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Divorce-Civil
Below are readers' questions about 'Civil Divorce', which we have chosen to answer. Further and more detailed relevant information can be found on our main website, Family Law in Israel, on these pages:
No! As Israeli citizens and residents you are subject to Israeli law which adopts Jewish religious law. You need a 'doubting get' or religious divorce from the Rabbinical Court in Israel,even though you married in a civil ceremony abroad, in order to be regarded as 'free' to marry again, in Israel, or abroad.
By consenting to end the marriage, in writing,and, signing, a professionally drafted agreement concerning the dissolution of your marriage,which can be authorised by the family court in Israel,after your husband has also signed it. You also need to sign a special, appropriate power of attorney allowing a lawyer to represent you,in Israel, during the proceedings,should you wish to return abroad meanwhile. You may also have to co-operate regarding the provision of information concerning your religious affiliation,as a technicality,depending on whether you belong to a religion recognised in Israel.
Mutual consent is sufficient grounds under Israeli law for ending a marriage between people of different religious affiliations,even if they married abroad,and one of them is a non-Israeli. Under Cypriot law foreigners who married in Cyprus must live over there for three months for a court in Cyprus to have jurisdiciton to deal with ending their marriage. Thus it is far easier and convenient for you to divorce via the Israeli legal system,but it is advisable to be represented by a specialist lawyer/attorney,in Israel, experienced at handling such cases.
In Israel - by the civil process of dissolution of marriage. Where non-Cypriot nationals get married in a civil wedding in Cyprus, but they do not actuallly live there, the family court there will not gain jurisdiction over proceedings to end the marriage as the residency requirements are not met. Accordingly, if one or both of you live in Israel, you can end your marriage in Israel, even though you married in Cyprus, and very quickly, too, if there is mutual consent. Otherwise, if the divorce is contested, you will need to prove grounds under Cypriot divorce law, and provide a legal opinion of an expert on this, within the dissolution of marriage proceedings that take place in Israel.
Yes! Where there is mutual consent , a civil marriage entered into overseas, involving an Israeli citizen and a foreign national of a different religion, like yours, can be ended by a process of dissolution of marriage in Israel , even if the non-Israeli spouse is abroad. Clearly, before you separate, it would be easier to organise the appropriate written consent and power of attorney from your wife, authorised in the correct manner overseas, to enable the legal process to be managed correctly from Israel. If handled correctly, from the procedural viewpoint, the process can even be started off in Israel, by counsel you apppoint , while you are still in India. It may be possible for you to remain overseas, if you would prefer to do so, and for the civil divorce process to be managed and even completed in Israel without you having to return.
You can then deal with recognition of the Israeli divorce judgment abroad to complete the cycle.
A family (civil ) court in Israel, as what counts is your religious affiliation at the time when you got married. You were Christian then, and not Moslem. The Sha'ari (Moslem religious) Court only has jurisdiction over divorce where both parties were Moslems at the time they married. Had you converted to Islam before you married, you could not apply to end your marriage through the civil divorce process, and the Israeli civil court system, but would be bound to Islamic religious law, and the Sha'ari (Moslem Religious) Court.
You must file an application to dissolve your marriage at the family court. The vice-president will decide which court has jurisdiction to end your union – most probably the family court, after consulting and obtaining the legal opinions of any relevant religious courts involved (e.g. rabbinical court for you, and possibly another religious court, depending on your whether spouse's religious affiliation is recognised in Israel).

