Compensatory pensión on divorce: calculation, requirements and extinction causes under Spanish Supreme Court law

What is the compensatory pensión

The compensatory pensión (Art. 97 CC) is the financial payment one spouse can claim from the other when separation or divorce creates an economic imbalance relative to the other's position that implies a worsening of their pre-divorce situation.

It is not a maintenance payment (which addresses need), but compensation for imbalance, it can be claimed by a spouse with their own income if they previously enjoyed a higher standard of living during the marriage.

Requirements (Art. 97 CC)

The court must establish:

1. Economic imbalance between the spouses at the time of the break-up.
2. That the imbalance implies a worsening compared to the marital situation.
3. A causal link between the marriage and the imbalance (family dedication, career sacrifice, acquired standard of living).

Extinction grounds (Art. 101 CC)

• New stable cohabitation of the creditor spouse (STS 545/2022: must be stable and public).
• New marriage of the creditor.
• Death of the creditor.
• Substantial economic improvement of the creditor.
• Lapse of the fixed term if it was temporal.

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