Divorce law in Norway
A marriage is officially ended through a legal separation or a divorce. Both marriage partners, whether man or woman, can demand a separation or a divorce. In Norway, you must apply for a legal separation or a divorce to the County Governor ("Fylkesmannen").
A divorce or a legal separation is possible even if one of the partners does not consent to it. When you apply for a separation or divorce, you do not need to tell why you want to end your marriage.
To get the application for divorce approved, the couple must have been legally separated for at least a year, or else not lived together for the last two years. One exception is if you are a victim of violence and/or abuse, or if the person you married was married to someone else as well. Then you can apply for a divorce to the local district court.
If the married couple have children under the age of 16, they have to meet for arbitration before they can be legally separated or divorced. Arbitration means that the couple meets to make an agreement regarding who should be responsible for the child, where the child should stay and other matters that are important for the child. The arbitration is held at the offices of the local family counselling service. The service is free of charge.
You don't pay for applying for a divorce to the County Governor.
Financial support
After a divorce, each marriage partner is responsible for him/herself again. Under certain conditions, you or your partner may be obliged to continue to support the former marriage partner financially. If you require more information, you can contact Nav or a lawyer. You can also contact a counselling service.
As a main rule, if you and your previous spouse have children under the age of 18, and one of you doesn't live with the child, the parent not living with the child should pay money to the parent living with the child. This is called child support.
When the parents meet for arbitration before applying for separation or divorce, they should try to reach an agreement about who should look after the children (have child custody), where the children should live and how much time each parent should have with the children. If the parents are not able to reach an agreement, the courts might decide for them.
It can be expensive to take the case to court. If your yearly income is less than a certain amount, the government will partly cover your expenses for a lawyer. This is called legal aid. You need to apply to get expenses covered. The application should be sent to the County Governor.
