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Hi Nancy,

Thank you for getting in touch with amicable.

To apply for a divorce in England and Wales, there are specific requirements you must meet certain conditions. One of our experts would be happy to explain these in a free 15-minute consultation.

In short, one or both of you must be either habitually resident or domiciled in England or Wales to be able to apply for divorce using the English legal system.

What does that mean?

• Habitual residence is essentially where your life is centred. To be habitually resident in a place, you need to have established your life there with the intent to remain settled. This might mean you work there, own property, have children in school, or maintain your main family life in that location.
• Domicile refers to the country you regard as your permanent home, or the place you ultimately intend to return to. At birth, you acquire your parents' domicile (for example, your father’s domicile if your parents were married, or your mother’s if they weren’t married, or if your father passed away before you were born). If you’ve since moved to another country and made it your permanent home, then your domicile may have changed to that country. For example, if you were born in England or Wales, have lived here all your life, and plan to stay, England and Wales would likely be considered your domicile and habitual residence.

The conditions are listed on the divorce application when you apply and you'll need to tick the correct one that applies to you. The conditions listed are:

• Both people in the marriage or civil partnership must be habitually resident in England and Wales. or;
• Both people in the marriage or civil partnership must have last been habitually resident in England and Wales, with one person continuing to live there. or;
• The respondent, meaning the person receiving the divorce application, is habitually resident in England and Wales. or;
• The applicant (the person applying for the divorce) is habitually resident in England and Wales and has lived there for at least one year immediately before the application. or;
• The applicant is both domiciled and habitually resident in England and Wales, and has lived there for at least six months immediately before applying. or;
• Both people in the marriage or civil partnership are domiciled in England and Wales. or;
• Alternatively, if only one person is domiciled in England and Wales, this may also satisfy the requirement.

In summary, if you and your spouse or partner both currently live outside the UK, at least one of you must still be domiciled in England and intend to eventually return to meet the jurisdictional requirements to file for a divorce here.

Book a free 15-minute call with one of our Specialists to confirm whether you're eligible to apply for divorce in England and Wales and to get more information about the process.

We wish you all the best,

Tatiana