What are support payments?

Answer a few questions to find out if the payments made or received are considered support payments.

A support payment is an amount payable or receivable as an allowance on a periodic basis for the maintenance of the recipient, children of the recipient, or both.

There are two types of support payments:

• spousal support
• child support

The tax rules are different depending on the type.

• Spousal support (support for a spouse or common-law partner) means support payments made under a court order or written agreement that are only for the recipient's maintenance.
• Child support (support for a child) means any support payment that is not identified in the court order or written agreement as being only for the recipient's maintenance. If an order or agreement provides for a global amount of support to be paid for the recipient and a child, the full amount is considered support for a child.

Your payment is considered a support payment if the following five conditions are met.

1. The payment must be made under the terms of a court order or written agreement.
   
   Note
   Paternity agreements must be in the form of a court order issued by a court or a competent tribunal in accordance with the laws of a province. A written paternity agreement is not acceptable on its own even if it is registered with the court.
   

2. If the recipient is the payer’s current or former spouse or common-law partner, the payer must be living separate and apart from the recipient at the time the payment was made because of a breakdown in the relationship. Otherwise, the payer must be the legal parent of a child of the recipient.

3. The payment is made for the maintenance of the recipient, the child of the recipient, or both, and the recipient has discretion as to the use of the amount.

4. The allowance must be payable on a periodic basis. The timing of the payments must be set out in the court order or written agreement.

5. The payments must be made directly to the recipient.

Exceptions

In certain situations, your payments are considered support payments even if they do not meet the preceding conditions. These situations may arise when the payments are:

• made before the date of the court order or written agreement
• specific-purpose and third-party payments
• lump-sum payments

Forms and publications

• Guide P102, Support Payments
• Folio S1-F3-C3, Support Payments

Date modified:

2017-01-03