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In this guide
By Onah Attorneys Inc • Updated July 2026 • Legal information, not a substitute for advice on your specific matter.
South Africa has no automatic ‘alimony’ — a divorcing spouse gets maintenance only if a court orders it or the settlement grants it, and the clean-break principle pushes courts toward finality. But where one spouse sacrificed a career or cannot self-support, real maintenance claims exist. Here is how courts decide who pays, how much and for how long.
The legal basis
Section 7 of the Divorce Act: maintenance by agreement (s7(1)) made an order of court, or court-ordered maintenance (s7(2)) after weighing the parties’ means, earning capacities, ages, the marriage duration, standard of living, conduct and any other relevant factor. No marriage regime guarantees it; no gender owns it.
Rehabilitative vs permanent maintenance
Courts prefer rehabilitative maintenance — a bridge for a defined period while the recipient retrains or re-enters the workforce, common after medium-length marriages. Permanent (until death or remarriage) maintenance survives mainly for long marriages where age and absence from the workforce make self-support unrealistic. ‘Token maintenance’ (R1/month) keeps the door open for later variation where futures are uncertain.
How the amount is calculated
The same needs-and-means logic as child maintenance: the claimant’s reasonable monthly shortfall measured against the marital standard of living, split against the payer’s ability. Detailed expense schedules with proof decide these fights — vague claims of need lose to documented budgets every time.
Maintenance pending the divorce (Rule 43)
While the divorce runs — often years — Rule 43 (Regional Court: Rule 58) delivers interim spousal and child maintenance plus a contribution to legal costs within weeks. It is frequently the most consequential hearing of the divorce: it sets the financial weather for the litigation.
After death: the surviving spouse
The Maintenance of Surviving Spouses Act gives a widow(er) a maintenance claim against the deceased’s estate where the will left them unable to self-support — a claim ranking alongside dependants and ahead of heirs. Divorced spouses receiving maintenance should insure the payer’s life; the divorce order can compel such a policy.
Enforcement and variation
Unpaid spousal maintenance is enforced like child maintenance: emoluments attachment, property execution, criminal complaint. Either side can seek variation on changed circumstances — job loss, remarriage (which usually ends it), cohabitation (which may). Nothing changes automatically; apply, don’t just stop paying.
Frequently asked questions
Does a husband always pay maintenance after divorce?
No — there is no automatic entitlement for either spouse. Courts weigh need, means, marriage length and earning capacity; short dual-income marriages usually end with no spousal maintenance at all.
How long does spousal maintenance last?
What the order says: a fixed rehabilitative period (commonly 2–5 years), until death or remarriage, or until varied by court. Rehabilitative periods dominate modern orders.
Can I claim maintenance if we were never married?
Not as a life partner under current statute (save via cohabitation agreements or universal partnership claims) — unmarried partners have no automatic spousal maintenance claim, one of the strongest arguments for a cohabitation agreement.
Can maintenance be changed after the divorce?
Yes — the Maintenance Court can vary on good cause: retrenchment, illness, the recipient’s cohabitation or improved income. Until varied, the existing order stands and arrears accumulate.
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