weights and sets no length-of-marriage thresholds, so the result depends heavily on the facts and the fact-finder’s judgment.
Subsection (b) addresses remarriage. All permanent alimony obligations, however created, whose time for performance has not yet arrived end when the receiving spouse remarries, unless otherwise provided. Future installments stop; amounts already due are not erased. “However created” reaches both court awards and agreements, and “unless otherwise provided” lets a decree or agreement set a different rule. Cohabitation with a new partner is handled differently, as a ground to modify periodic alimony under § 19-6-19(b). Before any of these factors come into play, § 19-6-1 decides whether alimony is available at all.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is alimony calculated in Georgia?
There is no formula. Section 19-6-5(a) requires the judge or jury to consider eight factors in setting the amount, if any: the marital standard of living, the length of the marriage, each spouse’s age and health, each spouse’s financial resources, any time needed for education or training, each spouse’s contributions to the marriage, the spouses’ separate estates, earning capacity, and fixed liabilities, and any other relevant factor the court finds equitable. The result rests in the fact-finder’s discretion.
Does alimony end if my ex-spouse remarries in Georgia?
Generally, yes. Under § 19-6-5(b), all obligations for permanent alimony whose time for performance has not arrived end when the spouse receiving them remarries, unless otherwise provided. Future payments stop, but installments already due before the remarriage are still owed. Because of the “unless otherwise provided” language, a divorce decree or settlement agreement can set a different rule, so its wording matters.
Does the length of the marriage affect alimony in Georgia?
Yes, it is one of the eight factors. Section 19-6-5(a)(2) lists the duration of the marriage among the things the judge or jury must consider in setting permanent alimony. But the statute sets no year thresholds — it does not say that a marriage of any particular length earns or rules out alimony. Length is weighed alongside the other factors, such as each spouse’s resources and earning capacity.
Does being a stay-at-home parent count toward alimony in Georgia?
It can. Section 19-6-5(a)(6) requires the judge or jury to consider each spouse’s contribution to the marriage, expressly including homemaking, child care, and contributions to the education and career building of the other spouse. Factor (5) also covers the time a spouse may need to gain enough education or training to find appropriate employment. How much weight these get is up to the fact-finder.
What if my ex moves in with a new partner instead of remarrying?
The remarriage rule in § 19-6-5(b) does not cover that, but another section does. Under § 19-6-19(b), a former spouse’s voluntary cohabitation with a third party in a meretricious relationship is grounds to modify periodic permanent alimony. The paying spouse must file a petition and prove it. A petitioner who loses on that ground must pay the other side’s reasonable attorney’s fees for defending the action.
Amendment History
Laws 1806, Cobb's 1851 Digest, pp. 224, 225; Laws 1966, p. 160, § 1; Laws 1979, p. 466, § 14; Laws 1981, p. 615, § 1; Laws 1982, p. 3, § 19.
Formerly Code 1863, § 1676; Code 1868, § 1719; Code 1873, § 1720; Code 1882, § 1720; Civil Code 1895, § 2435; Civil Code 1910, § 2954; Code 1933, § 30-209.