An assessment of the indefinite alimony debate

The debate over "indefinite alimony" has long held a significant place on the legal agenda. At the center of this discussion is poverty alimony, which is intended to provide for the livelihood of a spouse who falls into poverty after a divorce. Often referred to in the public eye as "lifetime alimony," this institution is actually a legal safeguard tied to specific conditions under the Turkish Civil Code.

What Does the Law Say?

According to Article 175 of the Turkish Civil Code, "The party who will fall into poverty due to divorce may request alimony indefinitely from the other party in proportion to their financial means, provided that their fault is not heavier." Accordingly, for a court to rule on poverty alimony, the marriage must have ended in divorce, a request for alimony must be made, the requesting party must be at risk of falling into poverty due to the divorce, the fault of this party must not be heavier than that of the other, and the party from whom alimony is requested must have the financial means to pay it.

The term "indefinite" does not mean that alimony will never end under any circumstances. Article 176 of the Turkish Civil Code contains clear provisions on this matter. Courts may decide for poverty alimony to be paid in a lump sum or as a pension depending on the requirements of the situation. Alimony decided to be paid as a pension is automatically terminated if the creditor party remarries or if one of the parties dies. If the creditor party lives as if they are married without being married, if their poverty is eliminated, or if they lead a dishonorable life, the alimony can be terminated by a court decision. It is also possible to increase or decrease the alimony if there is a change in the economic situation of the parties.

In the practice of the Court of Cassation, there are differing assessments regarding the limitation of poverty alimony to a certain period due to the "indefinite" expression in Article 175 of the Turkish Civil Code.

The Constitutional Court's Cancellation Decision

The regulation regarding the provision of poverty alimony indefinitely has also come to the agenda of the Constitutional Court. The General Assembly of the Constitutional Court, with its decision dated June 4, 2026, decided to cancel the phrase "indefinitely" in Article 175 of the Turkish Civil Code. The Constitutional Court's cancellation decision does not eliminate poverty alimony. What was cancelled is the phrase regarding the ability to request alimony "indefinitely." It was decided that the decision would enter into force nine months after its publication in the Official Gazette.

The decision has another noteworthy aspect. The Constitutional Court had rejected a request for cancellation when it examined the same phrase in 2012. The fact that the same regulation was cancelled this time after the passing years has brought the debate regarding the duration of poverty alimony back to the agenda. In the next stage, the legislator needs to make a new regulation regarding the duration of poverty alimony by taking into account the Constitutional Court's cancellation decision. As of today, the institution of poverty alimony has not disappeared. The subject of the debate is what duration and criteria should be used to determine alimony from now on.

Women's Economic Situation Should Not Be Ignored

Discussing poverty alimony in the public eye solely through the expression of "indefinite alimony" leads to overlooking the needs the regulation addresses. The economic situations of the parties after a divorce are not always at the same point. Especially the fact that the spouse who undertook housework, childcare, and other unpaid care burdens during the marriage remains away from education and working life does not disappear with divorce. For this reason, instead of seeing poverty alimony merely as a payment made after divorce, it is necessary to evaluate it as a legal institution that also takes into account the consequences of the economic imbalance that emerged during the marriage process.

Providing a continuous income to one side and protecting the person who will be economically deprived after a divorce point to different legal consequences. In the current system, the conditions of the concrete case are important for the granting and continuation of poverty alimony. Just as alimony is not automatically granted in every divorce, it is not the case that the granted alimony continues under all circumstances and without change. Issues such as the economic situations of the parties, the duration of the marriage, income and assets, employment opportunities, and whether the state of poverty continues can be subject to evaluation.

Problems Arising from Practice

However, there are serious criticisms in practice that indefinite alimony leads to various problems. Especially in marriages that lasted a few days, weeks, or months, or that never actually took place, the ruling of indefinite alimony after divorce creates a debate regarding the balance of interests between the parties. It is argued that the alimony obligation, which continues for many years in childless and short-term marriages, has an impact on the economic and personal future of the alimony payer.

