7 FAM 1460
DIVORCE OVERSEAS
(CT:CON-817; 06-20-2018)
(Office of Origin: CA/OCS/L)
7 FAM 1461 SUMMARY
(CT:CON-449; 03-25-2013)
a. In the United States, marriage and divorce generally
are considered matters reserved to the states rather than to the federal
government. There is no treaty in force between the United States and any
country on enforcement of judgments, including recognition of foreign divorces.
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Note: The purpose of this subchapter is to give you
some familiarity with general concepts and terms related to divorce. You
should not attempt to interpret foreign or U.S. laws on this subject,
including U.S. state law. Please address your questions about the law to
CA/OCS/L at Ask-OCS-L@state.gov. We will consult with the Office of the
Legal Adviser and state authorities as appropriate.
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b. Questions about divorces arise in a variety of
contexts in American Citizens Services work. These include, but are not
limited to:
(1) Cases of persons seeking to obtain a divorce in a
foreign country (see 7 FAM 990
Retaining a Foreign Attorney);
(2) Cases of persons seeking to document the
citizenship of their children (see 7 FAM 1100 (Acquisition of Citizenship), 7
FAM 1300 (Passports) and 7 FAM 1440
(Reports of Birth);
(3) Cases of persons fleeing from abusive
relationships or forced marriage (see 7 FAM 180
(refuge) and 7
FAM 1740 (Forced Marriage of Minors);
(4) Two Parent Signature Questions in Passport Cases (7 FAM 1350);
(5) Parental Child Abduction and Child Custody Cases (7 FAM 1710);
and
(6) Your determinations as to notification of
surviving spouse or next-of-kin in consular protection work.
c. Various procedures may be used to end a marriage
that breaks down, including annulment, separation and dissolution. Other
cultures and legal systems have entirely different approaches. E.g., in many
Arab countries, a man may divorce his wife without the marriage being
irretrievably broken, and theres no fault divorce.
(1) Annulment is a court-ordered dissolution of an
invalid marriage. It nullifies a marriage from its inception and is granted in
situations where no valid marriage exists because of some legal defect.
(2) Separation may be formalized with a legal
agreement, or a judicial "Decree of Legal Separation," or both. A
legal separation may be preferred to a divorce for religious, economic or other
reasons. Oral or written understandings concerning property disposition,
arrangements for children, maintenance, or other agreements made while
separated may become part of a divorce proceeding.
(3) Divorce: One or both partners may seek
dissolution of the marriage relationship. This proceeding (not always before a
court) legally terminates a marriage, and makes provisions for the parenting of
minor children, family support, and division of property and liabilities.
d. A divorce decree issued in a foreign country
generally is recognized in a state in the United States on the basis of comity
(Hilton v. Guyot, 159 U.S. 113, 163-64 (1895)), provided both parties to the
divorce received adequate notice, i.e., service of process and, generally,
provided one of the parties was a domiciliary in the foreign nation at the time
of the divorce. Under the principle of comity, a divorce obtained in another
country under the circumstances described above receives "full faith and
credit" in all other states and countries that recognize divorce.
e. Although recognition may be given to an ex parte
divorce decree, states usually consider the jurisdictional basis upon which the
foreign decree is founded and may withhold recognition if not satisfied
regarding domicile in the foreign country. Many state courts have refused to
recognize foreign divorce where both parties participate in the divorce
proceedings but neither obtains domicile there.
7 FAM 1462 AUTHORITIES
(CT:CON-119; 12-01-2005)
a. Officers of the Foreign Service (FS) of the United
States, Ambassadors and Chiefs of Mission have no authority regarding divorce,
annulment or legal separation. The consular role is limited to authentication
of documents (see 7
FAM 870).
b. 22 CFR. 52.2 Authentication of Marriage and Divorce
Documents provides:
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22 CFR 52.2 Authentication of marriage and divorce
documents
(a) Whenever a consular officer is requested to
authenticate the signature of local authorities on a document of marriage
when he was not a witness to the marriage, he shall include in the body of
his certificate of authentication the qualifying statement, ``For the
contents of the annexed document, the Consulate (General) assumes no
responsibility.''
(b) A consular officer shall include the same statement
in certificates of authentication accompanying decrees of divorce.
[31 FR 13546, Oct. 20, 1966. Redesignated at 51 FR 26247,
July 22, 1986]
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c. Treaties: The United States is not a party to the Hague
Convention on the Recognition of Divorces and Legal Separations of June 1, 1970
(978 U.N.T.S. 399). The Convention relates to such recognition but not to any
ancillary matters such as findings of fault, orders for maintenance or custody
of children.
7 FAM 1463 VALIDITY OF FOREIGN DIVORCE
IN A U.S. STATE
(CT:CON-119; 12-01-2005)
Questions regarding the validity of foreign divorces in
particular states in the United States should be referred to the office of the
Attorney General of the state in question. It may be necessary for the U.S. national to retain the services of a private attorney if the office of the state
Attorney General does not provide such assistance to private citizens. The U.S. national should provide counsel with copies of foreign marriage certificates, divorce
decrees and copies of foreign laws concerning divorce, which may be available
from the foreign attorney who handled the divorce.
7 FAM 1464 FOREIGN DIVORCE PROCEDURES
(CT:CON-119; 12-01-2005)
While consular officers are not competent to provide
advice or opinions about foreign divorce law, it is appropriate to provide U.S. citizens with general information about foreign divorce procedures and to direct them
to other sources of information. For example, the CA Internet page includes
links to material prepared by posts about divorce in foreign countries. The
host government may also have information on this subject to which posts home
page may link. A Divorce Overseas Information Sheet is also available on the CA
Internet page.
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Web Links to Divorce Information
CA Internet Page
Divorce feature
Country Specific Divorce Information
Divorce Laws of the Fifty States, District of Columbia and
Puerto Rico
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7 FAM 1465 Polygamy, Concubinage
(CT:CON-817; 06-20-2018)
Questions concerning polygamy, concubinage, and other
relationships not recognized or existing in the United States and American
Citizens Services (ACS) work, including citizenship and passport work, should
be directed to CA/OCS/L (Ask-OCS-L@state.gov). Note that these issues do not
have the same meaning in ACS work as they do in visa work.
7 FAM 1466 through 1469 unassigned