Child and spousal maintenance

There is no single formula for maintenance in Malta. The court looks at the circumstances of each family. This page explains what it considers. Article numbers refer to the Civil Code, and “regulations” refers to the Family Court Proceedings Regulations, 2026.

The basic rule

Maintenance is due in proportion to the need of the person claiming it and the means of the person who has to pay. In deciding whether the person claiming can provide for themselves, the court takes into account their ability to work in a profession, art or trade (article 20). In estimating the means of the person who pays, it counts earnings from a profession, art or trade, salary or pension, the fruits of property they own, and any income from a trust. In estimating the means of the person claiming, it also takes into account the value of any property they have (article 20).

What the court looks at after separation

When it decides maintenance for a spouse and for the children after a separation, the court has regard to the means of the spouses, their ability to work and their needs, and to all the other circumstances of the spouses and the children, including (article 54):

• the needs of the children, after considering all their circumstances;
• any disability, physical or mental, of a spouse or child;
• illness serious enough to compromise a spouse’s or child’s ability to support themselves;
• whether a spouse’s ability to earn was reduced because they took care of the household, the other spouse and the children during the marriage;
• every income or benefit either spouse receives according to law (other than non-contributory social assistance), with the disability pension included;
• the housing needs of the spouses and children; and
• any benefit, including under a pension scheme, which the spouse will lose the chance to earn because of the separation.

The court can also provide for how the maintenance will increase over time (article 54).

Children’s expenses

The court’s decision on maintenance also provides for the children’s health, education and extracurricular expenses, and the way each parent contributes (regulation 30).

Children over eighteen

A parent’s duty to maintain children continues beyond eighteen for a child who cannot reasonably support themselves and is under twenty-three in full-time education, training or learning, or has a disability (article 3B).

A lump sum instead of regular maintenance

On separation, the court can, if it considers it appropriate, order the spouse who has to pay to pay a lump sum instead of all or part of the maintenance. The aim is to make the other spouse financially independent, or less dependent. It can order payment in instalments over a reasonable time, or the transfer of property in ownership, usufruct, use or habitation instead. It can also order a portion of social security contributions to be transferred to the other spouse, up to half of the total paid by both during the marriage. It must look at whether the person receiving could receive training or retraining (article 54).

If a lump sum or property fully satisfies the obligation, the obligation to pay maintenance ends. If it satisfies it only in part, the court decides what part (article 54).

Security for payment

In a divorce, where maintenance is due and has not been paid, or there are serious reasons for it, the court can order the payment to be secured by a guarantee of up to five years of maintenance (article 66I).

What to bring

Details of your income and your spouse’s if you know them, your outgoings, your children’s expenses, and any existing court orders or agreements. We will go through them with you.