Colorado Maintenance: Eligibility, Amount, and Duration
September 10, 2026 · LawDiver Research Team
Colorado calls post-divorce spousal payments maintenance. Awards are governed primarily by Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-114. This guide covers eligibility, how courts set amount and duration, when support ends, and how Colorado case law frames the analysis. Open linked opinions in LawDiver for the full text.
Primary keywords: Colorado maintenance guidelines, CRS 14-10-114, Colorado spousal maintenance, Colorado divorce alimony
Key takeaways
- Colorado uses the term maintenance under Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-114.
- Amount/duration guidance includes a formula or guideline component. Advisory guidelines apply for combined incomes up to a statutory cap: a percentage of the higher earner’s income minus a percentage of the lower earner’s income, with duration tied to marriage-length bands. Courts may deviate with findings.
- Common forms include: Temporary maintenance during the proceeding and post-decree maintenance under the guideline or a reasoned deviation.
- Duration framework: Guideline duration tables scale with years of marriage; very long marriages can yield longer advisory terms.
- Permanent / indefinite support: Limited. Indefinite maintenance is possible but uncommon and requires specific findings beyond the advisory tables.
- Companion child-support guide: Colorado child support guidelines.
What maintenance is (and is not)
Maintenance is court-ordered support from one spouse to the other after separation or divorce. It is separate from child support (see Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-115) and from property division. A single judgment may include all three, but each has its own legal tests.
No spouse is automatically entitled to maintenance. Courts typically ask whether one party has a genuine need and whether the other has the ability to pay, then apply Colorado's statutory framework.
Eligibility and statutory factors
Advisory guidelines apply for combined incomes up to a statutory cap: a percentage of the higher earner’s income minus a percentage of the lower earner’s income, with duration tied to marriage-length bands. Courts may deviate with findings.
Fault. Marital fault is not a statutory maintenance factor in Colorado.
Document income, earning capacity, health, length of marriage, contributions as homemaker or to the other spouse's career, and the marital standard of living. Those facts drive both temporary (pendente lite) and final awards.
Types of maintenance in Colorado
Temporary maintenance during the proceeding and post-decree maintenance under the guideline or a reasoned deviation.
Labeling matters. Rehabilitative awards usually require a plan (schooling, retraining, re-entry to the workforce). Durational or term awards run for a fixed period. Lump-sum or reimbursement awards may be non-modifiable depending on the judgment language and statute.
How amount is set
Because Colorado uses a formula or guideline overlay, start with that math, then test it against need, ability to pay, and any statutory caps. Advisory guidelines apply for combined incomes up to a statutory cap: a percentage of the higher earner’s income minus a percentage of the lower earner’s income, with duration tied to marriage-length bands. Courts may deviate with findings.
Temporary support while a divorce is pending often follows different local practices or guidelines than the final award. Confirm what your county or division actually uses.
How long maintenance lasts
Guideline duration tables scale with years of marriage; very long marriages can yield longer advisory terms.
Permanent / indefinite support. Limited. Indefinite maintenance is possible but uncommon and requires specific findings beyond the advisory tables.
When maintenance ends or can be changed
Death, remarriage, or the end of the ordered term; cohabitation may support modification under case law.
Either party may usually seek modification upon a substantial change in circumstances unless the award was expressly made non-modifiable. Retirement, disability, remarriage, cohabitation, and large income swings are frequent triggers — but the statutory test and burden of proof are Colorado-specific.
Taxes
TCJA: post-2018 maintenance is not federally taxable/deductible. Colorado advisory worksheets assume that federal treatment.
Child support remains non-deductible and non-taxable. Do not assume maintenance treatment mirrors child support.
