Divorce in Cyprus

Divorce in Cyprus is the legal dissolution of a civil or religious marriage granted by the Family Court. As a rule, one of you must have lived in Cyprus for a continuous period of more than three months. EU rules decide instead where the other spouse lives in another EU country or is a national of one.

In our experience, where both spouses agree and you attend court, an uncontested divorce of a civil marriage is issued about one or two weeks after filing. If you married under the rules of the Greek Orthodox Church, the bishop has to be notified first, except where an exemption applies, and an uncontested divorce can then be issued seven to eight weeks after the notice. A contested divorce can take years, and nobody can promise how long.

With both spouses in Cyprus, an uncontested divorce costs roughly €1,150 in total, our fee included.

Who can divorce in Cyprus

As a rule, you can divorce in Cyprus if one of you has lived here for a continuous period of more than three months. Where and when you married makes no difference: Article 20 of the Marriage Law applies the divorce rules to every civil or religious marriage, whatever the place and date of the wedding.

When the other spouse is connected with another EU country

If your spouse lives in another EU country or is a national of one, the three-month rule is not enough. You can file in Cyprus only where EU Regulation 2019/1111 gives the case to Cyprus: for example, where you have been habitually resident here for at least a year immediately before applying, or for six months as a Cypriot national.

Denmark is the exception, since the Regulation does not bind it. Tell us early where each of you lives and which passports you hold.

What the EU rules cover

Where the Regulation gives a divorce to Cyprus, the Family Court hears it under Article 11(2)(δ) of the Family Courts Law 23/1990.

The Regulation decides which country hears a divorce, legal separation or annulment of marriage, and it does not apply to maintenance. In most cases, custody is decided by the courts of the EU country where the child normally lives when the case is filed.

If neither of you lives in Cyprus

Two Cypriot nationals can still file here wherever they live, under Article 3(b) of EU Regulation 2019/1111. Other couples cannot divorce in Cyprus when neither of them lives here.

A claim over property in Cyprus is different: it needs no residence here.

Legal grounds for divorce in Cyprus

Most divorces in Cyprus rest on a serious breakdown of the relationship. Since 2023 spouses can divorce by consent too, with no fault alleged.

Under Article 27 of the Marriage Law, the relationship has to have broken down seriously, for a reason concerning the respondent (the other spouse) or both spouses, to the point where continuing the marriage is reasonably unbearable for the applicant (the spouse who files). Five facts raise a presumption of that breakdown, and the respondent then has to disprove it:

• Bigamy.
• Adultery.
• Desertion of the applicant, with no minimum period.
• An attempt by the respondent on the applicant's life.
• Violence by the respondent against the applicant or against a child, in the sense the Violence in the Family (Prevention and Protection of Victims) Law gives that word.

At least two years of separation makes the breakdown irrebuttable, and short attempts at reconciliation do not interrupt the period provided they add up to no more than three months.

Article 27 carries two further grounds: a change of sex of either spouse, and the disappearance of the other spouse.

Divorce by consent in Cyprus

Spouses who both freely want the marriage ended can divorce by consent, without blaming each other. Law 1(I)/2023 added this ground to Article 27 of the Marriage Law.

Either spouse can file the application, or both can file it together, and both then declare their consent before the Family Court. Neither has to allege adultery, violence, desertion or any other fault. The court can dissolve the marriage at that hearing.

The six-month wait applies to this route only. An application for divorce by consent can be filed at least six months after the wedding. An application based on a serious breakdown of the relationship can be filed at any time.

Where there are minor children

In a divorce by consent where there are minor children, the court grants the divorce at the hearing where the spouses declare their consent, provided they have filed a copy of a court decision settling custody of the children or contact with them. They can instead file an application asking the court to make that decision by consent, and the court issues it at the same hearing.

Church marriages: notice to the bishop before filing

If you married under the rules of the Greek Orthodox Church, no divorce action can be filed before notice is given to the bishop, except in the cases set out further down. A marriage under the rules of a religious group the Constitution recognises needs the same notice, given to that group's senior religious leader, with the same six-week period.

