In short. If one or both of you live abroad and the marriage has broken down, the questions are where to file, whether a divorce granted abroad is valid in India, how to run a Delhi case without flying in for every date, and what to do if a child has been taken across a border. Delhi family courts hear many NRI divorces, and the Delhi High Court hears appeals and urgent writs. A contested divorce often takes two to four years; mutual consent can take months. This week, collect your marriage papers and any foreign court documents.
Is this your situation?
- You married in Delhi under Hindu rites, live in the US, UK, Canada, Australia or the Gulf, and want a divorce that will be valid in India too.
- Your spouse obtained a divorce from a foreign court without your participation and has remarried or plans to.
- You are a wife whose NRI husband left you in India after the wedding and stopped all contact and support.
- You live abroad and your spouse has filed divorce, maintenance or criminal cases against you in Delhi.
- You want a mutual consent divorce but cannot travel to Delhi for every hearing.
- Your child has been taken abroad, or brought to India, by the other parent without your consent.
- A foreign court has passed a maintenance or property order and you want it enforced in India.
What makes an NRI matrimonial case different
The law of marriage is the same: a Hindu couple married in Delhi is governed by the Hindu Marriage Act wherever they now live. What changes is everything around it. There may be two courts in two countries, each with its own idea of jurisdiction. Papers must be served abroad. Evidence has to be given from another time zone. A divorce granted in Ontario may mean nothing in Delhi. Children hold passports of a country neither grandparent lives in.
Most of the damage in these cases is done early, by not knowing which forum matters. A wife in Delhi who ignores a divorce petition filed in New Jersey because "a foreign court can't divorce me" may find that she has submitted to it by filing a reply, or that her husband has remarried relying on it. A husband in Dubai who ignores a maintenance case in Delhi may come home for a family wedding and find a Look Out Circular waiting. The first decision, where to fight, affects all the others.
This page covers divorce jurisdiction, foreign decrees, running a case from abroad, deserted wives and children across borders. Our page for NRI and overseas clients explains how we work with clients who cannot come to Delhi.
The laws that apply
Hindu Marriage Act 1955
Under Section 1(2) the Act applies to Hindus domiciled in India even when they are outside India. Section 13 sets out the grounds for divorce (cruelty, desertion for two years, conversion, mental disorder and others), Section 13B provides divorce by mutual consent, and Section 19 decides which Indian court can hear the petition. Marriages under the Special Marriage Act 1954 or the Foreign Marriage Act 1969 have parallel provisions.
Section 13, Code of Civil Procedure 1908
A foreign judgment is conclusive between the parties except where it was not given by a court of competent jurisdiction, was not given on the merits, was founded on an incorrect view of international law or refused to recognise Indian law where applicable, was obtained in breach of natural justice, was obtained by fraud, or sustains a claim founded on a breach of Indian law. Section 14 presumes that the foreign court had jurisdiction when a certified copy is produced, unless the contrary is shown.
Section 44A, Code of Civil Procedure
Money decrees of superior courts in countries notified as "reciprocating territories" (such as the UK, Singapore and the UAE) can be executed in India as if they were Indian decrees. Decrees from non-reciprocating countries, such as the US and Canada, need a fresh suit in India based on the foreign judgment.
Article 226 of the Constitution
The Delhi High Court's writ jurisdiction is used for habeas corpus where a child is held in Delhi, and for passport and Look Out Circular matters arising from matrimonial cases against persons abroad.
Section 19, Family Courts Act 1984
Appeals from Delhi family courts lie to a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court within 30 days; the Delhi High Court has held that this 30-day limit applies rather than the 90 days in Section 28 of the Hindu Marriage Act.
Where an NRI can file for divorce in India
Section 19 of the Hindu Marriage Act lets you file in the district where the marriage was solemnised, where the respondent lives when the petition is filed, where the couple last lived together, or, if the wife is the petitioner, where she lives on the date of filing. There is a further option: if the respondent lives outside India, the petitioner can file where he or she lives. For most NRI couples married in Delhi, Delhi's family courts have jurisdiction on the first ground alone.
So a couple married at a banquet hall in Rajouri Garden, who lived together only in Seattle, can file in the family court at Tis Hazari for West Delhi. A wife who returned from Sydney and lives with her parents in Mayur Vihar can file in Karkardooma. A husband in Toronto whose wife lives in Pune cannot file in Delhi merely because his parents live in Dwarka, unless the marriage was held in Delhi or they last lived together here.
