Is It Possible to Obtain a Spousal Support Modification?

 Posted on March 21, 2025 in Spousal Maintenance

Since spousal support – also known as alimony or spousal maintenance – is typically a controversial issue during a divorce, if the receiving spouse asks for an increase or the paying spouse asks that the amount be decreased later on, the issue can get even more contentious. Unless an Illinois divorce order states that the awarded spousal support is non-modifiable, there are circumstances under which it can be later modified.

The modification of spousal support is covered under 750 ILCS 5/510. If your ex is asking for an increase in support or you, as the paying spouse, need to request that the amount be lowered, it is time to speak to an experienced Will County, IL family law attorney.  

What if the Paying Spouse Wants to Reduce Spousal Support?

Whether an individual is asking for spousal support to be increased, reduced, or terminated, there must be a "substantial change in circumstances" for a judge to consider a modification. Most spousal support awards have a set period of time. When this time is up – or if the receiving spouse marries, cohabitates, or dies or the paying spouse dies – then the order would likely end.

Under certain circumstances, the order might be subject to review if the time is up.  However, an extension would be unlikely if the receiving spouse no longer needed spousal support to survive or the paying spouse could no longer afford spousal support. Before the set period of time has ended, if the paying spouse has fallen on hard financial times, then he or she may ask the court to lower the spousal support payments. This might happen if the paying spouse loses his or her job, retires, or becomes ill and unable to work.  

If the time is not up, but the paying spouse believes the receiving spouse is doing well financially and no longer needs the spousal support, he or she could ask the court to terminate it. It is up to the paying spouse who wants spousal support lowered or terminated to show the court that a substantial change in circumstances has occurred. If that can be done, then the court may agree to lower or terminate the ordered spousal support.

What if the Receiving Spouse Wants an Increase in Spousal Support?

It is generally more difficult for a receiving spouse to get the court to agree to an increase in spousal support. Again, the receiving spouse would have to show a substantial change in circumstances, but in conjunction with that, the paying spouse would have to have the financial resources to increase spousal support payments.

In this situation, a substantial change in circumstances might include an illness that keeps the receiving spouse from working and making a living or the loss of a job with few other job prospects. In general, the court expects a spouse receiving spousal support to make a good-faith effort to support themselves.

The exception to this would be for a receiving spouse whose marriage was of long duration and who had little opportunity to gain education and work opportunities. This spouse was likely the one raising the couple’s children and taking care of the household in lieu of career opportunities.  

If the receiving spouse is also elderly at the time of the divorce and the other spouse has the financial means to pay spousal support, then that support might be ordered until one of the spouses dies or the receiving spouse remarries or is cohabitating with another person. Barring extraordinary circumstances, a decrease in spousal support would be unlikely in this situation.   

Contact a DuPage County, IL Divorce Lawyer

While changes in financial circumstances happen frequently, asking for a modification of spousal support will require solid proof of these changes. It can be beneficial to speak to a Naperville, IL spousal support modification lawyer from Law Office of Ronald L. Hendrix, P.C. who can help you request a modification or can fight a request for modification on your behalf. In addition to his law degree, Attorney Hendrix has a master’s degree in guidance and counseling and is a court-appointed mediator. Call 630-355-7776 to schedule your free consultation.