Getting a New Jersey Divorce when Your Spouse is Out-of-state

You’ve made the decision to get a divorce. However, you are a New Jersey resident and your spouse is not. Where do you file for divorce?

You may be able to file for a New Jersey Divorce if:

• You are a New Jersey resident working or living out of state.
• Your spouse lives outside New Jersey in another state or in a foreign country
• You or your spouse is serving in the U.S. military

New Jersey Residents Who Work or Live Out-of-State

You are a resident of New Jersey if your main home is in New Jersey or you pay state income tax in New Jersey. If you are temporarily living out-of-state because of your work or military assignment, you may still get divorced in New Jersey.

We understand that court appearances can be difficult if you live in another part of the country. Moorestown divorce attorney Melinda M. Previtera do what she can to make the process easier for you. She can even make court appearances on your behalf, so you don’t have to travel. You can count on Melinda to provide high quality legal representation — no matter where you live.

New Jersey Military Divorce

Service members and the spouses may obtain a New Jersey divorce if the service member is stationed in New Jersey or if New Jersey is listed as the home of record for one of the spouses.

Military families have unique protections under both state and federal laws. Individual military branches may also have regulations that affect divorce, child custody, child support, child visitation and spousal support. This can make a military divorce especially complicated.

Examples of Laws Unique to Military Divorce

• Child support in New Jersey may not exceed 60% of the military service member’s pay and allowances.
• Under federal law, a spouse is not entitled to a portion of the military member’s retirement unless the service member has been active duty military for at least ten years of the marriage.
• The Service members Civil Relief Act allows courts to delay divorce proceedings until 60 days after deployment.
• If divorce proceedings are delayed due to deployment, spouses may be able to obtain temporary child support.
• Federal law prohibits courts from establishing custody and visitation or permanently changing custody or visitation until at least 90 days after deployment.

You Can Count on Melinda M. Previtera

Melinda M. Previtera is familiar with the Uniformed Services Former Spouses’ Protection Act (USFSPA) and other laws that govern child support, health benefits (Tricare), and division of property. Whether you are a service member or military spouse, Melinda will use the law make to protect your best interests and the interests of your children. To learn more about out-of-state of military divorce, contact us at 856-942-0150.