In April 2022, no-fault divorce took effect in the UK, making it easier for couples who are eligible for divorce in the UK to bring their marriage to an end. Divorce is never easy, but the new laws bring an end to the requirement to blame one party for the breakdown of the marriage, making the process more straightforward and less likely to involve high levels of conflict. But, is getting divorced in the UK the best option for you? You can apply for a divorce in a country other than where you live or work, or even where your permanent home is – this is referred to as international divorce.
International divorce is common, as many couples end up living in different countries or are of different nationalities. In international divorces, there are two stages to choosing where you would like to get divorced. Firstly, working out where you are eligible to divorce, and secondly if there is more than one option, choosing which jurisdiction is right for you. In this article, we look at the changes brought about by no-fault divorce in the UK, as well as how to choose which jurisdiction you should select for your divorce.
No-fault divorce explained
The previous divorce laws in the UK often resulted in unnecessary conflict by making it mandatory that couples decided who was at fault and caused the breakdown of the marriage. Divorce is a highly emotional process, and the ‘blame game’ only adds additional stress to the parties.
Under the new laws, couples no longer need to assign ‘blame’ for the breakdown of the relationship and may cite ‘irretrievable breakdown’ as the reason for wanting to get divorced. An important aspect of this change is that irretrievable breakdown can be cited as a mutual decision, or by one party to the marriage or civil partnership
Either party to divorce proceedings can provide a statement which sets out that the relationship has broken down. They will not be required to provide further evidence, such as evidence of adultery or unreasonable behaviour.
This change also means that one party to the marriage cannot contest a divorce where their spouse has begun divorce proceedings. This change makes the UK a very attractive place to get divorced for many people. There is limited conflict now in UK divorces, making getting a divorce much more streamlined.
Is it better to get divorced in the UK?
Divorce laws vary greatly between jurisdictions. If you have the possibility of getting divorced in more than one country, you will need to consider the impact your choice could have on many different things, including:
The costs involved
The financial orders that the court can make and also whether they are likely to go in your favour
How long the process might take, in particular how long it may take to settle your finances
How you can make arrangements for children and how long it will take for these formal arrangements to have effect
Whether it is easy to enforce a court order from another country in the country where you live or work
After considering your options carefully, you may determine that getting divorced in one particular country is likely to benefit you financially. Some legal systems favour men over women in how the court treats divorce settlements. It may also take significantly longer or be more costly to get divorced somewhere else, so you should carefully consider your options and discuss your concerns with an experienced international family law solicitor.
It is also important to consider whether it is practical to get divorced in another country. Divorce is very stressful, which can be made worse when the divorce proceedings in another country are particularly long and drawn out. You may also wish to consider whether you speak the language of the country where you plan to divorce, as this could make the process confusing and concerning for you.
Contact Our UK Divorce Solicitors based in Manchester, London and Birmingham
Our team is experienced in divorce proceedings with an international element and financial settlements. To arrange an initial consultation about divorce, call our specialist Divorce Solicitors on 0330 107 0107 or complete our online enquiry form, and we will get back to you.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. Please note that the law may have changed since this article was published.
F v F - Acted for a German husband in a complex financial remedy matter. He decided to instruct IMD Solicitors after he had lost trust in his previously instructed solicitors and feared that he would not achieve a favourable outcome from the proceedings. The relevant assets were spread across the globe with some located in the UK (including a multi-million pound business), Gibraltar, Spain, Dubai, and Poland. The overall value of assets exceeded £24 million. The husband had been cut off from the matrimonial assets and excluded from control of the business that had been established by his family. The case involved the instruction of numerous experts, for business valuations, Capital Gains Tax reports, and opinions on the enforcement of orders in foreign jurisdictions, and dealing with several applications, including applications for orders to freeze assets, prevent the disposition of assets, for the joinder of parties, and to litigate conduct issues. The final result exceeded the client’s expectations.
