Current as of March 2018
Many Air Force members and their spouses
incorrectly believe they cannot obtain a divorce
in England. The following information lists the
basic requirements of eligibility for filing for
divorce in England. You must have a marriage
that is legally recognized in the UK – this
includes same sex marriage. A petition for
divorce may only be filed after the couple has
been married for at least one year.
Residency Requirements
At the time a person (“petitioner”) files for
divorce in English Court, he or she must be:
a. “Legally domiciled” in England.
Essentially, this means that England is the
petitioner’s permanent home country, and he
or she intends that it will remain so in the
future; OR
b. A resident in England for a period of at least
one year. (Short periods of absences such as
TDYs and leave are disregarded in
computing the one-year period.)
Citizenship, nationality or the fact that
neither the husband nor the wife were born in
England are irrelevant. Therefore, nearly all Air
Force personnel or dependent spouses would fall
under category “b” above after they have been in
England for one year. Under NATO Status of
Forces Agreement, the U.K. will not grant
domicile, based on U.S. military residence.
Grounds for Divorce in the United Kingdom
You must be able to prove to the court that
you have reasons for ending the marriage. The
expression the court will use is that the marriage
has “irretrievably broken down.” The court will
accept one or more of the following grounds as
proof:
a. The spouse (respondent) has committed
adultery, and the petitioner finds it
intolerable to live with the respondent. You
must convince the court that it is intolerable
to continue the marriage. If the adultery is
forgiven and the parties continue to live
together for over six months as husband and
wife, this adultery cannot be grounds for
divorce.
b. The respondent has behaved in such a way
that the petitioner cannot reasonably be
expected to live with the respondent.
c. Respondent has left you – also known as
desertion- this includes if you have lived
with your ex-partner for 6 months in the last
two years. Desertion can be found when one
spouse makes life so difficult that the other
spouse is forced out.
d. The parties have lived apart for a continuous
period of at least two years immediately
preceding the presentation of the petition,
and the respondent consents to the divorce.
The separations must be voluntary, not
involuntary absences.
e. The respondent and petitioner have lived
apart for at least five years – this can be used
when the spouses do not consent to the
divorce.
It is important to note that the petitioner
must be prepared to prove, by competent
evidence, the facts which support at least one of
the five circumstances that the marriage has
irretrievably broken down.
Specific United Kingdom Divorce Rules
A divorce petition cannot be filed within one
year of the date of marriage.
An uncontested divorce can take four to six
months. Contested cases, especially those
involving children, can take much longer.
Separate from filing for a divorce you need
to work out Arrangements for looking after any
children, Child maintenance payments. How you
money and property will be divided.
English courts do not award “custody” as we
think of it – they award “care and control” of the
children. The parent who is awarded “care and
control” will actually have physical custody of
the children. English courts generally favor the
mother in custody disputes. A father may be
given custody if the mother consents or the
mother abandons the family and makes no move
to return to the children. If you and your partner
can not agree on these issues, mediation will be
required.
A solicitor’s assistance is not required for
filing a divorce. However, for a list of family
law solicitors, see your local Citizen’s Advice
Bureau. The divorce is filed where you live and
not where you were married.
The cost to lodge the petition at the court is
a one off fee of £550. Prices for hiring a
solicitor vary.
Dual Divorce Decrees
The English courts decide questions such as
these on a test which is best described as the
“balance of convenience.” The court would be
influenced by how long the couple had lived in
England, where the bulk of their property was,
whether there were any children and, if so,
where they were. All of these factors and others
would come into play. After weighing all the
factors, the court would decide whether it was
better for the divorce to proceed in the U.K. or
the U.S. These are the sort of factors that are
taken into account when there is a conflict of
jurisdiction. There is no mechanical answer –
each case depends on its own facts.
Current as of March 2018
This handout is for basic information on topic
covered as it relates to military personnel stationed in
the United Kingdom. It is not intended to take the
place of legal advice from a Judge Advocate. There
may be important exceptions in some states to the
information presented here. Please contact the Legal
Office for questions and further information. You
may view more information on various legal topics at
the Air Force Legal Assistance website found at
https://aflegalassistance.law.af.mil
. Additionally,
complete legal worksheets for Wills, Living Wills,
Powers of Attorney (General, Special, and for Health
Care), and access to the Online Survey are found on
the Air Force Legal Assistance website.
Scan Below to Access the:
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Legal Assistance Website
https://aflegalassistance.law.af.mil
Legal Assistance Information Series
OBTAINING A DIVORCE
IN THE UNITED
KINGDOM
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