We can’t always figure things out in a quick, easy way. Sometimes things don’t work just as we expected. Both of you can be good people, but somehow you drift apart from each other. Maybe you just need or have different goals for the future.
We can’t always figure things out in a quick, easy way. Sometimes things don’t work just as we expected. Both of you can be good people, but somehow you drift apart from each other. Maybe you just need or have different goals for the future. Regardless of the matter, in South Korea getting an amicable divorce settlement is a relatively soft procedure. These are information on what you want or need to know about this process.
There are multiple common terms for this : “amicable divorce”, “uncontested divorce” or “no contest divorce”.
They all mean the same. The most important thing you should be aware of is that it is the most favorable solution for people who want to save money, because unlike in case of litigation where you have to argue in a courtroom for months, it is possible to finalize your divorce without hiring a divorce lawyer – if your knowledge of Korean is good enough to conduct all document submissions by yourself. If you can come to an agreement before you go to the judge to finalize the divorce, then you can get an amicable divorce.
An amicable divorce takes normally around 1 month to be finalized, provided that you have no children and you and your spouse together have reached an agreement on all major points of separation (place of divorce, property division, monetary compensation, etc.).
However, if children are involved, the minimum time the divorce procedure finalization takes would be from 2 to 3 months.
If you spent most of your married life in South Korea, or if you have a child born in South Korea, etc., you will be able to get a divorce in here as well. As for whether your divorce will be recognized in another country or not, it will depend on the laws and regulations of that particular country. Sometimes there are additional procedures that have to be carried out after the divorce (such as Embassy notification) and from time to time a divorce decree received in Korea will be recognized in other countries without any requirement of a separate report of divorce. However, in the end it will depend on the laws and regulations of the country.
If you are married to a Korean, and you would like to stay in South Korea, you have to think about your visa status after you get divorced. If you want to keep your F6 Visa with the proof the marriage breakdown is majorly your Korean spouse’s fault, you should opt for a trial divorce instead of an amicable divorce.
The sojourn manual provided by the South Korean Immigration Office still says the marriage breakdown shall be 100% your Korean spouse’s fault to keep F6 Visa. However recently the Korean Supreme Court made a decision that you can keep the Visa as long as your Korean spouse is majorly responsible for the marriage breakdown. It is expected the sojourn manual will start reflecting the supreme court decision soon.
There are some peculiarities in divorce procedure for US Military service members in the US Army, Navy, Air Force or Marines, but in case of divorce by agreement or amicable divorce, they are eligible to get divorced on the same procedure as other foreigners in South Korea.
Child custody and support must be mutually agreed to in an uncontested divorce. This can often be an issue that forces people to get into a costly legal argument because one spouse or the other refuses to give up the primary custody.
Alimony is not envisaged by the South Korean Law, which is why you cannot ask for it even if you divorce by trial. However in case of an amicable divorce, if you and your spouse made an agreement containing conditions regarding spousal support, such an agreement will be accepted by a South Korean Court.
Since amicable divorce has the easiest and simplest procedure, if your knowledge of the Korean language is good enough to prepare and submit all necessary documentation, you do not have to hire a lawyer.
However as international divorces, even the ones where both parties agree to, can be quite complicated. So it is still recommended to receive a legal consultation before submitting the documents.
It will be helpful to ask yourself these questions when deciding on a divorce attorney :
We would like to say, while amicable divorce is probably the easiest and painless way to get a divorce, if there is something that you and your spouse cannot agree on, if you don’t want to wait 3 months before your divorce will be finalized, or there is something else preventing you and your spouse from composing and signing a divorce agreement, you can always choose other means to get a divorce in Korea, such as divorce by mediation or by trial.
