For a divorce or separation instrument entered into prior to 2019, alimony received is reported as taxable income, and the person making the alimony payment may claim a deduction in the year of payment.
For a divorce or separation instrument entered into after 2018, including modifications, alimony received is not reported as taxable income, and the person making the alimony payment may not deduct it in the year paid.
Child support payments are not considered part of alimony. If a decree or agreement calls for both alimony and child support and specifies amounts for each, only the alimony received is taxable, subject to the divorce or separation instrument date.
The payer's return does not need to itemize deductions to deduct alimony payments, and the return must include the social security number of the spouse or former spouse receiving the payments, otherwise a penalty may apply and the deduction may be disallowed.
Likewise, the individual receiving the payment must provide their social security number to the payer, otherwise the receiver may be penalized.
Alimony | Not Alimony |
Payments are alimony if ALL of the following are true:
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Payments are not alimony if ANY of the following are true
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1 A house formerly shared by the spouse is considered one household. Spouses are not treated as members of the same household if one spouse is preparing to leave and does in fact leave no later than one month after payment. Until divorce or legal separation is final, spouses can be members of the same household.
2 If payments can continue after death, the part of the payment that would continue is not alimony whether made before or after death. The divorce or separation instrument does not need to expressly state that payment ceases if liability for payments ends by operation of law.
Desktop - Entering Alimony Paid
To enter alimony paid in TaxSlayer Pro, from the Main Menu of the Tax Return (Form 1040) select:
- Adjustments Menu
- Alimony Paid
Entering Alimony Received
To enter alimony received into TaxSlayer Pro, from the Main Menu of the Tax Return (Form 1040) select:
- Income Menu
- Alimony Received
ProWeb - Entering Alimony Paid
To enter alimony paid in TaxSlayer Pro, from the Main Menu of the Tax Return (Form 1040) select:
- Federal Section
- Deductions
- Adjustments
- Alimony Paid
Entering Alimony Received
To enter alimony received into TaxSlayer Pro, from the Main Menu of the Tax Return (Form 1040) select:
- Federal Section
- Income
- Alimony Received
NOTE: This is a guide on entering Alimony Paid and Alimony Received into the TaxSlayer Pro program. This is not intended as tax advice.
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