How Is Spousal Support Calculated in Ontario? The SSAG Formulas

If you are separating, one of your first questions is probably how much spousal support will be paid and for how long. Ontario has no single legal formula written into a statute. Instead, judges and lawyers usually start from a set of guidelines that produce a range.

This article explains how those guidelines work in plain terms. The numbers below are a starting point only. Real outcomes depend on the facts, so a lawyer can confirm how they apply to your situation.

The guidelines are advisory, and entitlement comes first

The Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines (SSAG) are not law, but judges often base their spousal support decisions on them. They were designed for the federal Divorce Act, and courts and lawyers also often use them under provincial legislation such as Ontario's Family Law Act.

The SSAG do not decide whether you are entitled to support. Entitlement must first be established under the applicable law. An income gap on its own does not create entitlement, and it must be proven or agreed before the formulas apply.

Entitlement has three possible bases:

• Compensatory: a loss or disadvantage from the roles taken in the relationship.
• Non-compensatory: based on need.
• Contractual: from a formal domestic contract, or from an implied or informal agreement.

In Ontario, you may be eligible for spousal support if you were married, if you lived together as a couple for at least three years, or if you were in a relationship of some permanence and had a child together.

The formula when there is no child support

For couples without child support, the amount ranges from 1.5% to 2% of the difference between the spouses' gross incomes for each year of cohabitation. The cap is 50%, and the top of the range cannot exceed the amount that would equalize the spouses' net incomes.

Duration is 0.5 to 1 year for each year of cohabitation. Support is indefinite if the marriage lasted 20 years or more, or under the rule of 65: the marriage lasted at least five years and the years of marriage plus the recipient's age at separation total 65 or more.

Indefinite does not necessarily mean permanent. It only means no time limit can be set when the order or agreement is made, and the support stays subject to variation and review.

The formula when children are involved

When a court decides both child support and spousal support, it must give child support priority. The with-child-support formula produces a range that leaves the lower-income recipient with 40% to 46% of the couple's combined Individual Net Disposable Income (INDI). INDI is income after child support, taxes and deductions.

Initial orders are indefinite but have outer limits that apply on review or variation. The upper limit is the longer of the length of the marriage or the date the youngest child finishes high school. The lower limit is the longer of half the length of the marriage or the date the youngest child starts full-time school.

A zero range is common under this formula because child support comes first. It is not the same as no entitlement and may simply reflect a current inability to pay. If child support priority meant spousal support was not ordered or was reduced, a later reduction or end of that child support counts as a change of circumstances, and the recipient can apply for spousal support or a variation.

Income, extremes and exceptions

The SSAG start from the definition of income in the Federal Child Support Guidelines, and section 19 of those Guidelines is often the basis for imputing income. For a spouse who is not working but should be, a court can readily impute minimum-wage income, but anything higher requires evidence.

The formulas do not apply mechanically at the extremes. Above a payor income of $350,000, discretion is used, and incomes below $20,000/$30,000 require adjustments.

Other recognized grounds for going outside the ranges include compelling financial circumstances at the interim stage, debt payments, prior support obligations, illness and disability, property division, basic needs or hardship, non-taxable payor income, and a child's special needs.

The Divorce Act factors, and what the calculator can't do

Under the Divorce Act, the court considers each spouse's condition, means, needs and other circumstances, including how long they cohabited, the roles each played, and any existing order, agreement or arrangement about support. A support order should recognize economic advantages or disadvantages from the marriage or its breakdown, share the financial consequences of caring for children, relieve economic hardship, and, so far as practicable, promote each spouse's economic self-sufficiency within a reasonable period.

The court may not consider misconduct, such as an affair or who left, when it makes a final or interim spousal support order under the Divorce Act.

Ontario's spousal support page links to a free online SSAG calculator, but notes that it considers only employment income and simple calculations. Treat its result as a rough estimate, not a prediction.

What to do next

• Gather income documents for both spouses, such as tax returns and pay statements.
• Write down the date you began living together, the date you married, if you did, and the date you separated.
• Note who cared for children and any career sacrifices made during the relationship.
• Check whether you have any existing agreement, including an informal one, about support.
• Use the online calculator only for a rough idea, then speak with a lawyer about entitlement and exceptions.

Because the SSAG apply to interim orders too, and interim or informal voluntary support counts toward the duration limits, it is worth getting advice early.

Frequently asked questions