Divorce Outside Canada - Valid?

[ForumUser]

Hi there,

I was married in Ontario, but my wife went back to Hong Kong.

My divorce was filed in Hong Kong over 15 years ago.

I have a Hong Kong divorced paper.

But i never get a divorced certificate in Ontario.

What should i do you get remarried in Ontario?

Hope to hear from you soon.

[SettlementOrgMod]

Hello,

Thank you for sharing your situation and question with us.

We can appreciate that you would be interested in this type of information.

You can find some detailed information in our Settlement.Org Will my foreign divorce be recognized in Canada? article.

Here is an excerpt,

If you were divorced outside Canada, you need to prove that your divorce was legal in that country before you can get re-married in Canada.

According to Family Law Education for Women (FLEW) [PDF], your foreign divorce will generally be recognized by the Canadian government, if you or your spouse lived in the country where you got a divorce for at least 1 year before the start of the divorce proceedings.

It also states that if you got a divorce outside of Canada, you must get authorization from the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services before you can get a marriage licence in Ontario.

You can find the detailed steps in our Will my foreign divorce be recognized in Canada? article.

I hope this information is helpful. Please let us know if you have further questions and if there is any follow up to your question/situation.

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Anna
Settlement.Org Content and Information/Referral Specialist, CIRS
Settlement.Org