The situation
Our client, a Chinese citizen in Guangzhou, had married an Italian national in China. They had a four-year-old son. After a business venture failed, her husband flew back to Europe, and within a few months he stopped replying to messages entirely. She had an old address in Italy but no idea whether he still lived there. She wanted to move on with her life, and she needed legal certainty about her son's custody for school enrolment and travel.
A registry divorce was impossible: both spouses must attend in person. The only route was the court. Because her husband no longer lived in China, the case could be heard by the court where she was domiciled, but he still had to be served properly — and service abroad is often the slowest part of a foreign-related divorce.
What we did
- Set realistic expectations. We explained at the outset that a case like this often takes a year or more, and that foreign-related cases are not bound by the usual domestic time limits.
- Filed at the Guangzhou district court with a full evidence bundle: marriage certificate, the son's birth and household records, evidence of the husband's departure and messages showing contact had stopped.
- Attempted service in Italy through the Hague Service Convention channel, to which both China and Italy are parties, using the last known address and certified Italian translations. After several months, the request came back unserved: he no longer lived there.
- Applied for service by publication. With evidence that his whereabouts were unknown, the court published notice. For a party with no domicile in China, service is deemed complete 60 days after publication (the period was cut from three months on 1 January 2024).
- Prepared the hearing so that it could proceed in his absence, focusing on the two-year separation and breakdown of the marriage, and on the son's best interests.
The outcome
The court granted the divorce and awarded our client direct custody of her son. Because the husband's income could not be established, no child support was ordered at that stage, leaving her free to apply later if he resurfaced. The judgment took effect after the extended appeal period for a party without domicile in China expired. The whole process took about fourteen months, most of it waiting for service.
Results depend on the specific facts of each matter; past outcomes do not guarantee similar results.