Alimony in solido (also referred to as lump sum alimony) is alimony in the nature of a final property settlement award that is not subject to change. It is an award of a definite sum of money to be paid in a lump sum or as installments over a definite period of time to make up for an imbalance in property division. It does not terminate upon the death of either party.

Per the IRS Topic No. 452 Alimony and Separate Maintenance webpage:

Amounts paid to a spouse or a former spouse under a divorce or separation instrument (including a divorce decree, a separate maintenance decree, or a written separation agreement) may be alimony or separate maintenance payments for federal tax purposes. Certain alimony or separate maintenance payments are deductible by the payer spouse, and the recipient spouse must include it in income (taxable alimony or separate maintenance).

A payment is alimony or separate maintenance only if all the following requirements are met:

• The spouses don't file a joint return with each other;
• The payment is in cash (including checks or money orders);
• The payment is to or for a spouse or a former spouse made under a divorce or separation instrument;
• The spouses aren't members of the same household when the payment is made (This requirement applies only if the spouses are legally separated under a decree of divorce or of separate maintenance.);
• There's no liability to make the payment (in cash or property) after the death of the recipient spouse; and
• The payment isn't treated as child support or a property settlement.

For more detailed information on the requirements for alimony and separate maintenance and instances in which you may need to recapture an amount that was reported or deducted (recapture of alimony), see Publication 504, Divorced or Separated Individuals.

Note that any link in the information above is updated each year automatically and will take you to the most recent version of the webpage or document at the time it is accessed.