Divorce to non-US citizen living outside US; I am active duty US military

[Csilla]

I am active duty US military serving overseas in Turkey right now and have a question about divorce/separation. I married a non-us citizen in 1997, she is from Hungary, and lives there now with our daughter. We separated from living together in September 2010 and i went to work at another military base in another country for a year (Korea), and now im living in another country (Turkey) and so in total now we have been living apart for around 18 months. How do i get divorced from someone that is not a US citizen and does not live in the US? I was married in Hungary, not the US, but i provided documentation to the military in order for them to reflect me as being legally married.


Question:

How do i get a divorce from someone who is not a US citizen, does not live in the US, and would not travel to the US for a divorce to happen in court or to show up in person in court? I don't think it would be contested. How long would the process take from starting the paperwork until a divorce is considered final? I have residency in both PA and VA.

[AFFA]

I wish to inform you that you can take divorce in USA. In your case you can take divorce in the state where you claim legal residency. US requires presence of only one spouse and in case of persons deployed abroad person is believed to be resident of the state where he claims legal residency.

AFF

[Friend In Court]

You may file for divorce in either state you claim residency. The spouse will be served with the papers in the city where she resides. If there are no children or property the process can be simple.

The military views divorce as a civil matter so the JAG will be of little to no help. You may contact an attorney in the state in which you claim residency, the papers will be prepared and filed, the spouse will be served and if she does not contest, the divorce will be awarded, ex parte.

[Lexus]

In this you can file for divorce at your place of residency i.e. U.S. But what about your daughter’s custody?

[Friend In Court]

The question posed was on divorce which can be granted ex parte. The issue of custody of the child must be brought in the country and state or province where the child resides.