Filing in India is usually wise if both of you are Hindus married under Hindu rites in India and you want a decree that will be recognised here without argument. Filing abroad may be quicker and may suit property and support claims located abroad, but its recognition in India depends on the tests below. When Advocate B.K. Singh advises an NRI spouse on where to file, he asks where the assets are, where the children are and whether either party may want to remarry in India, because those three facts usually decide the forum.
Which court or bench hears what, and why
Divorce, maintenance under the Hindu Marriage Act, and custody petitions go to Delhi's family courts at Tis Hazari, Saket, Karkardooma, Rohini, Dwarka and Patiala House, depending on the area. Maintenance under Section 144 BNSS (old Section 125 CrPC) also goes to the family courts, and DV Act cases go to Metropolitan Magistrates. The Delhi High Court comes in at three points: appeals from family court judgments, explained on our page on family court appeals; writs, such as habeas corpus for a child or challenges to a Look Out Circular; and revisions and quashing petitions in criminal and DV matters.
Delhi's courts cannot hear a case that belongs to Gurugram, Noida or Ghaziabad. If the marriage was in Gurugram and the wife lives there, the family court at Gurugram has jurisdiction and appeals go to the Punjab and Haryana High Court. A case pending in another State can be moved to Delhi only by the Supreme Court on a transfer petition under Section 25 CPC; within Delhi, the Delhi High Court or the Principal Judge can transfer it, as explained on our page on transfer of a matrimonial case.
Divorce on the ground of irretrievable breakdown is not a ground under the Hindu Marriage Act. After Shilpa Sailesh v. Varun Sreenivasan (2023), only the Supreme Court can dissolve a marriage on that basis, using Article 142.
Is a foreign divorce decree valid in India?
Not automatically. The leading case is Y. Narasimha Rao v. Y. Venkata Lakshmi (1991). A husband obtained a divorce in Missouri on the basis of a residence of ninety days and a ground not available under the Hindu Marriage Act; the wife never submitted to that court. The Supreme Court held the decree not valid in India. It said that for a couple married under the Hindu Marriage Act, the foreign court's jurisdiction and the ground for divorce should both match what Indian matrimonial law allows.
The Court recognised three exceptions. A foreign decree will be recognised where the case was filed where the respondent was domiciled or habitually resident and the ground is one available under Indian law; where the respondent voluntarily and effectively submitted to the foreign court and contested the case on a ground available under Indian law; or where the respondent consented to the divorce, even if jurisdiction was not in line with Indian law. In practice, a divorce in which both spouses took part and which rests on a ground recognisable here, such as cruelty or desertion, is far more likely to stand in India than an ex parte decree on "irreconcilable differences".
Our guide on whether a foreign divorce decree is valid in India works through common situations, including decrees from US states, the UK and Canada.
Foreign divorces that usually stand, and those that usually do not
- Usually recognised. A mutual consent divorce abroad, signed by both spouses, where both took part. Indian courts treat consent as satisfying the third Narasimha Rao exception.
- Usually recognised. A contested divorce abroad where the Indian spouse appeared, filed a defence and the decree rests on cruelty, desertion or adultery.
- Often challenged. An ex parte decree where the Indian spouse was served but did not appear, based on no-fault grounds such as irretrievable breakdown or irreconcilable differences.
- Usually not recognised. A decree where the spouse in India was never properly served, or was misled about the proceedings.
- Usually not recognised. A decree obtained by one spouse who moved to a jurisdiction only briefly to meet a minimum residence rule, with the other spouse never submitting to it.
- Different question. Foreign orders on alimony, property and custody are tested separately; a valid divorce does not mean every financial order made with it will be enforced here.
Remarriage, bigamy and stopping a foreign case
If a foreign divorce is not valid in India, the first marriage subsists in Indian law. A second marriage can then expose the person who remarried to a charge of bigamy under Section 82 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (old Section 494 IPC), and the second spouse's status becomes uncertain. Before remarrying on the strength of a foreign decree, get a clear legal view in India; where the position is doubtful, a fresh mutual consent divorce in Delhi is the safest course.
