How Long Does It Take to Separate Before You Can File for Divorce Unilaterally?

Separated for two years.

Article 32 of the Marriage Law stipulates that if a man or a woman requests a divorce, the relevant department may mediate or directly file a divorce lawsuit with the people's court.

People's courts hearing divorce cases shall conduct mediation; If the relationship has indeed broken down and mediation fails, the divorce should be granted.

In any of the following circumstances, if mediation fails, a divorce shall be granted:

1) bigamy or cohabitation of a person with a spouse;

2) Committing domestic violence or abusing or abandoning family members;

3) Those who have bad habits such as gambling and drug abuse that they do not change;

4) Separated for two years due to emotional discord;

5) Other circumstances that lead to the breakdown of the relationship between husband and wife.

As for the formalities, it is necessary to find someone to testify to you, for example, if your child is violent, it is best to call the police, and there must be a record, so that the evidence can be fixed well.

If you want to divorce, you can go to the court and divorce by agreement, and if the other party doesn't agree, you can go to the court and sue for divorce, but the first time you don't get a divorce, but after six months, the court will order a divorce, and the court will grant a divorce, which will be sooner than two years.

So two years of separation is not a prerequisite for filing for divorce, but a legal circumstance for a divorce.

You can sue the court for divorce at any time, and separation is not a requirement for filing for divorce, nor is it the basis for the court to grant a divorce. The court granted divorce on the basis that the relationship between the husband and wife had broken down.

Legal analysis: The law does not stipulate how long it takes to divorce after separation, no matter how long the separation lasts, if both parties do not file for divorce, the marriage will not be automatically dissolved. If you sue for divorce and have been separated for 2 years, the court will support the divorce.

If the two parties do not reach an agreement on the division of property and child support, they can sue the court for divorce. In litigation, if mediation fails, a judgment should be made to grant a pure search decision, but if the separation is not due to emotional discord, this provision cannot be applied.

Legal basis: Civil Code of the People's Republic of China

Article 1076:Where both husband and wife divorce voluntarily, they shall sign a written divorce agreement and apply for divorce registration in person at the marriage registration authority.

The divorce agreement shall clearly state the parties' expression of intent to divorce voluntarily and the consensus on matters such as child support, property, and debt handling.

Article 1079:Where one of the husband and wife requests a divorce, the relevant organization may conduct mediation or directly initiate divorce proceedings in the people's court.

People's courts hearing divorce cases shall conduct mediation; If the relationship has indeed broken down and mediation fails, the divorce shall be granted.

In any of the following circumstances, if mediation fails, a divorce shall be granted:

1) bigamy or cohabitation with another person;

2) Committing domestic violence or abusing or abandoning family members;

3) Having bad habits such as gambling and drug abuse, and repeatedly pretending to be taught;

4) Separated for two years due to emotional discord;

5) Other circumstances that lead to the breakdown of the relationship between husband and wife.

Where one party is declared missing and the other party initiates divorce proceedings, the divorce shall be granted.

Where, after a people's court has ruled that divorce is not permitted, the parties have been separated for one year, and one party initiates divorce proceedings again, the divorce shall be granted.

Sue once first. Sue again after half a year.

Sue once first. Sue again after half a year. Then take your pay stubs or other proof from the field.

Generally speaking, the fact that a husband and wife have been separated for two years due to emotional discord can generally constitute a fact that the relationship between husband and wife has broken down. "Separation" means that husband and wife no longer live together and no longer fulfill each other's marital obligations, including cessation of sexual life, cessation of economic cooperation, cessation of mutual care and support in life, etc. If they have been separated for two years, it means that the relationship between husband and wife has become a formality and exists in name only.

Where a party applies to the people's court for divorce on this ground, if mediation fails, the divorce shall be granted.

In applying this provision, attention should be paid to the following issues:

The reason for separation is due to the discord between the husband and wife, not the separation of the two places due to work, study, etc., and the inability of the husband and wife to live together due to housing problems.

Separation emphasizes the non-fulfillment of marital obligations by the spouses, rather than unilateral non-fulfillment of family obligations.

If the husband and wife have been separated for two years, but the relationship between the husband and wife has not really broken down or there is a possibility of reconciliation through mediation, the conditions for divorce cannot be considered to have been met.

Whether the husband and wife are separated or not, and whether they have been separated for two years, are not necessary conditions for the parties to apply for divorce. If the relationship between the husband and wife has indeed broken down and the mediation fails, the divorce shall also be granted in accordance with the law, even if there is no fact of separation or the separation has been less than two years.

In the process of soliciting opinions on the draft amendment to the Marriage Law, there were different opinions on whether to stipulate this content and on the length of the period of separation. Some are in favor of this provision, arguing that it reflects the factual situation of the breakdown of the relationship between the husband and wife and should be used as a ground for divorce; Some do not advocate stipulating this content, otherwise it will give people who "like the new and hate the old" an opportunity to take advantage of the law, which will be unfair to the innocent party. Some believe that two years of separation is too short and not conducive to the stability of family relations, and should be changed to three or five years; Some believe that the separation has already shown that the husband and wife are not in harmony, that it is not necessary to require a two-year period, and that a long period of separation is likely to lead to vicious family incidents, which is not conducive to the protection of women's rights and interests, and suggested that it be changed to one year.

The majority opinion of the revised Marriage Law is set at two years.