Family
The 1999 Marriage and Family Code with registry divorce
The Code on Marriage and Family of 1999 governs marriage, parentage and guardianship. Divorce is granted by the court, though a simplified route exists where the spouses agree, and a three-month reconciliation period is normally imposed.
Key rules
- The court imposes a reconciliation period of three months in contested divorces.
- Property acquired during marriage is common property unless a marriage contract varies it.
- Child maintenance is a statutory share of income, with a minimum tied to the subsistence budget.
- Parents who fail to maintain children may be placed in the obliged-persons register and compelled to work.
Governing law
- Code on Marriage and Family (1999)
- Decree No. 18 on state protection of children in dysfunctional families (2006)
- Civil Procedure Code (1999)Divorce and custody proceedings.
In practice
Decree No. 18 allows administrative removal of children and compulsory employment of parents to recover state maintenance costs, which has no analogue elsewhere in the region.