A spouse in India who wants to contest a foreign decree can do so defensively, when the decree is relied on in an Indian case, or by filing a suit in India for a declaration that the decree is not binding. Where a foreign case has just been filed and the foreign court plainly lacks jurisdiction under Indian law, Indian courts have in suitable cases granted anti-suit injunctions restraining the spouse from pursuing it. Courts use that power sparingly, out of respect for foreign courts, and only where continuing the foreign case would be oppressive.
Be careful about appearing abroad. Filing a defence in the foreign court, even to say it has no jurisdiction, can later be argued to be submission. If you need to appear there, take advice from a lawyer in that country and one in India together, so that the stand taken abroad does not undercut the case here.
Running a Delhi matrimonial case from abroad
The petition or reply can be signed abroad and the supporting affidavit attested before an Indian embassy or consulate officer, or before a local notary with an apostille (India is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention). A trusted relative in Delhi can be given a power of attorney to file, collect papers and take routine steps. The attorney cannot, however, give evidence on facts only you know; in Janki Vashdeo Bhojwani v. IndusInd Bank (2005) the Supreme Court held that a power of attorney holder can depose only to what he personally knows. Our guide on how NRIs can hire a lawyer and give a power of attorney covers the format.
Delhi family courts commonly allow a party abroad to appear by video conference for counselling, mediation and recording of statements, subject to identity checks. Some judges still ask for personal presence at least once, particularly for the second motion in a mutual consent divorce or for cross-examination. Plan travel around the key dates, not every date.
Service on a spouse living abroad is done through the Hague Service Convention route where the country is a party (India acceded in 2006), through the Indian mission, or by email and other modes the court permits. Proper service matters. An ex parte decree passed without valid service is open to challenge, sometimes years later. Our guide on how NRIs can handle divorce cases in Delhi without travelling explains the practical side.
Step by step: an NRI divorce case in Delhi
This is the usual sequence for a contested divorce filed in a Delhi family court by or against a spouse living abroad.
Settle the forum
Check Section 19 of the Hindu Marriage Act against your facts: where the marriage was held, where the respondent lives, where you last lived together. Check also whether a case has already been filed abroad, because that changes the strategy.
Prepare and sign the petition abroad
The petition sets out the marriage, the facts and the grounds. Sign it and the affidavit before the Indian mission or a notary with apostille, and courier the originals. Scanned copies help with e-filing, but the court will want originals.
File and serve
Your Delhi counsel files the petition in the right family court. Summons are issued to the respondent; if the respondent is abroad, service follows the Hague Service Convention route, the Indian mission or other modes the court allows.
Counselling and mediation
Delhi family courts refer most matrimonial cases to counselling or mediation. Sessions can usually be joined by video. Many NRI cases settle here into a mutual consent divorce with an agreed financial settlement.
Evidence
If there is no settlement, each side files evidence affidavits and is cross-examined. Video conferencing is often allowed for a witness abroad, but the court can insist on personal attendance for important witnesses.
Decree and appeal
The family court passes a decree. Either side may appeal to the Delhi High Court within 30 days. After the appeal period, the decree is final and either party may remarry.
Keep a copy of the certified decree with an apostille if you need to use it abroad, for example for a change of marital status with foreign authorities.
Time and cost at each stage
| Stage | Typical time | Court fee and costs (general) |
|---|---|---|
| Advice on forum and foreign proceedings | One to two weeks | No court fee |
| Signing, attestation and couriering papers from abroad | One to three weeks | Embassy or notary and apostille charges in that country |
| Filing in the Delhi family court | A few days after papers arrive | A small fixed court fee; check the current schedule |
| Service on a respondent abroad | One to six months, depending on the country and route | Process and translation costs where required |
| Mutual consent divorce under Section 13B | First motion to decree in about six months, or sooner if the waiting period is waived | Small fixed court fees on each motion |
| Contested divorce to decree | Two to four years, sometimes longer | Process fees, certified copies, travel for key dates |
| Appeal to the Delhi High Court | File within 30 days; decided in one to three years | A fixed court fee on the appeal |
Documents to collect
Marriage and status
- Marriage certificate, wedding card and photographs
- Passports of both spouses and children, with visa or residence permits
- OCI cards or foreign citizenship papers, if any
- Proof of addresses in India and abroad
Foreign proceedings
- Any petition, summons or order from a foreign court
- Certified copy of a foreign decree, with apostille
- Proof of how and when you were served abroad
- Correspondence with foreign lawyers
Money and children
- Salary and tax documents from the country of work
- Bank statements in India and abroad
- Property papers in both countries
- Children's birth certificates, school records and any custody order
If your NRI husband has left you in India
This is the most common NRI matter that reaches Delhi's courts: a wife married in Delhi, who either never got a visa to join her husband or was sent back after a few months, and then lost all contact. She has several remedies at once. She can claim maintenance in the Delhi family court under Section 144 BNSS or the Hindu Marriage Act, file a DV Act application for residence, maintenance and protection of her streedhan, and, where there is cruelty or dowry harassment, lodge a complaint that may lead to an FIR under Sections 85 and 86 of the BNS (old Section 498A IPC).
