Tax and SARS knowledge base
Are maintenance payments taxable or deductible?
Are divorce maintenance or alimony payments taxable to the recipient or deductible by the payer?
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Direct answer
Spousal maintenance or alimony received under a court order, divorce order or written separation agreement is generally exempt from normal income tax in South Africa. The spouse or former spouse making the payment is generally not entitled to an income-tax deduction for it.
The result applies to qualifying maintenance for the spouse or former spouse. Do not assume that every transfer made after a divorce has the same treatment.
What this means in practice
The recipient should retain the order or agreement and payment schedule to explain why deposits are exempt maintenance rather than salary, rent, interest or another taxable receipt. The payer should not include the payments among personal deductions on the ITR12.
Separate lump-sum property settlements, pension-interest awards, transfers of assets, child-related costs and interest on arrears may need their own analysis. The label used in a bank reference is not decisive.
Step-by-step
- Read the divorce order or written separation agreement.
- Separate periodic spousal maintenance from other settlement components.
- Reconcile payments received or made during the year.
- Keep the exempt amount out of taxable income where the rule applies.
- Do not claim a payer deduction for qualifying maintenance.
- Analyse asset transfers, lump sums and arrear interest separately.
Documents and records to keep
- Court order, divorce order or separation agreement.
- Payment schedule and bank statements.
- Correspondence allocating mixed payments.
- Asset-transfer and pension-interest documents.
- Tax returns and SARS correspondence.
Important limits and exceptions
Maintenance is distinct from a salary paid by a former spouse's business, rental for occupying property or consideration for transferring an asset. Foreign orders and cross-border payments can create residence, source and foreign-tax questions.
When to get tailored advice
Get advice when a settlement contains property, retirement benefits, a lump sum, arrear interest, offshore payments or disputed allocations.