Aylin Acar

A contribution agreement (draagplichtovereenkomst) governs the relationship between you and your ex-partner: who ultimately bears the mortgage payments, interest, repayments and other costs. It does not release you from your obligations towards the bank. Only the bank can release you from joint and several liability. Why do you remain liable for the mortgage? Whether you

An ordered index of every guide we have written on Family law in the Netherlands.

Without a will, Dutch law gives the surviving spouse or registered partner all the assets of the estate, while the children receive only a money claim that is generally payable after that spouse dies (Article 4:13 of the Dutch Civil Code, BW). A will can disinherit a child, but the child keeps a legitimate portion

A Dutch registered partnership (geregistreerd partnerschap) is close to marriage in almost every legal respect, but it ends differently. Without joint minor children you can end it out of court, through an agreement signed with a lawyer or civil-law notary; with minor children, only the court can dissolve it. This article sets out both routes,

If you married in the Netherlands on or after 1 January 2018 without a notarial prenuptial agreement, you are married in a limited community of property (beperkte gemeenschap van goederen) under Article 1:94 of the Dutch Civil Code (BW). What you build up together during the marriage is shared; what each of you owned before

The cost of a divorce in the Netherlands depends mainly on how far you and your spouse disagree: an agreed divorce through one lawyer is the cheapest route, a fully contested divorce with two lawyers the most expensive. The fixed part is small: in 2026 the court fee at the district court is €341 per

If you are divorcing in the Netherlands and have children under 18, you must file a parenting plan (ouderschapsplan) signed by both parents with your divorce petition. The main exception: if you reasonably cannot get the other parent’s signature, you may explain why and propose arrangements yourself, and the court will then decide. Unmarried parents

Dutch child maintenance (kinderalimentatie) is calculated in two steps: first what the child needs, based on the parents’ combined income before separation, then what each parent can afford. The law itself contains no formula; the figures come from the guidelines of the Dutch judiciary (the Trema standards), and when a child lives abroad a foreign

If you are not married to or in a registered partnership with the mother, you only become your child’s legal parent in the Netherlands by acknowledgement (erkenning) at the municipality or a notary, with the mother’s written consent while the child is under 16 (Articles 1:203 and 1:204 of the Dutch Civil Code, BW). Since

If you were married only in a nikah in the Netherlands, Dutch law usually does not treat you as married, so there is no court divorce: you are treated as unmarried partners. If you also had a civil marriage, or your nikah was a valid marriage in the country where it took place, you need

Provisional measures (voorlopige voorzieningen) are temporary court orders that settle who stays in the family home, who pays what maintenance and how the children are cared for while your Dutch divorce is running. You can request them through a lawyer before or during the divorce, and under Article 821 of the Dutch Code of Civil

A good family law firm in the Netherlands handles Dutch family law as a core practice, can deal with cross-border cases and tells you the costs before it starts. You always need a Dutch lawyer (advocaat) for a divorce, because only a lawyer can file the petition with the court; the exception is ending a

An LGBTIQ+ divorce in the Netherlands follows exactly the same law as any other divorce: the same ground, the same procedure and the same rules on property, maintenance, pensions and children. The main difference lies in the facts: if your family was formed through a known donor, adoption or surrogacy, often partly abroad, it may

A high-net-worth divorce in the Netherlands follows the same rules as any divorce, but three questions decide the financial outcome: which matrimonial property regime applies, what the business, real estate and pension rights are worth, and which country’s law governs the division. Your wedding date and any prenuptial agreement (huwelijkse voorwaarden) decide which assets are

For a complex divorce in the Netherlands, choose a firm that practises family law as a core area, that can handle whatever makes your case complex, and that can explain everything in a language you understand well. Most Dutch divorces are not complex; complexity comes from business ownership, substantial or cross-border assets, pension rights or

A divorce settlement agreement (echtscheidingsconvenant) is a written contract in which you and your spouse record how you settle the consequences of your divorce: the home, the division of property, spousal maintenance and pensions. It is not required by law, but if you have minor children and share parental authority, a separate parenting plan (ouderschapsplan)

Coercive control is a pattern of domination in which one partner systematically controls, isolates and intimidates the other, often without physical violence. In a Dutch divorce it matters because the period of leaving is widely seen as the most dangerous phase, and because the court can take measures to protect you and the children, from

No, spousal maintenance (partneralimentatie) does not automatically end when you or your former partner reach the state pension (AOW) age. It ends when its statutory or agreed term expires; only in one specific situation, a marriage of more than 15 years with a recipient close to pension age, is the AOW age itself the end

In a blended family, child maintenance is calculated by first establishing what each child needs and then dividing the financial capacity (draagkracht) of everyone who must contribute. Both legal parents always contribute, and a stepparent only does so while married to or in a registered partnership with the parent the child lives with; if capacity

A high-conflict divorce comes before the children’s court (kinderrechter) as soon as one parent asks the court to decide a dispute about the children that the parents cannot settle themselves. It becomes a child protection case only when the conflict seriously threatens the child’s development and voluntary help is not enough; then the court can