International Divorce Lawyers

You may need an international divorce lawyer for a wide range of reasons.

We can help:

• International families
• Foreign nationals living in England
• British nationals living abroad (expats)
• People with multiple citizenships, or who have been domiciled or habitually resident in multiple jurisdictions
• People with assets abroad, including companies, trusts, pensions
• People who are married or in relationships with foreign nationals
• People who have homes/properties in other countries
• People who want to move abroad, including with their children
• Overseas lawyers who want to help their own clients with matters of English law
• Families involved in abduction cases.

One of the biggest issues in an international divorce case is choosing the country you divorce in. We’ll advise you on which country would be most beneficial to you. This can have a big effect on the outcome of a case and is often the most critical decision to be made at an early stage.

You don’t need to get divorced in the country you were married in. But it does need to be a country that legally recognises your marriage. For instance, same-sex marriages aren’t legal in certain countries.

You’ll also need to be able to prove that you and/or your ex-partner has a connection to that country.

Once you and your ex-partner agree on where to issue, the standard divorce process is the same whether you live in the UK or abroad. However, if the other party lives abroad, there's extra requirements for serving them documents. It’s vital these are complied with to ensure smooth proceedings.

The short answer is yes. In some countries, financial assets are divided very differently to how they’re split up in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland. For instance, in Scotland, only the assets you owned or gained during the marriage or civil partnership are accounted for. These assets are known as "matrimonial property".

Some countries outside the UK state that couples don’t need to disclose their financial assets to each other during a divorce.

In some circumstances, it may be possible for the English court to make financial orders after a marriage has been dissolved in another jurisdiction. These claims are known as ‘Part III’ claims. We can offer you expert advice about such claims and whether they may be appropriate in your situation.

International divorces often take longer than regular divorce cases. The issues involved in settling an international divorce can be more complicated.

It’s common for more than one jurisdiction to be involved. This means that several lawyers need to work across these jurisdictions, which make matters more complex.

An international divorce might need to consider factors like immigration and tax. These issues can lengthen the process and several proceedings may be needed.

Practical matters like arranging meetings across different time zones can also delay things. With such a large international team, we can handle these hurdles without difficulty.

However long your international divorce takes to settle, we’ll be with you every step of the way. We've an experienced team of international lawyers who’ll deal with any issues you come across.

If you can’t agree on where your divorce will take place, you should speak to one of our legal experts straight away.

If you can’t agree a location with your ex-partner, a preliminary dispute may need to take place. This is commonly known as a “forum dispute”.

The English Courts will consider which country is best to handle your divorce by using the “forum non-conveniens” test. This decides which court is best for the divorce to take place, considering your family and their finances.

We have a dedicated team of family law experts who are highly experienced in working internationally.

They take part in specialist training and work with specialist counsel at the forefront of international family law. This ensures they’re up to date with the latest legal developments.

Our team includes a Fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers. We also have accredited Resolution Specialists in International Family Law and an inhouse International Family Law Team of Excellence. This means we have lawyers with expertise in international issues are on hand to deal with cases and provide training to other lawyers.

Our team is friendly and approachable, with a genuine understanding of the stress and upset divorce can cause. We’re especially aware of how difficult it can be if it involves children. We’ll treat your case as a unique situation and handle it with professionalism and sensitivity.

We understand that international cases involve actions outside normal UK office hours. To meet the needs of our international clients and to accommodate different time zones, we make ourselves available for you.

While we aren’t able to offer legal aid, we can still signpost you to help if appropriate.

Our international connections

We have international connections and working relationships with lawyers all over the world. We’re connected to several international networks, including the International Academy of Family Lawyers (IAFL) and Avrio Advocati and First Law International. We’d handle the English law side of the divorce, while a relevant connection would work on the international side.

We’re experienced in working in many international jurisdictions. These include but aren’t limited to:

• Canada
• USA
• Ireland
• Scotland
• France
• Spain
• Italy
• Germany
• India
• South Africa
• Belgium
• UAE
• Israel
• Kenya
• Sweden
• Tunisia
• Australia
• Singapore.

Our in-house counselling service

We understand that getting divorced can be very distressing. It signals an enormous change in your life and can leave you feeling very lost. Divorce can be especially difficult if it involves child custody or financial issues.

It’s normal to feel anxious, lonely, or confused when such a significant relationship ends. That’s why we offer our own in-house counselling service. Talking about your feelings to a professional counsellor can help to ease the stress of divorce. This helps to ensure you’re looking after your mental health while we handle the legal side of things.

The decision about what should happen to the child is guided by the principle of the child's best interests. 

It relies heavily on the country where the child is habitually resident.

Brexit has eliminated automatic jurisdiction and recognition rules across for family law across the UK and EU.

If you're a UK national divorcing in Europe you will now have to rely on local national law and international treaties, such as Hague Conventions. 

This can result in higher legal costs and complicated enforcement of financial orders.