Divorce orders
The process of divorce may address legal matters tied to the marriage, including parenting of children, financial support, and division of property. If you are considering divorce, you are encouraged to speak with an attorney familiar with local family law. U.S. embassies and consulates for your destination maintain lists of attorneys who have identified themselves as willing to assist U.S. citizen clients on their websites.

Recognition of a divorce

Recognition of a U.S. divorce in a foreign country
Other countries may recognize a judgment of divorce from a U.S. state court. Talk to a lawyer in the foreign country to find out if they recognize your U.S. divorce.

Recognition of a foreign divorce in the United States
Marriage and divorce are matters of U.S. state law and laws are different from state to state.  Whether a U.S. state recognizes a foreign divorce will depend on the law of the U.S. state and what process happened abroad.

• The United States has no treaty with any country regarding foreign divorces.
• States may check if both parties knew about the divorce. They may also want to know if both parties could share their views during the process.
• States may decide that a foreign divorce is not valid if neither party was living in the foreign place at the time.

For questions about foreign divorces, contact the Attorney General's Office in your state. A private attorney in that state may also be able to help.

For information on a specific country, please visit your desired destination page.

Required documents for divorce recognition
To get your foreign divorce recognized in the United States or elsewhere, you may need these documents:

• Certified, authenticated, or translated copies of your foreign marriage certificates. You can get these from the civil registrar or court in the country where the marriage or divorce took place.
• Certified, authenticated, or translated copies of your divorce decrees.
• Information about foreign divorce laws. You can get this information from the attorney who managed the divorce. This is likely the easiest to get at the time of the divorce.

Contact the embassy or consulate of the foreign country in the United States for help on getting copies of foreign public documents. Foreign embassies may need written requests in their language. Include copies of important documents in your request.

Authentication of documents
An authenticated document is one that a government authority has certified as genuine. For foreign documents, you can authenticate them in two ways:

• If the country is part of the Apostille Convention, get an Apostille.
• Otherwise, have the local U.S. embassy or consulate authenticate the document. This is not a form of registration. It’s just the U.S. embassy or consulate's seal placed over the foreign court's seal. Check the U.S. embassy’s website in that country to schedule an appointment for this service.

Federal benefits and foreign divorces
Divorce impacts eligibility for and distribution of federal benefits.

Contact the U.S. Social Security Administration, Veterans Administration, and Internal Revenue Service to learn about required documentation of divorce.

Helpful resources about divorce

• Marriage Abroad
• Enforcement of Judgments
• Authentications
• Child Support
• International Parental Child Abduction
• Judicial Assistance
• ABA - the Family Law Section of the American Bar Association, 321 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL 60654, (312) 988-5145;
• ABA Center on Children and the Law, 1050 Connecticut Ave, #400, Washington, D.C. 20036, tel: 202-662-1720, State or local bar association;
• American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, 150 N. Michigan Avenue, Ste. 2040, Chicago, IL 50501, (312) 263-6477;
• International Academy of Family Lawyers, tel: (011) (44) 1245-380010
• American Society of International Law, 2223 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20008, Tel: (202) 939-6000; Fax: (202) 797-7133;
• International Bar Association (IBA), 4th Floor, 10 St Bride Street, London, EC4A 4AD, England, Tel: (011) (44) (20) 7842-0090; Fax: (011) (44) (20) 7842-0091;

Disclaimer: This content is for general information purposes. This information is subject to change without notice and should not be construed as legal advice. Please seek qualified legal counsel for specific information about state and foreign law.