Divorce proceedings

Course of proceedings

Divorce proceedings follow one of two separate branches, depending on whether the spouses agree. In an agreed divorce, both spouses jointly file a petition with the basic court, together with two mandatory written agreements - on the exercise of parental rights (if there are minor children) and on the division of joint property, or a statement that none exists. The proceedings are simplified: there is no reconciliation phase, since agreement has already been reached, and the court is mainly concerned with checking that the agreement on the children is in the best interests of the child. Once the court confirms that assessment, the agreements are incorporated into the operative part of the judgment, and the proceedings are, as a rule, concluded at a single hearing.

In a divorce by claim, one or both spouses initiate the dispute before the basic court. The claim is served on the defendant together with the summons to the mediation hearing, not for a written response; the court first attempts reconciliation to possibly preserve the marriage, and if that fails, moves to a settlement on the exercise of parental rights and the division of property. Only if the settlement also fails to produce an agreement does the case proceed to the main hearing and the evidentiary proceedings, in which the court may investigate, ex officio, facts important to protecting the child's interests. Marital disputes are treated as urgent, the public is excluded, and the case file is treated as an official secret. Regardless of which branch was followed, the judgment must include a decision on the exercise of parental rights and on child support for minor children.

The judgment becomes final once the deadline for appeal has passed, if no appeal is filed; if one is filed, the appellate court decides on it, and in marital disputes the second-instance court, as a rule, decides within 30 days.

Where to file for divorce

A request for divorce, whether a petition for an agreed divorce or a claim, is filed with the basic court (osnovni sud), which has first-instance subject-matter jurisdiction over marital disputes; appeals are decided by the appellate court. Which basic court: besides the court of general territorial jurisdiction, that is the court of the defendant spouse's residence or domicile, the court in whose territory the spouses had their last joint residence also has jurisdiction (Arts. 39 and 48 of the Civil Procedure Act), and the filer chooses. In an agreed divorce there is no defendant, so in practice the petition is filed with the court of either spouse's residence or the court of the last joint residence. If the spouses live in different cities, the claimant can therefore choose between two, sometimes three courts.

The filing is handed in at the registry of the competent basic court, in person or by post, in enough copies for the court and the other side, with the attachments (marriage certificate, birth certificates for the children, copies of ID cards). The court fee is not paid up front: the court serves a payment order when the fee obligation arises. The territories of the basic courts are set by the Law on the Seats and Territories of Courts and Public Prosecutors' Offices; if you are not sure which court covers your municipality, the registry of the nearest basic court will direct you.

Petition for an agreed divorce or a claim: what each contains

The portal has no template for a divorce petition or claim and the courts prescribe none; both are written freely, but must contain the elements set by law.

A petition for an agreed divorce is signed by both spouses. Like any filing, it contains the name of the court, the spouses' names and addresses, the subject (divorce), the content of the statement and signatures (Art. 98 of the Civil Procedure Act). Its substance is the written divorce agreement, which under Art. 40 of the Family Act must cover two parts: an agreement on the exercise of parental rights, joint or sole, if there are joint minor children (whom the child lives with, how contact with the other parent is maintained and how much child support is), and an agreement on the division of joint property, or a statement that there is none. Without either part, the court returns the petition for completion. The court incorporates the property agreement into the judgment as it stands, and the agreement on the children only if it finds it in the best interests of the child (Art. 225). If the spouses have representatives, they cannot share the same one (Art. 221 para. 3).

A claim for divorce contains a specific relief sought (that the marriage be dissolved, with a proposal on whom the children are entrusted to, how contact is maintained and how much child support is), the facts on which the claim is based, the evidence for those facts and the details under Art. 98 (Art. 192 of the Civil Procedure Act). The ground for divorce by claim is that the marital relationship is seriously and permanently disrupted or that living together has objectively become impossible (Art. 41 of the Family Act); the claim does not have to prove fault. Either spouse may file it (Art. 219). The claim is not served on the defendant for a response but together with the summons to the mediation hearing (Art. 204 para. 2), so the defendant responds to the allegations at the hearing. In a marital dispute no default judgment and no judgment on admission can be given, and no court settlement can be concluded (Art. 224); a defendant who does not appear therefore does not automatically "lose", the court takes evidence instead. A power of attorney for a lawyer must be certified and issued for the marital dispute only (Art. 221).

How long a divorce takes

An agreed divorce is, as a rule, concluded at one hearing, since there is no reconciliation or settlement phase (Arts. 233 and 240 of the Family Act apply to a dispute started by a claim). When the proceedings concern a child, they are urgent: the first hearing is scheduled to be held within 15 days of receipt of the petition or claim, the proceedings are as a rule conducted in no more than two hearings, and the second-instance court decides on an appeal within 30 days (Art. 204 paras. 3-5).

For a divorce by claim the law sets no overall time limit, but it does set limits for the phases. Reconciliation is carried out within two months of service of the claim (Art. 239), and if it fails, settlement within two months of the end of reconciliation (Art. 246); if a counselling service or guardianship authority conducting them does not report to the court within three months, the court takes over. Only then does the main hearing follow. Mediation is not carried out if one spouse does not consent, is incapable of reasoning, has an unknown whereabouts or lives abroad (Art. 230), which shortens the path to the hearing. If the spouses reconcile, the claim is deemed withdrawn (Art. 236). The judgment becomes final when the 15-day appeal period expires (Art. 367 of the Civil Procedure Act).

Costs

The court fee is the same for the petition and the claim: RSD 3,600 on the filing and the same on the judgment, because the value of the dispute for divorce is fixed by law at RSD 20,000; in an agreed divorce the spouses pay one fee together. The lawyer's fee does not depend on assets but on the number of acts: 550 points for the petition or claim and 650 points for a hearing held, at RSD 50 per point; the attorney fee calculator gives the amount for any act. The basis for each item, a comparison of the two routes and a worked example are on the page How much does a divorce cost.

Sources

• Family Act (Porodični zakon, Official Gazette RS Nos. 18/2005, 72/2011 - other law, 6/2015 and 109/2025 - other law), Arts. 40, 41, 202, 204, 219, 221, 224, 225, 226, 227, 230, 233, 236, 239, 240 and 246
• Civil Procedure Act (Zakon o parničnom postupku), Arts. 48, 98, 192 and 367
• Law on Court Fees (Zakon o sudskim taksama, Official Gazette RS Nos. 28/94 ... 91/2025), Arts. 3, 27 para. 1 item 8 and 37, Tariff Nos. 1 and 2
• Tariff on Attorneys' Fees and Costs, tabular overview applied from 5 July 2025