Before You Begin Your Next Chapter
Recognize Your Divorce
First and foremost, it’s crucial to certify your divorce in the country where you currently reside to ensure you have a legal document showing that, from a judicial perspective, there is a separation between you and your previous spouse. This is important to have a clean slate and move forward with your life. It is also important to recognize that divorce in the country where you’re planning to live with your new spouse and start your new family.
We understand that sometimes people decide to part ways and continue living as if nothing happened, but there is a commitment made to the state. It’s important to have that closure before moving on, as circumstances change and you don’t know what lies ahead. It’s best to plan and have that clean closure.
If you’ve recognized your marriage in multiple countries, it’s important to ensure you recognize your divorce in all those different jurisdictions.
One thing to consider is that, depending on where you live, there are cases where a divorce in one country might not necessarily be recognized by another. For example, where the government and religion are one entity, it is difficult to make that distinction. Therefore, it is important to consult an attorney to find out the best process to ratify that divorce abroad.
Why is it important to recognize your divorce? People believe that simply parting ways or not interacting with a person daily is enough to continue their lives. What they don’t realize is that by continuing to stay in a relationship legally (whether that’s not really accurate now), it does cause a strain whenever you wish to move forward in your life with someone else.
We’ve seen several instances of clients who never took the time, or invested in getting a legal judgment of a divorce to finalize their relationship with their ex-spouse. As life happens, they decide to have children with a new partner. Unfortunately, they’re now stuck in a situation where they have children with a new partner and no ties to their previous spouse. It can become a difficult process to enforce that divorce and have it recognized to remarry and start a new life with your new partner.
Depending on the circumstances, remaining legally married may affect issues relating to:
- Future marriage plans.
- Property ownership.
- Inheritance.
- Financial obligations.
- Retirement benefits.
- Immigration matters.
- Estate planning.
- Administrative procedures in Germany or abroad.
Completing the legal process and ensuring your status is properly recognized provides certainty and allows you to move forward with confidence.
Every circumstance is unique.
Please understand that there are always specific circumstances to the couple that go beyond the genetic information that you find on the internet or using AI. That’s why it’s important to speak with an attorney to speak candidly about your specific circumstances.
People Change
Our clients have been married to ex-spouses who own property abroad, businesses, or land, or earn passive income through rental properties. They never took the time to recognize a divorce or go through with the divorce proceeding. It then becomes very difficult because the ex-spouse now might not be as willing to step away from that relationship without seeking financial compensation. That’s also something that’s very unfortunate.
People change their minds, their opinions, and their points of view on things as time progresses. Just because you have a very positive relationship, or just because you had a very positive relationship with your ex-spouse where they were willing to move away, or just separate and keep separate lives, that does not mean that they will continue to think that same way for years to come.
It is for some of these nuances that it’s important to consult with an attorney that has experience with international family law and working with multiple jurisdictions to be able to come to a satisfactory outcome at the end of your legal process.
An attorney with international family law experience can help guide you, based on prior experience with existing clients of the firm, as to what the best outcome would be for you to ratify your divorce from another country to Germany or somewhere else where you’re looking to live your life with your new partner.
Whether you were divorced abroad and now live in Germany, or you divorced in Germany and intend to move overseas, it’s worth taking the time to understand how your legal status may affect your future.
We always advise our clients to make the investment and have a clean slate to start a new chapter of their lives by finalizing a divorce.
Guiding International Families Through Cross-Border Family Law Matters
At Vera Zambrano & Associates Law Firm, we specialize in international family law cases, helping German citizens, expatriates living in Germany, and German citizens living abroad who are involved in international family matters such as international divorce.
We understand that every family is different, and we work with our clients to identify the best solution for them and support the best possible outcome for their future. Our purpose is to provide legal advice tailored to your specific situation. If you were married abroad, have come to live in Germany, have children, or own assets in different countries, we are here to help, and we have the experience to do so.
Please reach out to consult with us about your specific circumstances.