Getting the husband to respond is the harder part. Courts can issue summons through the embassy route and, once a criminal court is seized of the case and he does not appear, process to compel attendance follows. A Look Out Circular can be requested by the investigating agency in a criminal case, and the passport authority can impound or revoke his passport under Section 10(3) of the Passports Act once a criminal case is pending before a court or a warrant has been issued. The National Commission for Women has an NRI cell that receives complaints, and the Ministry of External Affairs runs a scheme through Indian missions that gives limited legal and financial help to women deserted by NRI spouses; check its current terms.
Indian maintenance orders are not automatically enforced abroad. Enforcement depends on that country's law and any reciprocal arrangement with India. Property and bank accounts the husband holds in India are the most dependable source of recovery, which is why the first applications should ask the court for disclosure and attachment.
If you live abroad and cases have been filed against you in Delhi
Do not ignore them. An ex parte maintenance order accumulates arrears, a criminal case leads to warrants and a Look Out Circular, and a passport can be impounded. Engage counsel in Delhi, enter appearance, and ask for permission to appear by video where the law allows. If an FIR has been registered, anticipatory bail is possible, and our guide on whether an NRI can get anticipatory bail from abroad explains the current position. Where a Look Out Circular has already been opened, the page on quashing a Look Out Circular sets out the writ remedy.
Where the whole of the alleged cruelty took place abroad, the Central Government's sanction is needed before trial under the provision that was Section 188 CrPC, now carried into the BNSS. Where part of it happened in India, for example dowry demands at the time of the wedding in Delhi, no sanction is needed for that part. This is technical and often decisive, so take the FIR and complaint to a lawyer before replying.
Settlement remains the most common outcome. A global settlement covering mutual consent divorce, a one-time alimony figure, return of streedhan, withdrawal of maintenance and DV cases, and quashing of the FIR on settlement is something the Delhi High Court routinely records. A spouse abroad who engages early and honestly usually reaches it sooner.
Children taken abroad or brought to India
When one parent brings a child from abroad to Delhi, or takes a child from Delhi abroad, the custody fight becomes international. India is not a party to the Hague Convention on child abduction, so Indian courts decide on the child's welfare and give weight to foreign orders as a matter of comity. The Delhi High Court hears habeas corpus petitions where the child is held in Delhi, and Delhi family courts hear guardianship petitions where the child ordinarily resides.
The detailed rules, the Supreme Court cases on return of children to the US and UK, and the steps to stop a child being taken out of India are on our page on child custody and habeas corpus for a child. The short version: move fast, keep the child's passport safe through a court order if you fear removal, and do not counter abduct.
Mutual consent divorce when one or both spouses are abroad
Section 13B of the Hindu Marriage Act requires that the spouses have lived separately for at least a year, that they jointly file a first motion, and that a second motion follows after six months. The six months can be waived where the conditions in Amardeep Singh v. Harveen Kaur (2017) are met, including that settlement efforts have failed and all issues of alimony and custody are resolved. Our guide on waiver of the six-month wait explains this.
For NRI couples, the hearings for the first and second motions can often be done with one spouse appearing by video and the other in person, or both by video, depending on the judge. The settlement deed should deal with money paid abroad, foreign pension and property, custody and travel with children, and how the decree will be registered in the other country. A settlement that works in Delhi but is unenforceable in California helps no one.
Mistakes NRI spouses commonly make
- Assuming a foreign divorce settles everything. A decree that is not recognised in India leaves the marriage alive here, with consequences for remarriage and property.
- Appearing abroad without Indian advice. A defence filed in the foreign court can count as submission under Narasimha Rao.
