Divorce Decree Translation for Germany

Custody, maintenance and the Versorgungsausgleich

Among the consequences German family law attaches to divorce are institutions with no exact counterpart in Turkish law, such as the equalisation of pension rights (Versorgungsausgleich). The rulings on the matrimonial property regime and on maintenance in a Turkish judgment are not equated with these German concepts; they are carried across with their own identity. The translator conveys the ruling as it stands, because naming a Turkish category of maintenance after a German institution misrepresents the financial effect of the judgment. Where necessary, an explanation is added in brackets.

Rulings on custody and on personal contact with the child often fall within the concern of the youth welfare office (Jugendamt) in Germany as well, so the custody arrangement in the judgment, the days and hours of contact and any ruling on the child’s surname are translated in full and in detail. Interim, spousal and child maintenance produce different consequences and are therefore rendered separately. Summarising a ruling, or merging two of them, blurs the arrangement made for the child and for the rights of the parties. Whether custody is joint or sole, and any condition attached to permission to travel abroad, are likewise preserved with the detail the judgment gives them; these particulars have direct consequences for the German authority.

The set of documents for the Standesamt

Updating marital status in Germany usually runs through the civil registry office (Standesamt), which amends the marriage entry once recognition has been completed. At that stage it is not the divorce decree alone that is asked for: the records relating to the marriage and a certified copy of the final judgment are commonly required alongside it. The translation has to carry every one of these documents with the same spelling of names and the same dates; if the names of the parties conflict with the marriage entry, the request for amendment may be put on hold.

In the recognition review the authority reads the reasoning and the operative part of the judgment together, which is why the whole of the reasoned judgment is translated without being condensed. The custody and maintenance rulings that follow from the divorce carry different legal consequences and are set out separately and by type. Any ruling on the child’s surname is carried across in full as well, since the Standesamt may assess the child’s entry on the strength of that information too.

Divorce judgments given within the EU are in most cases recognised with no separate step, whereas the route differs for Türkiye as a country outside the Union; the distinction bears directly on how the file is put together. Knowing from the outset which documents and which layer of authentication are needed keeps an incomplete file from coming back. The translation creates no ruling of its own in this process; it simply lays the ground for the authority to read the judgment and its annexes correctly.

Anerkennung: the decision of the president of the OLG

As a rule, the recognition in Germany of divorce judgments from countries outside the EU depends on a recognition procedure conducted by the president of the higher regional court (Oberlandesgericht) of the Land; that procedure rests on the recognition provisions of the FamFG. The Standesamt (civil registry office) will in most cases enter the change of marital status in the register only once this recognition has been given. In that review the translation must carry the reasoning and the operative part of the judgment in full, in a form the German authority can read.

Rechtskraftvermerk: the annotation of finality

The German authority looks for the annotation showing that the judgment has become final, its counterpart to the Rechtskraftvermerk, and the annotation of finality on the Turkish judgment is therefore rendered in full and unambiguously. Confusing the date of the judgment with the date of finality misstates when marital status actually changed. The name of the family court and the file and judgment numbers identify the document; they are carried as they stand rather than equated with a German authority such as the “Familiengericht”, and are explained in brackets if need be.

A judicial document: the apostille comes from the courthouse

Because a divorce decree is a judicial document, its apostille is obtained not from the governor’s office but from the relevant judicial justice commission; this distinction is frequently confused and it holds the file up. The order is usually as follows:

• Obtain the certified copy bearing the annotation of finality from the court registry.
• Obtain the apostille from the judicial justice commission.
• Have the document, apostille included, translated by a sworn translator (beeidigter Übersetzer).

Germany is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention; confirm the current position from the official HCCH list. You can have your file handled at our single office in Ankara Kızılay, see the cost on our pricing page and upload your document to request a quotation. This page is for general information and is not a substitute for legal advice; for the recognition process, consult your lawyer and the Standesamt concerned.