A Dutch divorce is granted by the district court (rechtbank), not the town hall, and you cannot file it yourself — a lawyer must sign the petition. There is no waiting period and no need to prove fault: the only ground is that the marriage has broken down permanently (duurzame ontwrichting), and once one spouse maintains that it has, the court grants it. The marriage legally ends only once the court's ruling is registered with the civil registry (burgerlijke stand) — you are still married until then, even after the judge has spoken.
What you can do now:
- Decide whether you and your spouse can use one shared lawyer or need two — this choice shapes cost, speed and control over the outcome.
- Gather your marriage certificate, children's birth certificates, and any prenuptial agreement (huwelijkse voorwaarden).
- If you have minor children together, start drafting a parenting plan (ouderschapsplan) — it must be filed with the petition.
- If things are unsafe or urgent at home, ask about interim measures (voorlopige voorzieningen) for the house, the children and support payments while the case runs.
- Call or send your documents for a free first assessment before you or your spouse file anything.
Do I need a lawyer to get divorced in the Netherlands?
Yes, always. Under article 815(1) in conjunction with article 278(3) of the Dutch Code of Civil Procedure (Rechtsvordering), the divorce petition must be signed by a lawyer (advocaat) and filed with the court — you cannot arrange a divorce through the municipality or a notary. If you and your spouse agree on everything, you can use one shared lawyer to file jointly, which is usually the cheapest and fastest route. If your interests genuinely conflict on anything — a business, the children, who can afford what — that lawyer cannot take sides and will withdraw, and you each need your own.
What is the actual procedure?
A lawyer files a petition with the district court; if you and your spouse agree, you can file it jointly, and if not, one of you files and the other responds. With a joint petition, the divorce, your financial settlement (echtscheidingsconvenant), and — if you have minor children — the parenting plan go to the court together, and a hearing is often unnecessary. Without agreement, the other spouse can file a defence and raise their own requests, a hearing usually follows, and the court decides the disputed points itself. Either way, once the court grants the divorce, the ruling must be registered with the civil registry within six months or it loses effect entirely and you must start over (article 1:163 BW).
How long does it take?
There is no fixed timeline: a fully agreed joint petition is often a matter of months, while a contested case over money, property or the children takes considerably longer. The Dutch judiciary itself only gives a range — from a few weeks at the fast end to well over a year — because it depends entirely on how much you and your spouse still need to fight over. A business, a home, or assets abroad add valuation time; disagreement about the children can bring in the Child Protection Board, which adds months on its own.
Do we both have to agree to divorce?
No — either spouse can request a divorce alone, and the other cannot block it. Dutch law requires no fault and no consent from the other side: one spouse stating that the marriage has broken down permanently is enough (article 1:151 BW). Mutual agreement changes the process — one shared petition, usually no hearing, lower cost — but it is not a legal requirement to get divorced.
What does a divorce cost?
Cost depends mainly on how much you disagree, not on the divorce itself. A joint petition with one lawyer and a settled agreement is the cheapest route; separate lawyers and a contested hearing cost more, and the cost rises with every issue still open between you. If you cannot afford a lawyer, you may qualify for subsidised legal aid (gesubsidieerde rechtsbijstand) with an income-based contribution — we check this for you free of charge before anything else.
What if my spouse lives abroad or won't cooperate?
A foreign address does not stop a Dutch court from handling your divorce, and an uncooperative spouse cannot block it either — it only shifts the case from a joint to a one-sided petition. If your spouse lives outside the Netherlands, jurisdiction and service of documents need checking first, which is exactly why this scenario needs a lawyer early rather than after papers are already moving. If your spouse ignores the petition, the case proceeds without their input and the court decides the open points on the file it has.
By way of illustration. A husband moves back to his home country shortly before his wife files for divorce in the Netherlands. She assumes she cannot proceed without his signature. In fact, since the ground for divorce needs no agreement from him, the court can still grant it on her one-sided petition — his address abroad affects how he is notified, not whether the divorce can happen. This is an illustrative example, not a case handled by our firm.
When it goes wrong
- Missing the six-month registration deadline. Couples who keep arguing after the ruling sometimes forget to register it with the civil registry in time — after six months the ruling loses its force and the entire procedure must be redone (article 1:163 BW).
- Filing without a parenting plan. If you have minor children together, the petition is treated as incomplete without a signed parenting plan (article 815(2) Rv) — arrange this before filing, not after.
- Assuming a shared lawyer can keep representing both of you once a real conflict appears. As soon as your interests genuinely diverge, that lawyer must step back, and starting over with two separate lawyers costs time you didn't need to lose.
If you have minor children, read our separate guide on parental authority and building a parenting plan — custody, care arrangements and decision-making after divorce are covered there in full.
Call [+31 70 450 0300](tel:+31704500300) or send your documents through our contact page. The first conversation is free and confidential. Six offices across the Netherlands. We speak Dutch, Turkish, Polish and English.