Case law: how Colorado courts decide maintenance
These LawDiver opinions illustrate how Colorado appellate courts discuss need, ability to pay, duration, and related issues:
IN RE the MARRIAGE OF Jeremy STRADTMANN, and Andrea Stradtmann, and Concerning El Paso County Child Support
…("[T]he determination as to when an allowance for temporary alimony should begin is generally within the discretion of the court."), cited with approval in Herold , ¶ 13, 484 P.3d at 785. In Herold , a division of this court held that courts may award temporary maintenance retroactively, although, in that case, the wife did not seek retroactive temporary maintenance as of a dat…
Use this decision — and the surrounding Colorado appellate line — when briefing need, ability to pay, duration, or modification of maintenance.
In Re the Marriage of Hildegard SINN, Petitioner, v. Werner H. SINN, Respondent
…apply to those maintenance awards traditionally labeled as “alimony in gross.” The court based its holding on its earlier decision in In re Marriage of Gallegos, 41 Colo.App. 116, 580 P.2d 838 (1978). In that case, the court of appeals held that: [Wjhere ... maintenance is in a fixed and determinable amount to be paid either in a lump sum or is for a specific amount to be paid…
Use this decision — and the surrounding Colorado appellate line — when briefing need, ability to pay, duration, or modification of maintenance.
In Re Marriage of Gallegos
In Re Marriage of Gallegos, 41 Colo. App. 116 (1978)
…006 (1972), our Supreme Court stated that: "The granting of alimony in gross, or lump-sum alimony, as it is sometimes called, provides a definite and final judgment which the court cannot later modify. . . ." The principles regarding maintenance in gross stated in Carlson v. Carlson, supra have not been modified by the Uniform Dissolution of Marriage Act, § 14-10-101, et seq.,…
Use this decision — and the surrounding Colorado appellate line — when briefing need, ability to pay, duration, or modification of maintenance.
In Re Marriage of Fetters
In Re Marriage of Fetters, 41 Colo. App. 281 (1978)
…the proposition that his daughter has a right to permanent alimony from her former husband. However, in a later decision, the Oklahoma Supreme Court interpreted Stone to provide, at most, spousal support only during the pendency of the annulment action. Greenwood v. Greenwood, 387 P.2d 615 (Okl.). The rule which still prevails in Oklahoma is that permanent alimony cannot be aw…
Use this decision — and the surrounding Colorado appellate line — when briefing need, ability to pay, duration, or modification of maintenance.
Practical checklist
- Identify the correct statutory label (maintenance) and controlling section (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-114).
- Assemble income, budget, and health evidence for both spouses.
- For rehabilitative requests, prepare a concrete plan and timeline.
- Address fault only if Colorado law makes it relevant to eligibility or amount.
- Search LawDiver for recent Colorado decisions before mediation.
- Cross-check child support interactions via the Colorado child support guide.
Frequently asked questions
Does Colorado still award permanent maintenance?
Limited. Indefinite maintenance is possible but uncommon and requires specific findings beyond the advisory tables.
How is maintenance calculated in Colorado?
Colorado applies guideline/formula concepts under Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-114. Advisory guidelines apply for combined incomes up to a statutory cap: a percentage of the higher earner’s income minus a percentage of the lower earner’s income, with duration tied to marriage-length bands. Courts may deviate with findings.
How long do I have to be married to receive maintenance?
Guideline duration tables scale with years of marriage; very long marriages can yield longer advisory terms. Short marriages rarely produce long-term awards; longer marriages support broader remedies where the statute allows.
Does remarriage or cohabitation end maintenance?
Death, remarriage, or the end of the ordered term; cohabitation may support modification under case law.
Is maintenance taxable?
TCJA: post-2018 maintenance is not federally taxable/deductible. Colorado advisory worksheets assume that federal treatment.
Where can I read Colorado maintenance opinions?
Open the cases linked above or search LawDiver scoped to Colorado. For support of children, see the Colorado child support guidelines guide.
Disclaimer
This article provides general information about Colorado maintenance and is not legal advice. Confirm the current text of Colo. Rev. Stat. § 14-10-114 and consult a licensed Colorado family-law attorney before acting on any rule described here.