L v L - We were instructed by a mother in a complex international children matter. She was required by orders of the UK courts to return the child to the UK from Poland. She had travelled with the child to Poland but, following unsuccessful application to extend her stay there in August 2017, she decided not to return to the UK because the child disclosed sexual abuse by a member of the paternal family and the father. In September 2018, the Polish court dismissed the father’s Hague Convention application for the child's return on the basis of Article 13(b), a decision which the father appealed. In March 2019, the father applied to the UK High Court for an order for the child’s return pursuant to the procedure set out in Article 11(6) – (8) of the Brussels IIA Regulation. Despite the father's unsuccessful Hague Convention application in Poland, the UK court ordered the return of the child. Article 11 does not allow the court of the returning country much discretion. After all of this, the mother instructed IMD Solicitors to apply to discharge the orders of the UK Court for the return of the child. Even in the face of the fact that most applications to discharge such return orders fail, we succeeded. We are currently awaiting a decision in the UK courts on a further application for the transfer of jurisdiction to the Polish courts where the mother resides with the child.
G v P - We represent a Spanish mother in respect of an urgent application for a Child Arrangements Order and Specific Issue Order in the UK seeking the relocation of the child to Spain. This was after the return of the child to the UK under Hague Convection proceedings which this mother lost in Spain.
She was asking for an order for the relocation of the child back to Spain and an urgent interim Child Arrangements Order to allow her to see the child pending the final outcome of the UK proceedings. IMD successfully argued that, regardless of the return of the child to the UK under the Hague Convention, the mother should be allowed unsupervised overnight contact with the child. We were delighted to be able to secure her contact with the child for Christmas and she said that it was the best Christmas gift she could have wished for. The outcome of the application for the relocation is pending.
S v V - We currently represent the father in Child Arrangements Order proceedings issued by the mother in relation to variation of a UK order made in the face of numerous other international proceedings. He is an Italian National who has been living in France for the last 20 years and the mother is a Lithuanian national. The child is now 11 years old and proceedings concerning the child have been ongoing in various jurisdictions for the majority of the child`s life. Contested divorce proceedings including child arrangements took place in Monaco. The French Court and authorities were also involved, and various proceedings had been ongoing between parties since 2013 in France and Monaco.
The parties’ divorce was pronounced in Monaco. Thereafter, in December 2020, the mother submitted an application to relocate to England with the child, and the relocation took place in June 2021. Upon relocation, the she lodged a child arrangement order application, seeking to register a judgment made in Monaco and to vary the same in respect of the contact arrangements between the father and the child. The father seeks for the child’s return to Monaco.
Due to the parties’ mutual allegations and the associated international elements, various authorities and courts that have been involved in the case, the local authority has become involved with the family and a guardian has been instructed to represent the child in the UK proceedings. At present, these proceedings in England are ongoing and the outcome of the professional reports regarding the family are awaited.
P v P - We have acted for the Respondent Husband in relation to the financial remedy proceedings in the UK. The parties had various assets in the UK and Romania consisting mainly of the portfolio of properties but conduct issues were raised by the Wife due to a business of the Husband over which she had lost control and her allegations of dissipation of assets. The value of assets excluding the business were in a region of £3 million.
K v K - We act in financial remedy proceedings for a wife who is a Polish national. The matter's complexity mainly comes from a dispute between the parties around land in Poland. Its value was initially in dispute but was then assessed by a joint expert to be in the region of half a million pounds. The total assets in this case are estimated to be worth over £1 million. The land in Poland is a subject to contract with a third party and is being leased as a photovoltaic (solar) farm. The division of the land to achieve an equal share of the assets is complicated due to the contract in place and plans for the future use of the land. Currently the parties are awaiting a final hearing but efforts are being made to reach a settlement with the aid of alternative dispute resolution and in order to save the parties money and avoid further delays.
R v O - We acted pro bono and worked together with a law firm in Poland to ensure that the Costa Rican Mother regains access to her child. The Mother's only child was abducted from the UK in 2014. The Mother was successful with the abduction case and the UK family courts ordered the return of the child. The orders were recognised in Poland but unfortunately due to various issues with the Mother's immigration status and court's delays in Poland, the orders were never enforced. The Mother was facing removal from the UK and prospects of never seeing her child again. We have corresponded with various courts in Poland dealing with international abduction matters and we decided that an application for contact should be issued rather than any proceedings for further enforcement of the orders, as the Mother had not seen the child for around 7 years. At the same we secured the Mother's stay in the UK making successful outside of immigration rules application to extend her stay. We now receive regular photos from the Mother with her daughter, as face to face contact is taking place. We helped to secure an order of the Polish courts for the Mother to see the child regularly in person, whilst when she instructed us she was facing a prospect of never seeing her child again and being deported to Costa Rica.
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