Family Law

Adoption in Germany is only permitted if it serves the child’s best interests and a genuine parent-child relationship is expected to develop. Only married couples may adopt jointly; unmarried individuals must adopt alone.

Child support in Germany is calculated using the Düsseldorf Table, based on the non-custodial parent’s net income and the child’s age, with legally defined minimum amounts tied to the child’s age-based percentage of the tax-free basic needs allowance.

The Düsseldorf Table is a non-statutory guideline used by German courts to calculate child support based on the paying parent’s net income and the child’s age — it implements the statutory minimums set in BGB § 1612a.

In Germany, custody (parental care) is presumed to be joint after divorce unless the family court decides otherwise based on the child’s best interests.

As a non-custodial parent in Germany, you have a legal right—and duty—to maintain contact with your child under BGB § 1684. The court can define, enforce, or restrict visitation only if the child’s well-being is at serious risk.

Yes, but only if it serves the child’s best interests and both parents agree—or a court approves the move after reviewing its impact on the child’s welfare and the non-custodial parent’s rights.

Yes, unmarried fathers in Germany can obtain custody rights—but only after legally establishing paternity and, typically, obtaining court-ordered joint or sole custody.

Yes, grandparents may be granted visitation rights under § 1685 BGB if it serves the child’s well-being — even against the custodial parent’s wishes.

You can only get divorced in Germany through a court judgment, and the marriage must be legally broken down — usually proven by at least one year of separation (or three years if only one spouse applies).

In Germany, you generally need to live separately for at least one year before filing for divorce. If both spouses agree to the divorce, this period applies. If only one spouse wants it, the separation period is three years.

Yes, but only if continuing the marriage would cause you unbearable hardship due to serious misconduct by your spouse — such as severe domestic violence — and you can prove it in court.

Yes — under German law, a court can assign the marital home (or part of it) to one spouse during separation if keeping the other spouse there would cause undue hardship, especially for children or victims of abuse.

In Germany, pension rights accrued during the marriage are automatically equalized (Versorgungsausgleich) unless waived by written agreement. This includes statutory, occupational, and private pensions.

Yes, you can contest a divorce in Germany—but only on narrow legal grounds, such as disputing the breakdown of the marriage or challenging whether statutory separation requirements are met.

Divorce costs in Germany include court fees (starting at €320) and attorney fees (often €1,500–€5,000+), both based on the couple’s combined income and assets.

Domestic violence victims in Germany can obtain immediate court-ordered protection, including eviction of the abuser from the shared home and bans on contact or proximity.

In Germany, married couples can choose a shared marital name (Ehename) — either one spouse’s birth name, current family name, or a hyphenated double name — or keep their original names if no choice is made.

Spouses in Germany must live together in a marital community of life and support each other — but neither is forced to resume cohabitation if the marriage has failed or if the request is abusive.

A prenuptial agreement (Ehevertrag) is a legally binding contract between spouses that regulates property rights and other financial matters during marriage and upon divorce. It is enforceable in Germany if properly notarized and does not violate mandatory law or good faith.

Zugewinngemeinschaft is Germany’s default marital property regime, where spouses keep separate assets but split the difference in wealth gained during marriage upon divorce.

In Germany, marital property is divided through the 'equalization of accrued gains' (Zugewinnausgleich): the spouse with higher net asset growth during marriage pays half the difference to the other spouse.

Spousal maintenance in Germany is based on the standard of living during marriage and the dependent spouse’s actual needs — not income sharing — and is limited by the principle of self-sufficiency under BGB § 1569.

There is no fixed time limit — spousal maintenance in Germany lasts only as long as the recipient cannot support themselves, based on age, health, qualifications, and efforts toward self-sufficiency.

Yes, spousal maintenance in Germany can be modified after divorce if there is a significant and lasting change in circumstances affecting either party’s income, needs, or ability to work.

Separation maintenance (BGB § 1361) starts when spouses live apart and continues until divorce is final; post-divorce maintenance (BGB § 1569) is limited, conditional, and based on self-sufficiency — not automatic.