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Abu Dhabi court orders divorced parents to share child support equally under foreign law
The court applied German law to determine maintenance for two daughters, including age-based German payment brackets
- PUBLISHED: Tue 11 Aug 2026, 1:11 PM
An Abu Dhabi court has ordered a divorced German couple to equally share the financial support for their children, including monthly maintenance, school fees, health insurance, medical treatment, and transportation costs.
The ruling, issued on June 23, is notable because the court applied German law to determine the children's maintenance after the father specifically requested it and submitted a certified copy of the relevant German legislation.
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The Abu Dhabi Civil Family Court ordered both parents to each pay half of Dh4,000 monthly maintenance awarded for one daughter and Dh5,000 for the other, while also splitting the children's education, healthcare, transport and other expenses equally. The court also relied on age-based maintenance provisions in the German Civil Code when determining the amounts.
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The couple divorced in Germany and have two daughters, aged five and 12. The father brought the maintenance claim before the Abu Dhabi Civil Family Court, asking for the application of German law and for both parents to contribute financially to the children's support according to their means.
The mother challenged the Abu Dhabi court's territorial jurisdiction, arguing that both parties lived in Dubai and that the case should be heard by the Dubai Courts.
The Abu Dhabi court rejected the objection, finding that the father had a valid residence in Abu Dhabi and that both parties fell within the scope of the legislation governing the Civil Family Court.
German law applied
In considering whether German law could be used, the court referred to Article 1(3) of Federal Law No. 41 of 2022 on Personal Status, which provides that the relevant personal-status provisions apply to non-nationals unless one of them insists on applying their own law, or another law agreed upon by the parties where permitted by UAE legislation.
The judgement noted that foreigners may invoke their own law in matters including marriage, divorce, inheritance, wills and proof of parentage.
As the father was German, had expressly requested the application of German law, submitted a certified copy of the law and paid the prescribed fee, the court ruled that German law should apply to the case.
The court then examined provisions of the German Civil Code governing child maintenance.
It cited Article 1602, which provides for a minor child's right to claim maintenance from their parents where the child's own income or assets are insufficient. It also referred to Article 1603, under which parents who are responsible for supporting their minor children must use their available funds equally for their maintenance, subject to their other obligations.
The court also cited Article 1610, which provides that the amount of maintenance is determined according to the circumstances of the person entitled to it, and Article 1612, which sets monthly maintenance amounts according to the child's age.
The judgement said the five-year-old daughter fell within the first age bracket under the German system, entitling her to 87 per cent of the minimum child maintenance, while the 12-year-old fell within a bracket corresponding to 100 per cent of the minimum amount.
Both parents ordered to pay
The court found that joint custody was in place, with the father having custody from Friday to Sunday during the school year and sharing custody during school holidays.
It said the children required financial support and that there was no evidence that they had sufficient funds of their own.
It therefore ordered both parents to contribute equally. It also ordered the parents to split equally the children's school fees, health insurance, medical expenses, transport costs and all other expenses relating to the daughters.
The final order repeats that both parents must pay half of the Dh4,000 and Dh5,000 monthly amounts and share the education, health and other requirements of the children.
'Foreign law is never applied automatically'
Byron James, partner at Expatriate Law, who represented the case, said the judgment demonstrated how the Abu Dhabi system can allow foreign nationals to have their national law applied by a UAE court.
"Foreign law is never applied automatically," James said, explaining that a party has to elect the law, provide a certified copy and pay the relevant fee.
He said what made the ruling particularly significant was the extent to which the court applied the foreign legislation.
"The court worked through the German Civil Code article by article and applied the German age brackets for child maintenance," James said.
According to James, the decision also illustrates the significance of the equal financial responsibility imposed on the parents.
He said the court's approach treats both parents as equal economic partners in raising their children, rather than assuming that the father alone should bear the financial burden.
The UAE's legal framework allows eligible foreign nationals to request the application of their home-country law in certain personal-status matters. Federal legislation states that non-Muslim foreign residents may adhere to the law of their home country in specified matters, while Abu Dhabi has its own civil family law framework for non-Muslim foreigners.
James said the approach could have implications beyond child maintenance, pointing to areas such as inheritance and wills where differences between national legal systems can be significant.
He also believes the availability of foreign-law options could influence where expatriates choose to resolve family disputes.
"Abu Dhabi now offers something unusual: your own national law, applied by a local court."
However, he stressed that jurisdiction remains important and that the system does not mean expatriates can simply choose Abu Dhabi regardless of their connection to the emirate.
In this case, the court specifically found that the father's valid residence in Abu Dhabi was sufficient to establish its territorial jurisdiction despite the mother's argument that both parties lived in Dubai.
