Ten states to push ahead with EU guidelines on international divorces

"I do not want people in the EU to be left to manage complicated international divorces alone. I want them to have clear rules so that they always know where they stand."

Each year around 300,000 international couples decided to get married. The rise in bi-national couples has led to a rise in cross-national divorces - about 140,000 annually.

The couples involved often squabble over which country's laws should be applied, a decision with important implications for custody rights or division of property.

The legal uncertainty means that the spouse quickest off the mark or with the most money can effectively choose which law gives them the best deal.

The current system is "very much to the detriment of the weakest parties" such as women and children said the commissioner, who added that she wants to stop "forum shopping."

However, the proposal remains highly controversial, with non-participating member states concerned that Brussels is at all stepping into this area.

The commission tried to introduce similar rules in 2006 but failed to get the required unanimity. Countries with liberal divorce rules, such as Sweden, were concerned that Swedish courts would be forced to practice more restrictive foreign laws if a couple requested it.

"We are not trespassing on the institution of marriage," said the commissioner, answering the concerns of more socially conservative member states.

Under the rules, couples who wish to divorce will be able to choose which law applies. A Swedish-Finnish couple living in Spain could choose to apply either Swedish or Finnish law to their divorce. The only criteria is that one half of the couple has to have a connection to the country in question.

If the couple is unable to agree, the court would have a common set of criteria to look through to decide the issue. The first principle would be to apply the law of the country where they are living at the time.

Austria, Bulgaria, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Romania, Slovenia and Spain are pushing ahead with the proposals. Couples coming from EU countries not among the 10 pioneering countries may still be able to avail themselves of the EU formula if they live in one of the countries applying the rules.

A diplomat from a country outside the group of 10 said the issue was "horrendously complicated" and that the commission would have to look at different details such as what constitutes "habitual residence" - something that will be a main principle for deciding which national laws applies in the divorce - in a way that other member states can agree to.

Enhanced co-operation

Wednesday's move, which will need to be agreed by a qualified majority of member states as well as by parliament, represents the first time the EU has used the so-called enhanced co-operation method since it was introduced in the 1997 Amsterdam Treaty.

It is a last resort method allowing a minimum of nine member states to move ahead on an issue when agreement among all member states is not possible.

Commissioner Reding dismissed concerns about creating a two-speed Europe, saying she believed other member states would "board the train" once it is moving, eventually bringing the total number of participating states to 25.

This may not be the only time this commission makes a proposal based on a small group of member states.

Commissioner Algirdas Semeta, in charge of taxation, recently indicated he may use the tool to push forward with proposals on a common corporate tax base, something vigorously opposed by countries such as Ireland.