A civil marriage with no church ceremony needs no notice.

The procedure:

1. The applicant gives notice to the bishop of the area where either spouse usually lives, saying that a divorce will be requested. The notice can be registered online at pnevmatikilysi.cy.net (the website may not open from outside Cyprus) or delivered in writing.
2. The bishop invites both spouses to appear in person and tries to reconcile them, within six weeks of the notice. If the attempt fails, the bishop issues a certificate to the spouses.
3. Six weeks after the bishop received the notice, either spouse can file for divorce if no certificate has been issued by then. The attempt then counts as failed.
4. Once the divorce decision becomes final, the Registrar of the Family Court sends a copy to the bishop, who performs the spiritual dissolution of the marriage within fifteen days. If the bishop does not, the divorce itself stands.

When no notice is needed

Not everyone has to go through this. No notice is needed where the divorce is based on the disappearance of the other spouse.

Nor is it needed where it is based on violence by the other spouse against you or against a child, provided a formal complaint was made to the Cyprus Police or the Social Welfare Services and they issued a certificate of it. Law 226(I)/2022 removed the old exemption for the mental incapacity of the other spouse.

For a marriage under the rules of a recognised religious group, no notice is needed where the group's religious rules do not allow divorce, and the disappearance and violence exemptions apply too.

The divorce process and how long it takes

A divorce is uncontested when the respondent does not oppose a divorce application based on a serious breakdown of the relationship. The usual route takes two hearings at the Family Court, and the divorce is issued at the second.

Route	When the divorce is issued
Uncontested civil divorce (civil marriage)	About one or two weeks after filing, if both spouses agree and you attend court
Uncontested divorce of a Greek Orthodox Church marriage	Seven to eight weeks after the notice to the bishop
Divorce by consent	At the one hearing where both spouses declare their consent
Contested divorce	Can take years; no date can be promised

The steps of an uncontested application based on a serious breakdown of the relationship:

1. Our divorce lawyer files the divorce application at the Family Court, with the marriage certificate and an affidavit from the applicant. The court sets a date for the first hearing.
2. The application is served on the respondent, who has 15 days from receiving it to file a written defence, in person or through a lawyer. We need their home or work address for this, so tell us early if you do not know it.
3. If the respondent has been served and does not appear at the first hearing, the court can go ahead without them and sets the second hearing, for the evidence, about a week later.
4. Our lawyer prepares a second affidavit, setting out the facts the applicant gives, files it on the day of the second hearing and presents it. If all requirements are met, such as serving the documents on the respondent through a valid method, the divorce is issued the same day.
5. The divorce certificate is issued once the decision is final.

If the respondent appears and objects to the divorce, the case is contested and takes much longer.

Documents you need to file

Every divorce application goes in with the marriage certificate, the applicant's affidavit and the applicant's passport or ID card. A scanned copy of the marriage certificate in PDF is enough.

A marriage certificate issued abroad in a language other than English or Greek needs, at the least, a certified translation into English or Greek. An apostille on it is better, but it is not strictly required where one cannot be obtained.

Some cases need more:

• A marriage under the rules of the Greek Orthodox Church: proof that the notice was delivered to the bishop, which is the delivery receipt or the confirmation of the online registration.
• A marriage under the rules of a recognised religious group: proof that the notice was sent to the group's senior religious leader, which is a postal receipt, a registered-letter receipt, any other proof of sending or service, or proof that it was sent by email.
• A divorce by consent with minor children: a copy of the court decision on custody of the children or contact with them, or an application asking the court to make that decision by consent.

A marriage certificate issued in another EU country, or a copy certified by an authority of that country, needs no apostille. A certified translation of such a certificate, made by a person qualified to do so under the law of any EU country, is accepted.

Which Family Court hears your case

The case goes to the Family Court of the district where either spouse lives or works, and a single judge hears it.

Family Courts sit in Nicosia, Limassol, Larnaca and Paphos. Since 2023, family matters for the religious groups the Constitution recognises fall to these same Family Courts, rather than to the separate courts those communities used before.

