Registering a divorce in the civil registry in the Netherlands

Has a judge has agreed to your divorce (echtscheiding)? Then you and your partner will be sent a copy of the final order (echtscheidingsbeschikking). When does your divorce become final? Once you have registered the final order in the municipality’s civil registry (burgerlijke stand van de gemeente).

You can register the final order in the Register of Births, Deaths, Marriages and Civil Partnerships (burgerlijke stand van de gemeente). Do this at the municipality where you were married. This must be done within 6 months of the court ruling. When you have done this you are legally divorced.

Registering the final order in the marital property register

Did you draw up huwelijkse voorwaarden (a prenuptial agreement)? Then you can register the agreement in the marital property register (huwelijksgoederenregister)(in Dutch). Do this at the court that issued the final order.

This is how it works for you

Your (future) place of residence falls under:

Municipality of Enschede

Here is some information from your municipality.

Register divorce

Where you register your divorce depends on your situation.

If you got married in the municipality of Enschede

Did you get married and divorced in the Netherlands? Then your lawyer will send the divorce decree to the civil registrar in the municipality where you got married. The registrar will then register your divorce.

Your lawyer must send the documents to:

Gemeente Enschede
Ambtenaar van de burgerlijke stand
Postbus 20 7500 AA Enschede
To the attention of afdeling Burgerzaken (department of civil affairs)

Do you live in a municipality other than the one in which you got married? Then the registrar will inform your municipality of residence.

There is no fee for registering your divorce with the municipality. Do you need proof of your divorce? If so, an official copy of or excerpt from the divorce decree costs: € 14,30.

Once the municipality has received the documents, it will register the divorce as soon as possible. The divorce becomes official as soon as the municipality registers it in the civil registry.

More information