Effects of Divorce on Children and Financial Rights

Custody, Personal Contact with the Child and Protection of the Child

The basic criterion for custody and personal contact is the best interests of the child. The child’s age and development, health and education, a stable living arrangement, relationship with the parents and siblings, conditions of care, safety, social investigation and expert reports and whether it is appropriate to hear the child’s views are assessed according to the file.

In a divorce case, the following may be addressed together:

Temporary and final custody
Regulation of personal contact with the child
The child’s education, health and extraordinary expenses
Child maintenance
Relocation of the child to another city or abroad
Passport and travel disputes
The need for protective and supportive measures

A custody judgment is not an outcome that rewards one parent or punishes the other. The child must not be made a party to the dispute, a witness or a means of communication; the child’s identity, private life and psychological integrity must be protected.

If circumstances change materially after the divorce judgment, the new regulation of custody or personal contact may be the subject of a separate case. The details of this area are addressed on the Custody Cases and Personal Contact with the Child page.

Maintenance and Claims for Pecuniary and Non-Pecuniary Damages

Interim maintenance may be requested during the case; with the divorce judgment, child maintenance for the child and, where the conditions are met, poverty maintenance for the spouse may be requested. There is no fixed tariff applied to everyone for the amount of maintenance. The parties’ actual incomes, expenses, living conditions, the child’s needs, ability to pay and equity are assessed together.

For poverty maintenance, statutory conditions are examined, such as falling into poverty because of the divorce, the requesting spouse’s fault not being greater than that of the other spouse, and the ability to pay. For child maintenance, the child’s needs for care, education, health and development and the financial means of the mother and father form the basis.

In pecuniary damages, the impairment of existing or expected interests because of the divorce is assessed; in non-pecuniary damages, whether there has been an attack on personality rights because of the events that caused the divorce is assessed. The claims must be asserted clearly and in accordance with procedure in the case or the counterclaim.

Under Article 178 of the Turkish Civil Code, the rights of action arising from the termination of the marriage by divorce become time-barred one year after the divorce judgment becomes final. For this reason, the nature of the claim, its starting date and the applicable period must be examined separately, particularly for the claims for poverty maintenance and pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages that were not decided in the divorce case or were reserved. Because of its different legal nature, child maintenance for the child should not be treated in the same way with respect to this period.

The determination, increase, reduction, termination and collection of maintenance are explained separately on the Maintenance Cases page.

Matrimonial Property Regime, Ziynet, Family Residence and Protection of Assets

The divorce judgment and the liquidation of the matrimonial property regime between the spouses are not the same legal act. The matrimonial property regime to be applied in the liquidation, the dates on which the regime began and ended, the distinction between personal property and acquired property, the participation claim, the share in increased value and, where the conditions are met, contribution claims are determined separately.

The case for the liquidation of the matrimonial property regime may be conducted separately from the divorce case. Because the outcome of the divorce case may constitute a preliminary question requiring a stay of the liquidation, the timing of the two processes, the types of claims, limitation, fees, interim measures and evidence needs must be planned together.

Wedding jewelry (ziynet), dower (mehir), trousseau, household goods and personal belongings may be the subject of separate claims or cases, depending on their legal nature. Whether these were terminated in the uncontested divorce protocol or reserved must be determined expressly.

Where there is a danger that the family residence will be transferred without the other spouse’s express consent or that particular assets will be disposed of, an annotation of the family residence, a restriction on the power of disposal and interim legal protections suited to the concrete conditions may be assessed. An interim injunction is not an automatic outcome that applies to all assets; the right to be protected, the particular asset and the concrete risk must each be justified.

The participation claim, share in increased value, personal property, company shares and the allegation of asset concealment are explained in detail on the Division of Property in Divorce and Liquidation of the Matrimonial Property Regime page.

Consultation and Scope of Services

Summarize the events in chronological order; if there is one, state the notification, the judgment and the approaching time limit. Before sharing sensitive documents, the necessary scope and the method of sharing must be determined.

Advisory work, litigation, legal remedies and post-judgment matters, as well as fees and expenses, are agreed separately.

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Legal basis

Depending on the nature of the claim, the Turkish Civil Code and the relevant provisions on procedure, protection and private international law apply together.

Divorce Services and Other Guides

This content is general information. It does not replace a review of the specific file. Submitting an inquiry alone does not create an attorney–client relationship and does not stop statutory time limits.