According to Florida case law, imputed income is what a spouse is able to earn, above and beyond what the spouse actually earns:
“[W]hen one party is entitled to permanent periodic alimony but the other spouse has no current ability to pay, the trial court should award a nominal sum of permanent periodic alimony, which will give the court jurisdiction to reconsider the award should the parties’ financial circumstances change.” Schmidt v. Schmidt, 997 So.2d 451, 454 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008) (emphasis added). The purpose of imputed income is to determine the amount that a spouse is able to earn, above and beyond what the spouse actually earns. Nominal alimony is therefore inappropriate in a situation like here, where the paying spouse has the ability to pay more if he/she was to earn the amount the court has determined could be earned through diligent efforts.
See: Koscher v. Koscher, 201 So. 3d 736 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016).
Related:
- Alimony in Florida
- Successfully Modifying Alimony in Florida
- How to Divide Marital Assets in Florida During a Divorce
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