At the Family Court in Limassol, divorce cases are often heard on Wednesdays, but each judge sets their own sitting days.

When the divorce becomes final and when you can remarry

The court's decision is not quite the end of it. The dissolution becomes final once the 42-day period for filing an appeal expires.

If an appeal is filed, the dissolution waits for the decision on the appeal, which goes to the Court of Appeal.

Neither spouse can remarry before the divorce is final. A marriage celebrated before a previous marriage has been irrevocably dissolved is void under Article 17 of the Marriage Law.

Recognition of a Cyprus divorce abroad

A Cyprus divorce is recognised across the European Union with no further procedure, and no court in another Member State can reopen the question of whether the Cyprus court had jurisdiction.

Recognition is refused on a few narrow grounds, such as where recognising the divorce would be manifestly contrary to that country's public policy, or where the divorce was granted in the respondent's absence without service in time and in a way that let them arrange a defence, if they have not clearly accepted it. Denmark and countries outside the Union apply their own recognition rules, so tell us early if you need the divorce to be effective somewhere in particular.

What is the cost of a divorce in Cyprus?

An uncontested divorce with both spouses in Cyprus costs about €200 at the court plus our fee: roughly €1,150 in total.

Item	Amount
Filing through the court's online i-Justice system: court fee €113, Cyprus Bar Association advocate stamp €35, smaller charges	€153.71
Service of the papers and copies of the court order	€43.50 to €49.50
Total, with our legal fee	About €1,150

The i-Justice charges carry no VAT. Our legal fee for an uncontested divorce with both spouses in Cyprus starts at €800 plus VAT at 19%, which is €952. Our divorce lawyers can assist you with your requests and offer a free initial consultation at our office or via email. Get in touch to talk your case through.

Divorce without a lawyer, and free legal aid

You can bring a divorce case without a lawyer. The application can carry your own signature instead of a lawyer's, and any party to court proceedings in Cyprus can appear in person and run their own case.

You can file the divorce application yourself through the court's online i-Justice system, but the template is very specific, so you would need a lawyer's instructions to file it properly.

If you cannot afford a lawyer, you can apply in writing to the court for free legal aid, which covers advice, help and representation in a divorce. The court can grant it where both of these apply:

• On a Welfare Office report, the court finds that your earnings, actual and expected, other income and the cost of your family's basic needs and other obligations leave you unable to pay for legal help. If you receive the guaranteed minimum income, proof of it takes the place of the report.
• The seriousness or other circumstances of the case make free legal aid desirable in the interest of justice.

Online divorce and divorcing from abroad

Our lawyers can take your instructions by email or video call, file the application through the court's online i-Justice system and act for you here, usually under a power of attorney. They will then have the divorce papers served on your spouse.

If your spouse lives abroad or does not take part

A divorce based on a serious breakdown does not need your spouse's agreement, but the papers have to be served on them before the court can go ahead without them.

• Your spouse lives in another EU country other than Denmark: the papers are served under EU Regulation 2020/1784, for example through the authority that country names to receive them or by registered post with acknowledgement of receipt. If you know the country but not the address, that country has to offer some help in finding it, which can be no more than guidance on how to search.
• Your spouse lives outside the EU, in a country where the 1965 Hague Service Convention is in force, as it is in Cyprus: the papers can be served under that convention.
• Your spouse lives outside Cyprus and does not respond: the court waits before deciding. Normally it needs to see that the papers were served on or delivered to your spouse in time to arrange a defence; the exact test turns on the country and the route the papers took.
• Your spouse lives in Cyprus and stays away after being served: the court can go ahead without them.
• Your spouse lives outside the EU, or the bailiff cannot serve the papers on them in Cyprus: the court can allow the papers to be served another way, such as by WhatsApp, email or another channel you use to contact your spouse. We apply for that with an affidavit. Without your spouse's address we cannot file the divorce application.

Maintenance and children after the divorce

Custody and contact arrangements for the children and child maintenance are settled by the Family Court, and each has its own page: child custody in Cyprus and child maintenance in Cyprus.

