What is needed for a divorce?

You no longer see a future in the marriage, you no longer love each other or situations have occurred that have permanently derailed your trust in each other. The decision to divorce can be, for many, the most difficult one in life. Let's not kid ourselves, it is also a decision bought with enormous stress and uncertainty. Another reason for these feelings is the fact that in Poland there is only one way to end a marriage - through the courts.

The very appearance in court will, for some, be a reason to panic. Unfortunately, the court hearing is the ‘icing’ on the divorce cake. Before this happens, you need to arm yourself with the necessary documents.

When preparing for divorce proceedings, it is a good idea to first find an abbreviated copy of your marriage certificate, which you received after your marriage. If this document has simply disappeared since then, you can apply to any registry office (there is one in every municipality) for such an abbreviated copy. You will pay a fee of PLN 22 for the copy.

Next, try to secure any documents that prove that your marriage has broken down. If infidelity has occurred, make sure you have printouts of any correspondence to prove it. Social media screens will also come in handy. If you are in possession of court decisions that relate to the marriage or your spouse, these will also be useful.

Any documents relating to your as well as your spouse's health will also be necessary, as well as documents showing your financial situation - deeds, PIT statements, contracts.

Another group of documents that may be useful in a divorce case are all kinds of receipts or transfer receipts, which indicate the costs of living of your family and, above all, make it clear who was bearing these costs to a greater extent. Remember, however, PARAGUES will not be able to serve as proof that a particular cost was incurred. It is advisable to provide at least named bills.

The above principles will also apply when documenting issues relating to joint children. You should first take care to obtain copies of their birth certificates and then provide any documents showing the cost of their maintenance and the state of the relationship between the children and the parents.

It should be borne in mind that the above enumeration may change depending on the individual situation. Marriage touches on a great many areas of life and this is how you should think about it when gathering documents for divorce proceedings. Due to the number of individual threads that will be addressed in a divorce case, it is advisable to enlist the help of a professional attorney. After all, it is he or she who will have to analyse and verify this gigantic pile of documents, and you will have at least one less thing to worry about.