McKenzie Friend and Founder of Everyman Justice
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One client I supported had several properties in his home country and one house in England. When his marriage broke down, he chose to divorce here. The outcome surprised him. To protect the assets abroad, he ended up giving up the English property entirely. He had not realised, until it was too late, that where you divorce can shape what you keep.
Most people going through a divorce with any international element ask the same first question: do I need a lawyer in both countries? It is a reasonable question, but it is not the most important one. The question that matters more, and that often goes unasked until it is too late, is simpler and more consequential: where should this divorce actually happen?
For anyone who married abroad, holds assets in more than one country, or has spent years living between England and another jurisdiction, the answer is not automatic. The difference between getting it right and getting it wrong can sometimes be measured in tens of thousands of pounds.
The financial consequences are bigger than most people expect
England and Wales is often seen as one of the more financially flexible divorce jurisdictions, particularly for a spouse who has not been the primary earner. The court’s approach is guided by section 25 of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, which requires consideration of needs, resources, and contributions, including non-financial contributions such as raising children. In practice, this can lead to outcomes that look very different from jurisdictions where division is limited to more strictly defined property or title ownership.
Many European jurisdictions take a narrower approach. In some systems, pre-marital or inherited assets are treated much more clearly as separate property, while disputes focus more on joint assets, later contributions, or compensation between separate and common property. Outside Europe, the contrasts can be even sharper. Some jurisdictions focus much more strictly on formal ownership or local family law rules than an English court would.
For a spouse who gave up a career to raise children, or who contributed informally to a family business, the difference in outcome between jurisdictions is not marginal. It can be transformative.
The country where your divorce is processed is not a neutral administrative detail. It is a legal choice with financial consequences.
Where you married matters less than people think
What surprises many people, particularly those who came to England from another country, is that where you married is often far less important than where you can divorce. What matters much more is where you are now, and specifically whether you can establish what lawyers call habitual residence.
If you have been living in England and Wales and this is your genuine home, you will often be able to divorce here regardless of whether you married in Hungary, Poland, Italy, or elsewhere.
Brexit has also changed the landscape significantly for families with European connections. What was once a more predictable framework, where rules about which country’s courts took precedence were relatively clear, is now often less straightforward. Where proceedings begin, and when, can matter in ways that were not previously an issue.
For families with assets or family members in EU countries, the question of how an English order will be recognised and enforced abroad is no longer as simple as it once was. Getting specialist advice early on can make a significant difference before any decision is made about where to issue.
Why Brexit and hidden assets make things harder
Hidden or unclear assets can add another layer of difficulty. In some cases, money is not where it appears to be, but is held in another jurisdiction, placed within a business structure, or simply not fully disclosed.
Even where there is no deliberate concealment, cross-border finances can make it genuinely difficult to build an accurate picture. Tracking and verifying assets across jurisdictions is slow, expensive, and sometimes incomplete. By the time concerns are raised, untangling what has happened can be very difficult.
These situations tend to follow recognisable patterns. One is where both spouses have links to the same country and one returns there after separation, leading to parallel proceedings in two jurisdictions. Another is the gap between what an English court may award and what can realistically be recovered when assets sit abroad. Assets in England can usually be dealt with more directly, but foreign assets depend on recognition and enforcement in the local jurisdiction, which can be slower, more complex, and sometimes uncertain.
The question people often ask too late
What I see most often is simpler than any of these technical issues: people do not realise any of this is relevant until proceedings are already underway.
By that stage, decisions have already been made about where to live, where to issue, and what assumptions to rely on. At that point, changing direction is often difficult and sometimes no longer possible.
I am not a solicitor and this is not legal advice. What I can say, from experience, is that the families who fare best are almost always those who ask the cross-border question early, before filing, before the first hearing, and ideally before separation becomes final.
In practical terms, that often starts with a few key questions: where am I habitually resident, where is my spouse likely to issue proceedings, where are the main assets located, and how easily could an order be enforced in those jurisdictions?
If your marriage, your assets, or your life has an international dimension, getting specialist advice early can make a significant difference. The country where your divorce happens is not just a procedural detail. In some cases, it is the most important decision of the whole process.
Read more articles by Gergely Fried
About Gergely Fried
Gergely Fried is a McKenzie Friend, author, and the founder of Everyman Justice. With a background in education and business, and personal experience of child arrangements proceedings, he supports parents navigating the UK family court system with calm, practical guidance and emotional insight. His work focuses on clarity, emotional understanding, and reducing unnecessary conflict, always with the child’s wellbeing at the centre.
His book, Conflict by Design, guides parents step by step through child arrangements proceedings using a realistic case narrative, explaining what to expect in clear, accessible language rather than legal or academic jargon.
More information: https://everymanjustice.co.uk