Maintenance for a former spouse

A former spouse who cannot support themselves from their own income or property can ask the court to order the other to pay maintenance, in any of these cases:

• At the time of the divorce, or when one of the periods below ends, they are at an age, or in a state of health, that does not allow them to begin or continue the pursuit of an appropriate occupation.
• They have custody or care of a minor child, an adult child, or another dependent person who, due to a physical or mental disability, cannot take care of themselves, and for that reason they cannot pursue an appropriate profession.
• They do not find a suitable permanent job, or need professional training, in both cases for a period that cannot exceed three years from the date of divorce.
• In any other case where fairness requires maintenance at the time the divorce is issued.

Maintenance is paid monthly, in advance. A maintenance order rises automatically by 10% every 24 months, and the payer can apply to the court to stop that increase or to limit it. Where the payer receives a 13th or 14th salary, or the court finds it reasonable, the order can include a matching 13th or 14th payment.

Maintenance can be refused or cut back for serious reasons, in particular where the marriage was short, where the claimant carries serious blame for the breakdown, or where the claimant brought on their own poverty deliberately.

One application for the family matters

One application can bring the family matters together. Article 17A of the Family Courts Law, added in 2023, lets one spouse or both together file a single application, and the court can then deal with parental responsibility, maintenance, the family home and the use of movable property in one case rather than in separate applications.

The same judge hears every case on these matters between the same parties in the same Family Court, and the court can make interim orders on them before the final decision.

Division of property after the divorce

Cyprus law provides that if the marriage is dissolved or annulled, or if the spouses are separated, and the property of one spouse is increased, the other spouse has the right to bring a claim to the Family Court. That spouse must have contributed in some way to the increase, caring for the home and family included, and can request the return of the part of the increase that comes from their contribution.

The contributing spouse's share is presumed at one third of the increase. Either side can prove a larger or a smaller contribution than one third. Property received by gift, inheritance, legacy or another gratuitous title, or bought with such property, does not count towards the increase.

How the court values the increase is set out on our page on division of property upon divorce in Cyprus.

Pre-nuptial agreements

Couples sometimes sign a pre-nuptial agreement before the wedding. A Family Court deciding a property claim is not bound by one.

Property claims without residence in Cyprus

A claim over property in Cyprus can be brought here when neither of you lives here. Under Cyprus law no residence by either spouse is required where there is property within the meaning of the Regulation of Property Relations between Spouses Law.

Where neither spouse lives in Cyprus and the dispute takes in immovable property, the Family Court for the district in which that property sits hears the claim.

Staying in Cyprus after the divorce

A former spouse who is not an EU national has two routes linked to the marriage for staying in Cyprus after the divorce. The former spouse of a Cypriot citizen applies for a permit, and the former spouse of another EU citizen keeps the residence right in set cases.

Former spouse of a Cypriot citizen

After divorcing a Cypriot citizen you can apply to the Migration Department for a residence permit as another family member of a Cypriot citizen.

The Department looks at, among other things, whether the marriage lasted a long period, whether the couple had a common long-term legal or financial commitment, whether they shared parental responsibilities, and whether your immigration record is free of problems. A right kept this way is yours on a personal basis. See our pages on permanent residence by marriage and the Cyprus spouse visa for the underlying permits.

Former spouse of another EU citizen

If your former spouse is an EU citizen who moved to Cyprus, you keep your residence right under Article 26 of Law 7(I)/2007 in any of these cases:

• The marriage lasted at least three years up to the start of the divorce proceedings, one year of them in Cyprus.
• A court order or a court-approved agreement gives you custody of your former spouse's children.
• Particularly difficult circumstances call for it, for example where you suffered violence in the family during the marriage.
• A court order or a court-approved agreement gives you access to a minor child, and the court ruled that the access must take place in Cyprus, for as long as needed.

Until you gain permanent residence, you have to show that you work, or that you have enough resources for yourself and your family not to burden the welfare system, and that you have full sickness insurance in Cyprus. Being part of a family already formed in Cyprus by someone who meets that test is enough too. The right is yours on a personal basis. Come and talk to us before your permit expires rather than after.