How to Plan for Divorce
in Colombia
If things don’t work out between you and your Colombian spouse, then you must know how to plan and file for divorce in Colombia.
Suppose you have family connections or property in Colombia and are thinking about filing for divorce. In that case, it’s crucial to seek advice from a divorce solicitor. The impact on your child when arrangements are made and the financial implications of divorce are different in every country. You will be glad to know that even if you are not residing in Colombia, despite getting married there, you can still get divorced through an attorney.
Grounds for Getting a Divorce in Colombia
- Joint Application: When there is a mutual agreement, and there’s no need for a hearing
- Contested Divorce: When one party claims that the other is the reason behind the divorce. For example, abuse, adultery, drug addiction, etc.
- Separation for two years
When Divorce Is Not Granted
A divorce case recently filed in the Constitutional Court was refused when the spouse claimed that they no longer loved their partner and used this as the reason. Again, this demonstrates that it should be on well-established grounds when proving the other party’s fault.
Types of Divorce
Notary (Based on Mutual Agreement)
A divorce application can be handed over to a notary for processing. However, the lawyer must have a current license to operate in Colombia.
Divorce With No Children and Properties Involved
The spouse is given power of attorney to perform the deed
The document should also mention any maintenance obligations and what would happen in the case of reconciliation.
If there are any community property assets, they must be settled separately. The value of the properties is decided based on how many there are and how they will be divided.
Divorce With Children on Properties Involved
Along with the power of attorney to sign the divorce papers, the couple also agrees with child support. This also includes who will have direct custody of the child, the cost of education and health, and more.
In some cases, if the parents decide to come up with a food list appropriate for the child, both parties will have to follow it. Such a document will also have to be notarized.
Any material properties are liquidated in 50% in assets and 50% in liabilities.
The document should also mention any maintenance obligations and what would happen in the case of reconciliation.
Visitation Right: Any special dates that the parent might want the child to stay over, such as New Year, Christmas, etc.
If there are any community property assets, they must be settled separately. The value of the properties is decided based on how many there are and how they will be divided.
With a Judge (When No Agreement Is Reached)
When one of the spouses disagrees, the divorce procedure takes place in court. This usually happens if the spouse claims:
- The spouse was involved in extramarital sex
- The spouse did not fulfill their duties of being a husband and father
- Cruel treatment and outrages
- Mistreatment of spouse
- Habitual drunkenness
- Regular use of narcotics and hallucinogens without medical prescription
- Any incurable illness or psychological abnormality that puts the health of the spouse and children in danger
- The behavior of the spouse that is aimed at perverting or corrupting the other spouse
- A separation that lasted for two years without contact
- Jealousy (A continuous state of anxiety, tension, nervousness, lack of concentration at work, and isolation generated from aggressive and unhealthy jealousy that led to psychological abuse)
When a divorce case is taken to court, there’s always an innocent party and a guilty party. If the claims are proved, but the judge does not rule the case in anyone’s favor, the process can take up to a year to get settled.
The lawyer draws the application, and takes care of the entire process from attending the hearings, bringing witnesses to the court, and drafting the closing arguments. You can also issue an injunction to protect the partnered assets so that the spouses do not sell them.
Once the divorce is finalized, the notary is advised to make the entries in the certificate that declares the dissolution of the marriage. Now the process of liquidating the assets can begin, for which the divorced parties have to file a separate case.
Things to Resolve In a Divorce
- Division of personal belongings
- Ownership of the real estate
- Division of marital debts (Make sure that you find proof of obligations that your spouse was solely responsible for so that you don’t bear half of the burden)
- Division of cash and financial accounts
- Division of family business (Debts and assets)
- Payment of financial support (alimony), if applicable
- Allocation of vehicles (Bought together)
- Payment of marital settlement amount
If a child is involved, then you need to take care of the following details:
- Child custody
- Insurance coverage
- Establishing a schedule for visits
- Medical expenses
- Costs of activities
- Educational expenses
- Inheritance and estate planning
Getting Divorced Fast
The legislation was passed by congress a couple of years ago that made the divorce process easy for Colombians. According to the legislation, a couple could get a divorce within an hour if both parties had a mutual agreement.
The documents drafted by a lawyer would only need to be notarized, eliminating court trips. In cases where children are involved, the process might extend to 3 weeks, which is still a short amount of time compared to the standard 12 months.
Conclusion
There was a time when getting a divorce in Colombia was a hassle. Still, today, thanks to express divorce and Law 962 of 2005, all you have to do is get the documents notarized. Once the papers are signed, you are legally separated from your spouse. You then have to file for a separate case to divide the assets. Keep in mind that you have to hire a lawyer to oversee the case for both processes.
Our Story
James Lindzey founded the website ColombiaVisas.com, which is constantly updated with new information explaining visa resolutions, procedures, and laws in Colombia to expats. James has worked as a private investigator and paralegal in the United States through the 90s until he moved to Colombia in 2005. James arrived in Colombia in 2005 and started doing visas for expats, but currently works as Director of Legal Services for Visas by James, and Colombia Legal & Associates SAS since June of 2023.
Colombia Legal & Associates acquired the brand name Visas by James as it became a more familiar and easy way for foreigners to remember the business, than the previous Visas y Tramites Internacionales.
While MedellinLawyer.com focuses more on legal issues for expats, ColombiaVisas.com focuses more on visas, and holds the trademark Visas by James. ColombiaVisas.com is the oldest website and provider of visa information for expats in Colombia. We are proud to be the first and always on the cutting edge of providing interactive website content to our visitors.
In addition to our visa services our agency offers a full range of legal and accounting services to our clients. We are able to assist better in document collection services in the United States because of James previous legal experience in the United States.
Other Related Services We Offer:
Colombian Marriage
Prenuptial Agreements
Child Custody in Colombia
