Who can divorce in HONG KONG?
Place of marriage is not the main issue provided that the marriage was valid in the country you have got married and you can prove it.
Before you file Petition or a Joint Application, please make sure that one of the following conditions exists:
- Either of you domiciled in Hong Kong on the date of the petition or application ( For example, holding Hong Kong Permanent Identity Cards, or they are Chinese citizens who have ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for a continuous period of not less than seven years)
- Either of you was habitually resident in Hong Kong throughout three years immediately preceding the date of the petition or application
- Either of you had a **“substantial connection” with Hong Kong on the date of the petition or application
The concept of No-Fault Divorce
Couples will no longer have to allocate blame and no guilty party when relationships end which encourages couples’ ability to behave decently and respectfully to each other and co-parent their children with dignity after
separation.
Therefore the spouse that’s filing for divorce doesn’t have to prove any fault on the part of the other spouse. It is enough to use the common ground of “irreconcilable differences” or an “irreparable breakdown of the
marriage.”
The other aspect is to allow couples to mutually agree to end their marriages (“one-year separation with Consent”) as it is acknowledged that there should be no law that keeps one in a marriage when he/she longs to
be free of the marriage.
Petition – Ground for Divorce
- You and your spouse consent to a divorce and you have lived apart for a continuous period of at least one year before filing the petition for divorce
- Your spouse doesn’t consent to a divorce, and you have lived apart for a continuous period of at least two years before filing the petition for divorce (in such case, your spouse consent is not required)
- Your spouse has committed adultery, and you find it intolerable to live with him/her
- Your spouse has behaved in such a way that you cannot be reasonably expected to live with him/her;
- Your spouse has deserted you for a continuous period of at one year before filing the petition for divorce
Joint Application
If both parties agreed to divorce and worked on an agreement/settlement, they can file for Joint Application if they:
Have lived apart for a continuous period of at least one year immediately preceding the making of the application
OR
Not less than one year before the making of the Joint Application, the couple provide the Court with a written notice (Form 2E) signed by both parties of their intention to apply to the court to dissolve their marriage and that the notice was not subsequently withdrawn