Overseas Divorce

Visas, Permits, Passports and Naturalization
1
Hi All,

I was a resident of CH until 2013. My ex and I separated in 2012 and have had no contact since 2013 as she did not sign the divorce papers. I did not think of it much then as I did not care but have met the love of my life and would like to tie the knot sometime soon.

Any recommendations as to how I should approach this matter? where do I even start?

I currently live in NYC.

Thanks!

2
I’m as lazy as the next procrastinator on here but you kick butt. If you seriously expect valid feedback: no claims from the ex since 2013? Do you really want to trigger that old story again? Residency/citizenship of either parties? Become Mormon or Muslim?

3
Was or is your wife Swiss?

If she was/is Swiss , can remember the "Heimatort" (German) or "Lieu d'origine" (French) of your wife, or can you find it on any of the documents?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Place_of_origin

I'd recommend that you contact that municipality to ask whether your and your wife's divorce was formally registered and whether or not you are now already divorced.

If that doesn't work, I'd suggest you contact each of the various authorities who issued you with the notice of separation and the court documents as you set out in your earlier threads:

https://www.englishforum.ch/complain...p-divorce.html

https://www.englishforum.ch/leaving-...ce-needed.html

https://www.englishforum.ch/permits-...t-story-6.html

Ask them for a copy of the latest document(s) in your file and whether there is proof that you are divorced, or not. They are more likely to be able help you if you write in the local Swiss language and include copies of your full idendity documents including birth certificate, the permit you had, the dates you entered and left Switzerland, as well of all the documents that they sent you, at the time, especially since your files may be archived, by now. Also ask them, if they cannot determine your marital status, to whom else you should apply.

There is also an organisation for Swiss living abroad. Even though you are not Swiss, perhaps they may know how to go about this, since they know about international couples. https://www.swisscommunity.org/en/

For the same reason, you might also ask for advice from www.binational.ch .

If your wife was not Swiss , then you might first try to determine whether she still resides in Switzerland (e.g. contact someone else you knew, such as her siblings or parents) and, if not, apply to her country of citizenship.

Finally, if none of that helps, then you could contact the lawyer you had then... although you'd have to pay for that service, of course, and that lawyer would most likely start with the above enquiries, which you could do, yourself, at little cost.

4
Super helpful!

Yes, she is Swiss and resides there. I am trying to remember her Heimatort which I might have lurking somewhere in an old copy.

Now assuming she did not go through with the divorce, any tips as to what I should do? most attorneys in the US aren't familiar with Swiss laws...

Thanks again!

5
Can you not call up 'your' tax office in the relevant Canton? If you are still married, she would have to be submitting tax returns in both of your names?

6
Are you officially separated? I wonder how you split all income aquired during your marriage. It's an interesting case.

7
Well, you won't be able to get divorced unless you can prove that you're married. That's why I recommended setting out to find out what your marital status is. If you're lucky, you're already divorced. That's possible if your wife pushed it through, based on having been separated from you for a long time, and possibly not knowing how to contact you (if that were the case). But if you're not already divorced, you'll need those same documents to set out on the quest for a divorce.

As to achieving that from abroad, these are the people who may advise you:

While you're making the enquiries, you might also read the general info about how divorce works in Switzelrand, here:

https://www.ch.ch/en/divorce/

8
Are there any children involved?

9
Yes, officially separated as of 2012 documented and all

10
Did you get married in Switzerland?

11
None, fortunately. Though there was another story from years ago where my ex had a child and decided to use my last name but I got that sorted in 2013.

12
Then the office that issued you with that document would be your first place to enquire, I would think. Both

a) are we still married, or divorced?

b) if not divorced, how to go about it?

13
nope in the US

14
Are you seriously unable to get hold of your ex? No phone number, email address, Facebook etc??

15
All of those can easily be changed so that no-one can get in contact with you. Sounds like it was a very acrimonious split.

16
That should mean you have the identification details of the child. If the separation documents don't suffice, this may - locate the child and you know where the mother is, too. Someone's AHV/AVS identification number for instance should be enough.

17
Yes! contacted one of our common friends who said she's had no news since 2015...I tried her mother's # but that changed too. Unfortunately, I was rushing to get out of CH to start a new job in the USA and didn't get my papers in order as I should have!