Wan Chai Law Courts - next to Immigration Tower
Just say that you got married in England and then came to live in Hong Kong and then, just for arguments sake you found yourself in a situtation where you no longer wanted to be married and then, after some time, perhaps a year or two, you decided to get divorced and then, because you are in Hong Kong now and no longer in England you wonder if its possible to get divorced under Hong Kong law as you got married in England? Well you can.
In my role as advisor to expats in Hong Kong or expats thinking about living and working in Hong Kong I can help.
It is possible to get divorced in Hong Kong even if you got married in England. As you would expect in Hong Kong there are a number of forms to fill in and rules to follow - you don't say? And as you would expect in Hong Kong there is a handy website to help you understand the different stages and download the forms you need.
As well as this there is also a recorded message from Wan Chai Family Court which gives you options Press 2 for English - Press 3 for Divorce. 28401218 where you can listen to all the information you could possibly need.
And because I am the helpful sort I also need to tell you that you don't especially need a solicitor and you especially don't need one each because that just makes it expensive and the only person to benefit from such an arrangement is the solicitor. A Joint Consent Agreement is the simplest and cheapest way regarding legal fees to get to the result you want, ie divorced. This obviously depends on your personal circumstances and if you have children and the ages of said children. Please refer to the Family Court Web site for answers to more specific situations.
Once the paper work has been prepared and an agreement made between the two parties invovled then you both can pitch up at Wan Chai Family Court and submit the forms and pay a fee. I am makin this part sound easier than it actually is.
Imagine dear Reader that the previously described Court is not actually a like in Judge Judy or Crown Court off the telly but actually a just a large office with a number of glass fronted desks and looks more like a Post Office than anything else.
This is what you can expect. Only not so much smiling.
There are rows of court officials behind glass who give you instructions about where to queue up, where to wait, where to pay, what copies you need to have with you (EVERYTHING), what to sign, what to say (an Oath is involved) which number window you need to approach next, not yet, and where to fill in forms and make corrections on the ones that didn't quite fulfill the rules. Both the man and the wife need to attend every stage. There needs to be some kind of cooperation between the two parties at this point!
After approximately two and half hours of following the instructions - if you persist - and manage to remember which window to go to next, your file number will be officially lodged with the Court and your divorce will be legally processed.
The last instructions given will be how long it takes to receive anything from the Court - "First letter in four months, just wait" said the officious employee, and that is as much information as I can provide. I hope you find this helpful.
Birthday gifts occupy a special importance in the celebration of an individual's birthday and a lot of careful planning and thought, from many days prior to the happy event, as well as good rounds of shopping go into the selection of a perfect birthday gift. You will not be able to sell the card it its value is below $25. Frequently, one marriage partner will care much more about the anniversary than their husband or wife.
Posted by: gift to bring on first date | September 20, 2013 at 04:21 AM
Sounds painless if not clinical, dear Lesley, but still, surely, somewhat affecting.
Posted by: Richard | August 20, 2013 at 01:16 AM