A request to the Civil Status Office or a notary to dissolve a marriage is an alternative from the court divorce procedure. These procedures are faster and simpler, but they are only possible if both spouses have agreed to a divorce and have no disagreements on the other aspects arising out of their relationship.
Application
In Moldova, to file for a divorce with the Civil Status Office or a notary, you and your spouse must submit a joint application or separate applications reflecting you both agree on the divorce.
In your written application, you should indicate:
- if you have children – whether and how you and your spouse have agreed on the parental rights regarding your children, access rights and the maintenance costs of your children
- if you have joint property - whether and how you have agreed to divide it
- if you have changed your surname - whether you want to keep or change it
You can learn more about the legal requirements for your application in the Law on civil status documents and in the Law on the notarial procedure.
Notary’s decision
If you have satisfied all the requirements for divorce with a notary, he/she will prepare a divorce decision. This decision will indicate that the marriage was dissolved by joint request of both spouses and will state the surnames of both spouses after the divorce. Finally, the notary will send the divorce decision to the Civil Status Office for registration.
Acts of the Civil Status Office
If you lodged an application for divorce based on spouses’ agreement with the Civil Status Office, the divorce is registered in the presence of both or one of the spouses, in one month after submission of the declaration. Upon receiving the declaration of divorce, the official of the Civil Status Office warns the spouses that the reasonless absence of one of them at the registration of the divorce does not prevent the dissolution of the marriage. A divorce certificate is issued to each spouse.