A difference in income does not automatically mean support. Entitlement must be established first, and that is where these cases are really decided.
People often assume that a higher-earning spouse simply pays the other. The law asks a prior question: is there an entitlement to support at all? Only once entitlement is established do the amount and duration come into play.
Entitlement is usually compensatory, to make up for economic disadvantage from the roles taken during the relationship, such as giving up a career to raise children, or non-compensatory, based on need and the standard of living built together. It can also be contractual, from an agreement.
The Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines produce a range for amount and duration, but they do not decide entitlement, and they are not law. Two cases with identical incomes can have very different outcomes depending on the history of the relationship.
Immigration, family, corporate or cross-border. We will tell you honestly what can be done, and what cannot.
Book a Consultation收入有差距，并不自动意味着要支付配偶抚养费。必须先确立“是否有权获得”，而这正是这类案件真正被决定的地方。
很多人以为，收入高的一方自然就得付给另一方。法律先问一个在前的问题：是否存在获得配偶抚养费的资格(entitlement)？只有在资格确立之后，金额与期限才登场。
资格通常是“补偿性(compensatory)”的，用以弥补因关系中所承担的角色（如为育儿而放弃事业）造成的经济不利；或“非补偿性(non-compensatory)”的，基于需要和共同建立的生活水平；也可以是基于协议的“合约性”资格。
《配偶抚养费参考指引(SSAG)》会给出金额与期限的区间，但它不决定资格，也不是法律。两个收入完全相同的案子，可能因关系历史不同而结果迥异。