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Read Your Papers First
Whether the door is even open depends on how support was set. Start with the order or agreement.
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Spousal Support / Modification
Spousal Support · Virginia
Changing support after the divorce.
Life does not stop when the divorce is final, and the law lets spousal support change to keep up, within limits. Here is what counts as a material change, how court orders differ from agreements, and what a court can actually do.
First call is a conversation, not a commitment. · By Alisa Chunephisal, Esq.
The Short Answer
Here is the answer: spousal support can be changed after the divorce, but only in certain situations. Court-ordered support can be modified when there has been a material change in circumstances since the order, under Va. Code section 20-109. Support set by agreement follows the agreement's own terms, and whether it can be changed depends on the wording and the date it was signed.
What It Is
A narrow door, opened by change.
Life does not stop when the divorce is final. Jobs end, health fails, incomes rise and fall. Virginia law lets spousal support change to keep up, but only within limits. Whether your support can be changed at all depends first on how it was set: by a judge, or by your own agreement.
What counts as a material change.
For court-ordered support, the door opens when there has been a material change in circumstances since the last order, under Va. Code section 20-109. A material change is a real, significant shift, not a small or temporary dip. A genuine job loss, a serious illness, a large and lasting change in either person's income, or retirement can all qualify. The change generally has to be involuntary. You cannot quit a good job on purpose to cut your payment and call it a material change. The spouse asking for the change carries the burden of proving it.
Court order or agreement.
This is the part that decides everything. If a judge set your support, it can be modified on a material change. If you set it in a settlement agreement, the agreement controls, and the date matters. Agreements signed before July 1, 2018 are generally not modifiable unless the agreement says they can be. Agreements signed on or after July 1, 2018 are not modifiable only if the agreement is specific about that. So the first step is always to read your agreement and check its date.
How a modification works.
To change support, you file a motion or petition to modify, then show the court the material change. The court can increase support, decrease it, extend its length, or end it. Because the question is narrow and the proof matters, it pays to prepare. If your circumstances have shifted, it is worth understanding how modifications work before you file.
Material changeA real, significant shift since the last order. Small or temporary dips do not count.
Usually involuntaryQuitting a good job to cut support does not qualify. The change generally must not be self-made.
Order vs agreementCourt ordered support is modifiable on a material change. Agreements follow their own terms.
July 1, 2018 lineOlder agreements are generally not modifiable unless they say so. Newer ones are, unless they say otherwise.
The Modification Statute
Virginia Code § 20-109(B) lets a court increase, decrease, or terminate court ordered spousal support upon a material change in circumstances, and sets the rules for when support fixed by a signed agreement can be changed.
Source: Virginia Code § 20-109(B)
Alisa Chunephisal, Esq.Family Law Attorney
Attorney Insight
A few honest words from Alisa.
"Life does not stand still after a divorce, and the law knows it. If something real has changed, you are allowed to ask for the order to change with it. Bring me what happened, and we will look at it honestly together."
Read your agreement and its date before anything else, because that single detail decides whether the door is even open. People come in ready to relitigate the whole marriage. That is not what a modification is. The court wants to know one thing: has something material and usually involuntary changed since the last order. Before you spend a dollar, pull out your final order or agreement and look at how support was set and when. If it was a court order, a real change gives you a path. If it was an agreement, the wording and the date tell you whether the door is open at all.
Questions Clients Ask
Plain answers about changing support.
These are the questions we hear most about this part of spousal support. If yours is not here, we are glad to answer it on a first call.
Have a specific question?
Call 571.260.0999 or send us a message.
What is a material change in circumstances?
It is a real, significant, and usually involuntary change since the last support order, such as a genuine job loss, a serious illness, a large lasting income change, or retirement. A small or temporary dip generally does not count, and the person asking for the change has to prove it.
Can support set by agreement be changed?
It depends on the agreement's wording and its date. Agreements before July 1, 2018 are generally not modifiable unless they say they can be. Agreements on or after July 1, 2018 are not modifiable only if the agreement is specific about that. Court-ordered support, by contrast, can be modified on a material change.
Who has to prove the change?
The spouse asking for the modification. You have to show the court that a material change has happened since the last order. The other side can dispute whether the change is real, significant, or involuntary.
What can the court do?
On a proper showing, the court can increase support, decrease it, extend its length, or end it. The judge is deciding the narrow question of how the change should affect the existing award, not redoing the divorce.
When You Are Ready
Has something real changed?
Tell us what shifted and bring your order or agreement. We will tell you honestly whether the door is open and what a modification would take. Three offices across Northern Virginia, one phone number.