Did you know that in 2019, about 432,000 Filipinos got married in the Philippines?
That is a lot of people that are trying to create their happily ever after, but unfortunately, not everyone who gets married has a lifelong marriage. There are plenty of people that wish to leave their marriage early but if you are reading this, you are probably wondering about divorce in the Philippines?
It is possible? Do you want to know how to get a divorce? This is your guide around the subject.
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Divorce in the Philippines?
Unfortunately, if you are seeking a divorce in the Philippines, it is impossible to get if you got married in the country. However, if you got married abroad, then your options increase because the legality of the marriage can fall under that country’s laws.
The Philippines is a strong Catholic nation, and religious beliefs in Catholicism frown upon the idea of divorce. It is seen as giving up on the marriage and the idea of marriage is for both partners to have a lifelong commitment towards each other.
So, the idea from the perspective of the government is to make it more difficult to get out of these marriages for the purpose of these religious beliefs.
However, if you wish to leave your partner, there may be another option for you if you are willing to call it something else.
Annulment in the Philippines
Generally, if you wish to leave your partner that you married in the Philippines, this is the route that you have to take. An annulment can be a way around not being able to divorce your partner because it still allows you to legally separate.
With an annulment, the definition there is that a valid marriage never existed in the first place. This relates to the Catholic beliefs on marriage because, in that religion, they believe that marriages should last a lifetime.
In contrast, a divorce officially ends a marriage, so that is looked at as more of a failure than a marriage that the government deems never should have happened in the first place.
Filing for Divorce
When it comes to getting a divorce as a Filipino, there is one way to be able to get this. That is if you got married in another country.
While the Philippines government does not grant a divorce for marriages in the country, they generally will not interfere with laws on marriage that other countries recognize.
So, to get a divorce legally recognized, you will have to get a recognition of foreign divorce form. Once you fill that out, your odds of processing the divorce should increase significantly.
Hire a Divorce Lawyer
Do you want a divorce in the Philippines? With the laws being as complicated as they are in the country on divorce, your best bet is to hire an experienced divorce lawyer to help you go through this process smoothly.
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