Sources and method – Separation & Divorce

These 15 topic pages are based primarily on statutory texts (gesetze-im-internet.de), the Düsseldorf Table (Düsseldorfer Tabelle) of the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf and publications of the Federal Ministry of Justice and the Federal Central Tax Office. The "Evidence" field of each topic page gives the specific sources.

Areas of law and their most important bases

Separation and divorce are regulated mainly in the Civil Code (BGB, Book 4 – Family Law, §§ 1564–1587), and the procedure in the Act on Proceedings in Family Matters and in Matters of Non-Contentious Jurisdiction (FamFG). Pension rights equalisation (Versorgungsausgleich) has its own act (VersAusglG). For maintenance questions, the Düsseldorf Table (a compilation of maintenance rates by the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf, not a formal legal norm, but recognised nationwide in practice as a guideline) and the guidelines of the family law senates of the Higher Regional Courts are also decisive. Tax consequences are governed by the Income Tax Act (EStG); questions of custody and contact rights and the child's best interests are also governed by Social Code Book VIII (SGB VIII, child and youth welfare).

Sources

1. Gesetze im Internet (gesetze-im-internet.de), Federal Ministry of Justice and Federal Office of Justice, retrieved September 2026: consolidated versions of BGB (esp. §§ 1361, 1363, 1373–1379, 1565–1568a, 1569–1587), FamFG (esp. §§ 111 ff., 133 ff., 137, 155, 233), VersAusglG, EStG (esp. §§ 10, 10a, 33a, 33), BRAO (§ 43a), SGB VIII (esp. §§ 1666, 1671, 1684, 1687), Court and Notary Costs Act (GNotKG), FamGKG (court costs in family matters). Basis for all sections cited in the text.
2. Düsseldorf Table (Düsseldorfer Tabelle), Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf, version as of 1 January 2026 (olg-duesseldorf.nrw.de), coordinated with the other Higher Regional Courts and the German Family Courts Congress. Basis for the needs rates and age brackets given on the topic page "Child maintenance". The table is, by experience, adjusted annually on 1 January; the amounts given here expressly apply only to the 2026 version.
3. Federal Ministry of Justice (BMJ), information materials and brochures on separation, divorce, custody and contact rights, as of 2026 (bmj.de). Basis for general explanations of procedure.
4. Federal Central Tax Office / BMF circulars on realsplitting (§ 10 Abs. 1a Nr. 1 EStG) and extraordinary burdens (§ 33a EStG), assessment period 2026 (bzst.de, bundesfinanzministerium.de). Basis for the maximum amounts given on the topic page "Tax consequences".
5. Case law of the Federal Court of Justice (BGH), in particular decisions of the XII Civil Senate responsible for family matters, cited by case number, retrieved via the case-law database of the Federal Court of Justice (bundesgerichtshof.de) and via sources linked from gesetze-im-internet.de. Basis for questions of interpretation not conclusively regulated in the statutory text (e.g. hardship divorce, shared residence model (Wechselmodell), short-marriage exception in pension rights equalisation).
6. Federal Bar Association (BRAK) / Federal Lawyers' Act (BRAO), in particular § 43a Abs. 4 BRAO on the ban on representing conflicting interests, retrieved September 2026 (brak.de, gesetze-im-internet.de). Basis for the topic page on consensual/contested divorce.
7. Bundesverband Mediation e. V. and state justice administrations, information on family mediation and out-of-court dispute resolution, as of 2026 (bmev.de, respective state portals). Basis for the topic page on advice and mediation, in particular the note that mediation is voluntary and that its funding/cost coverage varies by federal state and individual case.

Where statements are expressly marked as uncertain

For individual figures and developments, no official primary source could be found during research that is bound to remain valid beyond September 2026, or a legislative change was still not completed at the editorial deadline. This concerns in particular:

• Düsseldorf Table: The needs rates and income brackets are, by experience, adjusted annually on 1 January. The amounts given on the topic page "Child maintenance" apply to the version as of 1 January 2026 and may change again on 1 January 2027.
• Self-retention amount (necessary and appropriate personal needs): The self-retention rates given in the Düsseldorf Table are likewise not fixed by statute, but a judicial guideline that may change and may be set differently in individual cases.
• Realsplitting and extraordinary burdens (§§ 10, 33a EStG): The maximum amounts given apply to the assessment period 2026 and are adjusted by the legislature at irregular intervals; if in doubt, check the current amount with the tax office or a tax adviser.
• Shared residence model (Wechselmodell) – announced legislative reform: As of this date, a statutory reform of the shared residence model (including custody, contact and maintenance questions) had been announced politically, but not yet promulgated and come into force as a statute. The topic page "Shared residence model" therefore expressly describes the current legal position and points to the pending reform, without anticipating its content.
• § 1568a BGB (marital home): The principles of this provision are not applied directly to the allocation of the marital home during the separation period (before the divorce becomes final), but by analogous application via § 1361b BGB; where this is relevant on a topic page, the analogous application is expressly stated rather than a direct application.
• Costs of legal aid in family proceedings (Verfahrenskostenhilfe) / instalment amount: Whether and in what amount instalments are payable depends on an individual assessment of income and assets; no generally valid figure can be given. The topic page describes the procedure, not a fixed instalment amount.

In all these cases the relevant topic page expressly states the uncertainty or provisional nature, instead of presenting a figure, a legal position or an assessment as a secure, permanently valid legal position.

Scope: what this platform does not replace

These pages cover the civil-law basics of separation and divorce. Two adjacent topic areas are deliberately not covered in depth here, but referred to the more suitable services of this portal:

• Domestic violence. If violence, threats or control play a role in the separation, you will find detailed information on the Protection against Violence Act (Gewaltschutzgesetz), police expulsion orders, restraining orders, allocation of the home after violence and shelters in the module Wegweiser Häusliche Gewalt. Individual topic pages here point in general terms to your right to protection at suitable places, without repeating the separate procedure here.
• Single mothers and fathers in particular. Benefits and rights that specifically relate to raising children alone (e.g. advance maintenance payments (Unterhaltsvorschuss), certain child supplement and tax advantages for single parents) are covered in depth in the module Wegweiser Alleinerziehende Mütter. Here on this platform, the focus is on the topics that apply to all separation and divorce situations, regardless of whether and how many children are involved.

What this platform does – and does not do

• Figures, deadlines, amounts and legal bases come from the sources named. Nothing was added that is not supported there. Where a statement could not be reliably verified or was not yet final, this is stated on the relevant page instead of being guessed.
• Values that differ regionally or by court (e.g. slightly differing self-retention rates of individual Higher Regional Court districts, differing funding of mediation depending on the federal state) are marked as "varies regionally" instead of an invented nationwide uniform figure.
• Family law remains in flux even after the reforms of recent years; courts will only conclusively clarify some questions – such as the shared residence model – in future. The information does not replace legal advice in an individual case.
• These pages are no substitute for a specialist lawyer in family law. For contested or complex questions – in particular on custody, assets or high maintenance amounts – you should seek legal advice early; see Advice, mediation and family counselling.
• In case of acute danger or violence, your protection takes priority over any legal detail – contact the police (emergency number 110) or the module Domestic violence.