How to get divorced in Puerto Rico: court or notary

Divorce is the dissolution of a marriage. Puerto Rico law allows it on two grounds: mutual consent, when the couple agrees to end the relationship, and irreparable breakdown of the marital bond, which can be requested jointly or individually. The Judiciary explains that at no point do the parties have to explain their reasons, and the court declares nobody guilty or innocent. There are two routes: the Court of First Instance, or — if the parties agree — a public deed before a notary attorney, known as the notarial divorce. In a notarial mutual-consent divorce the parties include stipulations on property, debts, custody, parental authority, support, parent-child visitation and the family home; for irreparable breakdown it is enough to state the irreconcilable differences and the will to divorce.

To divorce in Puerto Rico, at least one party must have lived on the island for one continuous, uninterrupted year before filing, regardless of where the marriage took place. That requirement does not apply if the grounds for the divorce arose in Puerto Rico. Every petition must be signed under oath: by both spouses if joint, or by the filing party if individual. A married minor was emancipated by the marriage and can decide to divorce without parental authorization.

• That at least one party has lived in Puerto Rico for one continuous year before filing, unless the grounds for the divorce arose in Puerto Rico.Verified against the official source
• A sworn petition: by both spouses if joint (mutual consent or irreparable breakdown), or by the filing party if individual (irreparable breakdown).Verified against the official source
• For an individual petition, serving the other party, who has 30 days from service to answer.Verified against the official source
• Internal revenue stamps: $90.00 for an individual irreparable-breakdown petition; $78.00 for a joint petition on either ground.Verified against the official source
• For mutual consent, stipulations on custody and parental authority, support for the parties and for minor or incapacitated children, visitation for the non-custodial parent, and distribution of the marriage’s property and debts.Verified against the official source

• The petition or complaint on the matching form: by consent, OAT 1470 through OAT 1473 depending on children and property; joint irreparable breakdown, OAT 1898 or 1899; individual complaint, OAT 1764 or 1766, with summons OAT 1721.
• Copies of the Marriage Certificate: two for an individual complaint, one for a joint petition.
• If applicable: copies of the children’s Birth Certificates, and a copy of any prenuptial agreement.
• The Personal and Financial Information Form (PIPE), form OAT 435.
• A valid photo ID for each appearing spouse.

1. 1

   Step 1: Choose the route: notary or court

   If both parties agree, the divorce can be done by public deed before a notary attorney, without going to court. That divorce is valid from the signing of the deed and cannot be undone. If there is no agreement, or you prefer the judicial forum, the case goes to the Court of First Instance.

2. 2

   Step 2: Choose the ground and the form

   For mutual consent there are four petitions depending on your combination: no children and no property (OAT 1470), no children with property (OAT 1471), children without property (OAT 1472), children and property (OAT 1473). For irreparable breakdown, the joint petition is OAT 1898 (with children) or OAT 1899 (without), and the individual complaint is OAT 1764 or OAT 1766. All download free from the forms catalog.

3. 3

   Step 3: File at the Clerk’s Office with the stamps

   The sworn petition is filed at the court Clerk’s Office with the documents and the internal revenue stamps: $90.00 individual, $78.00 joint. An individual complaint must include the other party’s residential and postal address, because they must be served.

4. 4

   Step 4: The hearing

   The court generally sets a hearing to confirm the decision is free and voluntary; in certain cases the parties can ask for the divorce to be decreed without a prior hearing. Related matters are resolved at the hearing: custody, child support and medical plan for minor children, the family home and pendente lite support. The hearing does not divide the property: the marital partnership becomes a community of property, and dividing it is a separate case.

5. 5

   Step 5: Count the 30 days

   A court judgment is final 30 calendar days after the court gives notice, unless the parties waive that term, in which case it is immediate. A notarial divorce is final from the signing of the deed.

At the Clerk’s Office of the Court of First Instance, or before a notary attorney if the divorce is by public deed. For guidance on self-representation there are the Judiciary’s Pro Se Centers, which do not replace legal representation but explain the process.

• Not meeting the year of continuous residence in Puerto Rico before filing, where it applies.
• Picking the wrong one of the four consent forms: each combination of children and property has its own.
• Filing an individual complaint without the defendant’s address, which is needed for service.
• Believing the divorce hearing divides the property: the community of property is divided in a separate case.
• Miscounting finality: the judgment is final 30 days after notice, unless the term is waived.
• Signing a notarial divorce without understanding it cannot be undone.

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

• Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico

  Poder Judicial

  poderjudicial.pr

• Judiciary forms catalog (OAT divorce petitions)

  Poder Judicial

  poderjudicial.pr

• Petition for Divorce by Consent (no children, no property) — OAT 1470

  Poder Judicial

  poderjudicial.pr