Spousal support while spouses live apart, by country
What the statutes give a spouse who has stopped living with the partner but is not yet divorced. Austria and Germany keep an ordinary maintenance claim alive after the household ends, France ties it to a judicial separation, and Australia, Canada and Norway let a court order support pending the case. Only Norway puts a number on the duration (up to 3 years as a starting point), while Canada leaves the period to the court and Sweden sets a three-year limit on collecting arrears.
Scope of this guide
Canada: the Canada Labour Code (federal sector) and the Ontario statutes that LawAsked has loaded. Other provinces are not compared.
| Country | Support while apart | How it is set | Duration stated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | Claim continues after the shared household ends, unless claiming it would be an abuse of right | The spouse who ran the household has a claim for support, with own income taken into account | |
| Australia | Liable to maintain the other party only if that party cannot support themselves adequately | To the extent the paying party is reasonably able to; urgent need can be met by an interim order | Interim payments run pending the disposal of the proceedings |
| Canada | Court may order interim spousal support once a support application is made | Condition, means, needs and other circumstances of each spouse; misconduct is ignored | Definite or indefinite period, or until a specified event |
| Germany | Yes, once the spouses live apart | Appropriate to living conditions and the spouses' earnings and assets; paid monthly in advance | |
| Spain | Judge sets each spouse's contribution to the burdens of the marriage once the claim is admitted | Court fixes the contribution, update rules and guarantees if the spouses do not agree | |
| France | Duty of support (devoir de secours) continues after a judicial separation | Court sets a pension for the spouse in need, without regard to fault | The duty continues for as long as the separation lasts |
| Norway | Mutual maintenance duty ends on separation; support only if care for children or shared tasks weakened the claimant's ability to provide for themselves, or special grounds exist | Based on the claimant's need and the payer's ability to pay | Up to 3 years; longer or unlimited for special reasons, and as a rule for a long marriage |
| Sweden | Yes: when spouses do not live together permanently, support is paid as a maintenance contribution | Each spouse contributes according to their ability to the support needed for common and personal needs | A set maintenance claim lapses three years after the original due date |
Country by country
Austria
- Rule
- ABGB § 94
- The statute states the claim for the spouse who kept the joint household; it does not state a time limit.
- The claim cannot be waived in advance.
Dies gilt nach der Aufhebung des gemeinsamen Haushalts zugunsten des bisher Unterhaltsberechtigten weiter, sofern nicht die Geltendmachung des Unterhaltsanspruchs, besonders wegen der Gründe, die zur Aufhebung des gemeinsamen Haushalts geführt haben, ein Mißbrauch des Rechtes wäre.er hat an den anderen einen Anspruch auf Unterhalt, wobei eigene Einkünfte angemessen zu berücksichtigen sind. Australia
- Rule
- Family Law Act 1975 ss 72, 77
- Section 72 states the liability between parties to a marriage in general; it does not mention separation by name.
- Section 77 applies where a party is in immediate need and the court cannot yet decide the full order.
A party to a marriage is liable to maintain the other party, to the extent that the first ‑ mentioned party is reasonably able to do so, if, and only if, that other party is unable to support herself or himself adequately the court may order the payment, pending the disposal of the proceedings, of such periodic sum or other sums as the court considers reasonable. Canada
- Rule
- Divorce Act s 15.2
- Federal Divorce Act: applies to spouses who apply for support in divorce proceedings, not to provincial separation claims.
- Interim support lasts pending the determination of the main support application.
the court may, on application by either or both spouses, make an interim order requiring a spouse to secure or paypending the determination of the application under subsection (1).The court may make an order under subsection (1) or an interim order under subsection (2) for a definite or indefinite period or until a specified event occursthe court shall take into consideration the condition, means, needs and other circumstances of each spouse Germany
- Rule
- BGB § 1361
- A spouse who does not work can be required to earn their own living only if that can be expected given their circumstances and the length of the marriage.
- The statute does not state an end date; the grounds for cutting or denying support in § 1579 nos. 2 to 8 apply by reference.
Leben die Ehegatten getrennt, so kann ein Ehegatte von dem anderen den nach den Lebensverhältnissen und den Erwerbs- und Vermögensverhältnissen der Ehegatten angemessenen Unterhalt verlangenDie Rente ist monatlich im Voraus zu zahlen. Spain
- Rule
- Código Civil art. 103
- The measure applies where there is no agreement approved by the court between the spouses.
- The statute treats work caring for common children as a contribution to the burdens.
Admitida la demanda, el Juez, a falta de acuerdo de ambos cónyuges aprobado judicialmente, adoptará, con audiencia de éstos, las medidas siguientesFijar, la contribución de cada cónyuge a las cargas del matrimonio France
- Rule
- Code civil art. 303
- This applies to a legal separation (séparation de corps), which does not dissolve the marriage.
- The pension can be replaced in whole or in part by a capital sum where the debtor's assets allow.
La séparation de corps laisse subsister le devoir de secoursle jugement qui la prononce ou un jugement postérieur fixe la pension alimentaire qui est due à l'époux dans le besoinCette pension est attribuée sans considération des torts. La séparation de corps ne dissout pas le mariage mais elle met fin au devoir de cohabitation. Norway
- Rule
- Ekteskapsloven §§ 79, 81, 92
- A court can also make a temporary decision on support before the separation or divorce case is final (§ 92).
- Before a separation or divorce case is filed, a temporary decision needs special grounds.
Ved separasjon og skilsmisse opphører ektefellenes gjensidige forpliktelser etter § 38.kan den andre ektefellen pålegges å betale bidrag Bidraget skal utmåles på grunnlag av den bidragsberettigedes behov for bidrag og den bidragspliktiges betalingsevne. Bidrag skal fastsettes for en begrenset tid på inntil 3 år.Dersom ekteskapet har vært langvarig, skal bidrag som hovedregel fastsettes for lengre tid eller uten tidsbegrensning. kan retten ved kjennelse treffe midlertidig avgjørelse om separasjon, rett til bidrag eller bruksrett til bolig Sweden
- Rule
- Äktenskapsbalk 6 kap. 6 §
- The three-year rule limits collecting an award that has already been set; it is not a limit on how long the duty lasts.
- The court can order a spouse who neglects the duty to pay maintenance (6 kap. 5 §).
Om makarna inte varaktigt bor tillsammans, skall den ena maken fullgöra sin underhållsskyldighet genom att betala underhållsbidrag till den andra maken. Makarna skall, var och en efter sin förmåga, bidra till det underhåll som behövs för att deras gemensamma och personliga behov skall tillgodoses. Rätten att kräva ut ett fastställt underhållsbidrag upphör tre år efter den förfallodag som ursprungligen gällde. Countries not in this table yet
The United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France outside judicial separation, and Japan are not shown: the ingested statutes either are missing (US, UK, NL) or do not state support during separation in terms (Japan's Civil Code articles 752 and 760 speak of spouses in general).
How this table was built
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The table shows the statutory minimum only. Collective agreements, awards and individual contracts often give more than the statute, and some countries let a collective agreement set different terms.
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LawAsked, “Spousal support while spouses live apart, by country”, https://lawasked.com/guides/maintenance-during-separation (reviewed October 25, 2026).
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