- Ignoring Delhi summons. Ex parte maintenance orders and warrants follow, and they surface at the airport.
- Weak powers of attorney. A general power of attorney that does not mention the specific case, or is not properly attested, causes delay at filing.
- Inconsistent stands in two countries. Telling the foreign court the marriage ended in 2023 and the Delhi court that you lived together until 2025 destroys credibility in both.
- Settling without covering every case. Leaving an FIR or a DV case out of a global settlement leads to fresh disputes later.
A made-up example: a Texas divorce and a wife in Dwarka
Here's a made-up example. Pooja and Karan marry in Delhi in 2021 and move to Houston. In 2024 Pooja returns to her parents' home in Dwarka after repeated quarrels. Karan files for divorce in Texas on the ground that the marriage has become insupportable. Pooja receives an email with the papers and does not respond. A decree is passed ex parte.
In 2026 Karan's family announces his second marriage. Pooja files a maintenance petition in the Dwarka family court and seeks a declaration that the Texas decree is not binding in India. Her lawyer relies on Narasimha Rao: she never submitted to the Texas court, the ground used is not available under the Hindu Marriage Act, and she was served only by email in a way she says she did not understand. Karan's lawyer argues that Pooja was validly served under Texas law and chose not to appear.
The family court grants interim maintenance and the parties are referred to mediation. Faced with the risk to his second marriage, Karan agrees to a mutual consent divorce in Delhi with a lump-sum settlement. A different set of facts, for example if Pooja had filed a defence in Texas and contested on cruelty, could have led to the Texas decree being recognised.
What to do this week
Put together the marriage certificate, both passports and any papers from a foreign court. Write down where the marriage was held, where you last lived together and where each of you lives now. If a foreign case has been filed, do not file anything in it until you have taken Indian advice. If you are abroad and a Delhi case has been filed, arrange a power of attorney and get the case papers. If a child is involved and you fear removal, deal with that first.
Fees are discussed at the first meeting and agreed in writing, stage by stage. For advice on your NRI matrimonial papers or a foreign decree, or for updates on how Indian courts are treating cross-border cases, contact Advocate B.K. Singh.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get a divorce in India if I live in the USA?
Yes, if an Indian court has jurisdiction under Section 19 of the Hindu Marriage Act, for example because the marriage was held in Delhi. You can sign the petition abroad and a relative can act under a power of attorney for routine steps. Video appearance is often allowed, though the court may require you in person at key stages.
Is an ex parte foreign divorce valid in India?
Often not, if the spouse in India never submitted to the foreign court and the ground is not one available under the Hindu Marriage Act. The Supreme Court laid down these tests in Y. Narasimha Rao (1991). Each case depends on how service was done and whether the spouse took part.
My husband remarried after a foreign divorce. What can I do?
If the foreign decree is not recognised in India, the first marriage subsists here and a complaint of bigamy may be possible. You can also seek maintenance and a declaration that the foreign decree does not bind you. Take advice on the specific decree before acting.
Can a foreign court order on alimony be enforced in India?
If the country is a notified reciprocating territory, such as the UK or Singapore, a money decree can be executed under Section 44A CPC. Decrees from countries such as the US and Canada need a fresh suit in India based on the foreign judgment. Indian courts can refuse enforcement on the grounds in Section 13 CPC.
Can a mutual consent divorce be done online for NRIs in Delhi?
Many Delhi family courts allow one or both spouses to appear by video for the first and second motions, after verifying identity. Some judges still ask for personal appearance at least once. The settlement terms should be finalised before filing.
Can my NRI husband's passport be impounded?
Under Section 10(3) of the Passports Act, a passport can be impounded or revoked where criminal proceedings are pending before a court in India or a warrant has been issued. This is done by the passport authority, often after the court or police take steps. The husband can challenge the order under the Act or by writ.
Do I need to come to India for my divorce case?
Not for every date. Counselling, mediation and many hearings can be done by video, and a power of attorney holder can handle filing. You may need to appear in person for cross-examination or for the final motion, depending on the court.
Where do I file if we married in Delhi but lived only in Canada?
A Delhi family court has jurisdiction because the marriage was solemnised in Delhi, under Section 19 of the Hindu Marriage Act. Which Delhi family court depends on the area where the marriage took place. You may also have the option of filing in Canada, with the recognition issues explained above.