Is the indexation mandatory?
The law (Article 1 : 403A Civil Code) states that the amounts for life maintenance established by the court or by mutual agreement by agreement are automatically modified annually ("by operation of law") by a percentage to be determined by the Minister of Justice. This percentage is based on the index of wages as of Sept. 30 of a given year relative to the index as of Sept. 30 in the previous year.
It is watchful because this is usually not mentioned in the judgment, but is therefore applicable anyway. It is often mentioned in covenants. The index rate is usually known as early as October and can be found, for example, on the LBIO website. It is also usually published in national newspapers and on major news sites. The rate for 2021 is 3%. So if you paid €500.00 per month in 2020, it will automatically become €515.00 per month as of January 1, 2021.
These are the percentages as of Jan. 1, 2017:
1017: 2,1%
2018: 1,5%
2019: 2,0%
2020: 2,5%
2021: 3,0%
2022: 1,9%
Now suppose you didn't realize that you have to pay that indexation and the person to whom you have to pay, your ex for example, didn't know about it either. This happens to many people. however, it is no excuse for not paying. Formally, you have built up arrears during all this time, which you still have to pay. Especially when it comes to high contributions over a long period of time, this can get very expensive.
But now the following. Suppose you have been litigating about alimony for a very long time. At the court for a year and the court rejects the request for payment of (for example) spousal support (and of course can be child support or both). The husband does not have to pay anything. But the wife disagrees and appeals to the Court of Appeals. The court indeed thinks otherwise, ruling on January 8, 2020 and deciding that Mr. must pay, let's say, €1,000.00 to Mrs. as of September 1, 2018. What about the indexation then? Does that now take effect on January 1, 2019? After all, isn't that the "first January 1" after September 1, 2018?
The answer is: the indexation on that €1,000.00 goes into effect on January 1, 2021, i.e. "the first January 1" after the date of the court order. There is quite some ambiguity about this, but our highest court, the Supreme Court, decided back in 1974 (HR November 29, 1974, ECLI:NL:HR:1974:AC5511) that this is how it is.
It is watchful because this is usually not mentioned in the judgment, but is therefore applicable anyway. It is often mentioned in covenants. The index rate is usually known as early as October and can be found, for example, on the LBIO website. It is also usually published in national newspapers and on major news sites. The rate for 2021 is 3%. So if you paid €500.00 per month in 2020, it will automatically become €515.00 per month as of January 1, 2021.
These are the percentages as of Jan. 1, 2017:
1017: 2,1%
2018: 1,5%
2019: 2,0%
2020: 2,5%
2021: 3,0%
2022: 1,9%
Now suppose you didn't realize that you have to pay that indexation and the person to whom you have to pay, your ex for example, didn't know about it either. This happens to many people. however, it is no excuse for not paying. Formally, you have built up arrears during all this time, which you still have to pay. Especially when it comes to high contributions over a long period of time, this can get very expensive.
But now the following. Suppose you have been litigating about alimony for a very long time. At the court for a year and the court rejects the request for payment of (for example) spousal support (and of course can be child support or both). The husband does not have to pay anything. But the wife disagrees and appeals to the Court of Appeals. The court indeed thinks otherwise, ruling on January 8, 2020 and deciding that Mr. must pay, let's say, €1,000.00 to Mrs. as of September 1, 2018. What about the indexation then? Does that now take effect on January 1, 2019? After all, isn't that the "first January 1" after September 1, 2018?
The answer is: the indexation on that €1,000.00 goes into effect on January 1, 2021, i.e. "the first January 1" after the date of the court order. There is quite some ambiguity about this, but our highest court, the Supreme Court, decided back in 1974 (HR November 29, 1974, ECLI:NL:HR:1974:AC5511) that this is how it is.