Divorce and What You Need to Know

Husband does not have the right to divorce while the wife is pregnant or raising a child under 12 months

This regulation is stipulated in Clause 3, Article 51 of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family, according to which: “A husband does not have the right to request a divorce in cases where the wife is pregnant, has given birth, or is raising a child under 12 months old.”

However, under this regulation, if the wife requests a divorce, it is still permitted by law.

Child under 3 years old will be entrusted to the mother

This regulation is stipulated in Clause 3, Article 81 of the 2014 Law on Marriage and Family, according to which: “A child under 36 months old will be entrusted to the mother for direct care, unless the mother is not qualified to directly look after, care for, raise and educate the child or the parents have other agreements in accordance with the child’s interests.”

Thus, when resolving a divorce case, if there is a dispute over child custody, the Court will base its decision on this provision to grant custody of a child under 3 years old to the mother.

Joint property will be divided equally upon divorce

If the following factors are absent, the joint property of the husband and wife will be divided equally upon divorce. The factors to be considered when dividing property upon divorce include:

- The circumstances of the family and of the husband and wife;- The contributions of the husband and wife to the creation, maintenance, and development of the joint property. The labor of the husband and wife within the family is regarded as income-generating labor;- Protecting the legitimate interests of each party in production, business, and professional activities so that they have the conditions to continue working and creating income;- The fault of each party in violating the rights and obligations of the husband and wife.- For example, if the husband commits adultery, violating the marital obligations, the Court will consider it a fault factor of the husband leading to the divorce.

Right to reside after divorce

This is a quite special provision, allowing the husband or wife to stay in the house owned by either spouse after divorce. Specifically, the regulation states: "A house privately owned by the husband or wife but brought into common use will still belong to the private owner upon divorce; if the husband or wife has difficulties in finding accommodation, they have the right to reside* for a period of 06 months** from the date the marriage relationship ends, unless the parties agree otherwise."*

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