Spousal Support
What Self-Sufficiency Means for Spousal Support in BC
By SiLaw Group Family LawyersPublished Nov 13, 2026 · 6 min read
Self-sufficiency is one of four objectives, not a deadline. Both the Divorce Act and the Family Law Act say a support order should promote each spouse's economic self-sufficiency within a reasonable period of time, but only in so far as practicable, and alongside compensating economic disadvantage and relieving hardship.
Few phrases in BC family law get stretched as far as self-sufficiency. Payors hear a promise that support will end. Recipients hear pressure to take any job. SiLaw Group Family Lawyers finds that the statutory text supports neither reading. This post sets out what the two statutes say, how the Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines build self-sufficiency into their design, and what the law offers when a spouse is retraining or has become self-supporting. It rests on the statutes and the Guidelines, not case law. For the broader framework, start with our spousal support services page.
What Do the Statutes Actually Say?
Section 15.2(6) of the Divorce Act lists four objectives that a spousal support order, or an interim order, should serve: recognize economic advantages or disadvantages arising from the marriage or its breakdown, apportion the financial consequences of caring for a child of the marriage over and above child support, relieve economic hardship arising from the breakdown, and, in so far as practicable, promote the economic self-sufficiency of each spouse within a reasonable period of time.
Section 161 of the Family Law Act sets out the same four objectives for British Columbia, and makes them the test for entitlement itself: the parties to an agreement or the court must consider them in determining whether a spouse is entitled to support. Its fourth objective reads "as far as practicable, to promote the economic self-sufficiency of each spouse within a reasonable period of time."
Three things follow from the text alone. First, self-sufficiency is one objective among four, and the statutes do not rank it above the others. Second, it is qualified twice, by "as far as practicable" and by "within a reasonable period of time", and neither statute defines either phrase. Third, it is directed at each spouse, not only the recipient, and a payor's ability to pay is among the factors in section 162 of the Family Law Act and section 15.2(4) of the Divorce Act. Our page on spousal support entitlement explains how the four objectives work together.
Is There a Legal Duty to Become Self-Sufficient?
The statutes do not create one. Section 15.2(6) of the Divorce Act and section 161 of the Family Law Act describe what an order or agreement should achieve, not an obligation a spouse can breach. What the Family Law Act does address is conduct. Section 166 says the court must not consider a spouse's misconduct in making a support order, except conduct that arbitrarily or unreasonably causes, prolongs or aggravates the need for support, or affects the ability to provide it. That reaches a recipient who declines available income for no good reason, and a payor who arbitrarily reduces their ability to pay. Section 15.2(5) of the Divorce Act excludes misconduct in relation to the marriage without that carve-out.
The Advisory Guidelines describe the question as individualized, decided on evidence about the specific spouses rather than by declaring a spouse self-sufficient at the end of a relationship. They also say the term is used loosely, sometimes to mean a recipient's obligation to earn to present capacity and sometimes just to mean that support should end.
How Do the Advisory Guidelines Promote Self-Sufficiency?
Chapter 13 of the Guidelines is candid that they cannot decide when self-sufficiency has been achieved, but they build incentives into their structure. Our page on SSAG amount and duration explains the formulas. The self-sufficiency tools sit around them:
- Imputing income. Because the Guidelines run on income, the first question is what this recipient could realistically earn given their experience, education and qualifications, and whether training would change that. Our page on imputing income covers the concept in the child support setting.
- Location within the range. Chapter 9 lists self-sufficiency incentives as a factor that can push an amount to the lower end of the range, to encourage effort, or to the upper end, where more support now funds re-training that leads to less support later. For the upper end, the Guidelines expect a specific plan from the recipient.
- Restructuring. Chapter 10 allows amount and duration to be traded off while keeping the overall value within the formula's global range. The Guidelines describe front-end loading to pay for education, step-down orders that reduce at fixed intervals, and lump sums, which carry an implicit time limit and are not reduced by later employment. See our page on lump sum versus monthly support.
- Time limits. Without children, relationships under 20 years produce durational ranges unless the rule of 65 applies, and the Guidelines describe the time limit as the end of the transition period, after which the recipient needs another income source or a lower standard of living. With children, orders are indefinite in form with the durational range as the outer limit for review and variation.
- Review orders. The Guidelines call review orders, with imputing income, the most frequent mechanism for promoting self-sufficiency, grounded in the court's power under section 15.2(3) of the Divorce Act to impose terms and conditions.
What Does "Within a Reasonable Period of Time" Mean?
Neither statute says. The Guidelines supply the only structure available: half a year to one year of support for each year of the relationship where there are no dependent children, with no end date after 20 years or under the rule of 65. The rule of 65 is a self-sufficiency rule in reverse. It recognizes that age affects the ability to become self-supporting, so an older recipient after a medium-length relationship is not expected to retrain into independence on a schedule.
How Do Re-Training and Reviews Work in Practice?
Section 168 of the Family Law Act lets an agreement or order provide for a review of spousal support on or after a specified date, after a specified period, or after a specified event, and lets it set the grounds and the matters to be considered. A review can be tied to the end of a training program, a period of job searching, or a child starting school. On review the court may confirm the arrangement, set it aside or terminate it, or make a new order, and under section 168(3) it need not first find a change in circumstances. A review is the natural home for a self-sufficiency plan written into the agreement or order. Our post on spousal support reviews explains how a review hearing differs from a variation.
Agreements can go further. Section 163(1) of the Family Law Act allows a spousal support agreement to set out the circumstances in which support will change or end, which can include reaching an income level or completing a program, and our page on spousal support agreements covers drafting those terms.
What Happens When a Recipient Becomes Self-Supporting?
Support does not end on its own. Without a review clause, the payor applies to vary. Section 167(2)(a) of the Family Law Act requires a change in the condition, means, needs or other circumstances of either spouse since the order, and section 17(4.1) of the Divorce Act applies the same test to orders under that Act. The Guidelines note that termination applications are often framed as whether the recipient has become self-sufficient, but can equally be seen as whether entitlement continues, and that the answer may turn on whether the original basis was compensatory or non-compensatory. Our page on varying and terminating spousal support sets out the mechanics.
Talk to a Family Lawyer About Self-Sufficiency and Support
Whether you are being told to become self-sufficient or asking when your former spouse will be, start with the statutory text and a concrete plan. The first 30 minutes with SiLaw Group are free, by phone, video, or in person in South Surrey. Call (778) 381-9977 or Book Now for a Free Consultation.
This post is legal information, not legal advice. Rules and fees are current to the date of writing and can change.
About SiLaw Group
SiLaw Group Family Lawyers is a Surrey, BC firm practising family law and mediation. Founder Sandy Sihota is an accredited Family Law Mediator, Arbitrator and Parenting Coordinator (Law Society of BC). Articles are legal information, not legal advice.