Overseas pensions and divorce

Taking early advice is crucial to avoid the potential pitfalls of dealing with overseas pensions on divorce and UK pensions in a foreign divorce

Pensions can make up a significant proportion of family assets and should be fully taken into account when financial matters are dealt with during a divorce. Where a couple with UK pensions divorce in England the court can make various orders to deal them. Most commonly a pension sharing order is made hiving off a portion of one party’s pension and giving it to the other. However where there are pension assets overseas or a divorce overseas and pension assets in the UK the situation is more complex. There are two angles that need to be considered:

• Can an overseas pension be shared in a divorce in England & Wales; and
• Can a UK pension be shared in an overseas divorce.

Overseas pensions can never* be shared on divorce (*almost never)

As confirmed by Mostyn J in Goyal v Goyal [2016] EWFC 50 (Fam) just as a UK pension cannot be shared without an order from our court the English court does not have jurisdiction to make pension sharing orders over offshore pensions - unless...

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