The continuation of the alimony obligation for many years can also have economic consequences in terms of personal choices such as remarrying, starting a new family, and having children. If alimony is not paid, while economic victimization occurs on one side, enforcement proceedings and sanctions provided for in the law come to the agenda on the other. The fact that the payer who does not pay alimony can face imprisonment upon the complaint of the creditor in accordance with Article 344 of the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law constitutes another dimension of the debate.

The assertion of claims that the alimony creditor is living as if they are married, that their poverty has been eliminated, or that they are leading a dishonorable life in order to terminate the alimony obligation can cause the private lives of the parties to become the subject of litigation. The filing of new lawsuits to increase, decrease, or terminate alimony can also lead to the continuation of the relationship that ended with divorce in terms of legal disputes. The "Report of the Parliamentary Research Commission Established to Determine the Measures to be Taken for the Investigation of Factors Negatively Affecting Family Integrity and Divorce Events and the Strengthening of the Family Institution" dated May 14, 2016, also included assessments that indefinite poverty alimony can lead to disproportionate results for the alimony payer, especially in marriages that are very short or where no actual cohabitation occurred.

The Situation in Comparative Law

Two main approaches stand out in the determination of poverty alimony. The first of these is post-marital solidarity, and the other is the person assuming their own economic responsibility after divorce, in other words, the "clean break" principle. While the post-marital solidarity principle carries weight in Turkish law, this principle is limited by the personal responsibility principle in Swiss law, which is the source of Turkish Civil Law. Within the framework of the regulations that entered into force in 2000, criteria such as the duration of the marriage, the presence or absence of a joint child and the need for care, labor force and job search opportunities, and health status are taken into account in determining the amount and duration of alimony. In Swiss law, the distinction between short-term, medium-term, and long-term marriages is also among the factors taken into account in determining alimony. In German law, the principle of personal responsibility is based, and poverty alimony can be ruled in exceptional cases regulated by law. It is seen that in different legal systems, the judge is granted discretion in varying degrees to determine the duration and amount of alimony according to the conditions of the concrete case.

Solution

To solve the problem of indefinite alimony, the proposal of paying alimony proportional to the duration of the marriage comes to the fore. It may be considered to determine gradual alimony periods proportional to marriage durations as in Swiss law. However, setting strict time limits to be applied to every case may lead to new grievances while resolving some existing problems. Because factors such as the alimony creditor's labor force and employment opportunities, health status, the age of the joint child, and the need for care can affect a person's exit from poverty independently of the duration of the marriage. For this reason, granting the judge a real area of discretion where they can determine the amount and duration of alimony according to the conditions of the concrete case may be a more balanced solution. The age and health status of the parties, the duration of the marriage, whether there are joint children, the contribution of the spouses to the marriage, labor force and job search opportunities, assets, and income should be evaluated together. Short-term marriages and long-term marriages should not be subject to the same criteria, and conversely, automatic periods should not be determined without evaluating any concrete situation. Since the party who cannot provide for their livelihood after divorce in Turkey is mostly women, indefinite alimony debates are also intensifying on the axis of women's rights. For this reason, granting the judge a real area of discretion where they can determine the amount and duration of alimony according to the conditions of the concrete case may be a more balanced solution. The age and health status of the parties, the duration of the marriage, whether there are joint children, the contribution of the spouses to the marriage, labor force and job search opportunities, assets, and income should be evaluated together. Short-term marriages and long-term marriages should not be subject to the same criteria, and instead of automatic periods, the characteristics of the concrete case should be taken into account.

While evaluating the economic consequences of divorce, both the protection of the spouse who will fall into poverty and the economic situation of the alimony payer should be taken into account. A system established by evaluating the duration of the marriage, the age of the parties, their health status, income and assets, employment opportunities, and the situation of joint children together may produce fairer results for marriages in different conditions.

Attorney Deniz Ali İlkem Demir