The UK or the UAE: Where should I divorce?

Vardags is a leading international divorce law firm advising high net worth (HNW) and ultra-high net worth (UHNW) individuals with ties to both the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates. Choosing the right jurisdiction for your divorce can significantly impact your financial outcome and legal rights.

Divorce in the UAE: What you need to know

The UAE is an Islamic state and therefore the family legal system is based on Sharia law. If the parties, or husband is Muslim then unless they are nationals of another country that has its own personal status specific to Muslims, the Sharia law of the UAE will be applied to their divorce. 

The UAE also offers access to its courts for non-Muslim residents, by way of the Law of Personal Status or by applying the law of their home country if agreed or successful.  

The choice of jurisdiction can have dramatically different implications in respect of financial outcome – for example, a divorce in the UAE can mean that the financially dependent spouse may not be permitted to seek a share of assets held in the breadwinner’s sole name, and ongoing spousal maintenance can be extremely limited. 

By contrast, English family law offers:

• Broad discretion to redistribute assets and income;
• Consideration of non-financial contributions (e.g. homemaking, childcare);
• A starting point of 50/50 division of marital assets; and
• Recognition of prenuptial agreements, if fair and properly executed.

If you have a connection with a different jurisdiction, whether it is the UAE elsewhere, you should first establish whether you can get divorced in those jurisdictions and, if so, what the financial outcome may be compared to England and Wales. This information should be obtained without delay so that you preserve the option to issue proceedings in a country that is most favourable to you. Contact Vardags for a free initial consultation with one of our expert divorce solicitors. 

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Why is London the divorce capital of the world? 

The media often reports London as the ‘divorce capital of the world’ following several significant financial settlements and in specific, settlements in in favour of the spouses who have chosen England and Wales to pursue their divorces in. 

This is because courts in England and Wales typically aim for equitable division of assets, considering factors such as each spouse’s financial contribution, needs and future earning potential as well as non-financial contributions. In comparison to other jurisdictions, the English courts emphasise equality in financial settlements and start from 50/50, treating the same the breadwinner and homemaker of the marriage. 

The likely financial outcome of the divorce is dependent on which law the UAE courts use. This creates an incentive to accelerate the decision to divorce so that the most favourable jurisdiction is secured first.