How to End Legal Cohabitation in Belgium


In Belgium legal cohabitation ends for three reasons:

  1. by the marriage or death of one of the cohabiting partners
  2. by mutual agreement by both of the cohabiting partners
  3. decided by one of the partners in a written statement

How to end legal cohabitation in Belgium

If ending the legal cohabitation is the decision of both partners or just one, it must be submitted as a written statement to the Officer of Civil Status through your commune.

Most communes will have a standard declaration form you can use to end legal cohabitation that must contain the following things:

  • date of the declaration
  • full names, dates and places of birth of both cohabitants
  • signed by both parties or the one that made the statement on their own
  • home address of both parties
  • mention of the desire to end the legal cohabitation

You will submit this form or written statement this with a small fee. Then, a bailiff  will notify the other party of the end of the agreement and it will be officially annotated in the population register. For information how to end legal cohabitation, contact the Service of the Registrar in your commune.

And that’s it.

For the immigrating partner who’s visa was based on the legal cohabitation, things are slightly more complicated. Read more here: What happens to my visa after legal cohabitation ends?

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