Divorce in the Netherlands

A lawyer is not always the first person you need to contact when you are considering divorce. Many couples first choose divorce mediation or counselling for divorce to create clarity, discuss the main topics and work towards agreements together.

Mediation gives both partners space to talk about what matters most, without immediately turning the process into a legal conflict. Once the agreements are clear, they can be formalised in the right legal documents. This makes mediation a practical first step for couples who want to keep the process respectful, structured and focused on solutions.

Every divorce requires a number of important decisions. You may need to make agreements about your home, finances, pension, religion, maintenance, children, parenting arrangements and future communication.

During the mediation process, we help you identify what needs to be arranged and in which order. You do not need to have everything prepared before the first meeting. Together, we create an overview and work through each topic in a way that feels manageable and tailored to your situation.

Philip van Vlokhoven supports couples with divorce mediation in the Netherlands in a clear, respectful and practical way. His role is to guide the conversation, create structure and help both partners make decisions that are workable in daily life.

His tailored approach is highly valuable and supportive for people involved in mediation. Some couples mainly need help with a parenting plan template or parental plan template, while others need guidance around the family home, financial agreements or communication after divorce. Whatever your situation looks like, the mediation process is shaped around what you need, not around a fixed standard format.

Divorce can bring many questions at once. What needs to be arranged first? How do you keep the conversation constructive? And how do you make decisions when emotions are still present?

With divorce counselling and mediation, you receive practical support throughout the process. We help you slow things down, create structure and focus on agreements that are clear and realistic. This personal approach makes the process easier to understand and less overwhelming.

The family home is often one of the most sensitive and practical topics in a divorce. You may need to decide whether one partner stays in the home, whether the house will be sold, or how the mortgage responsibilities will be divided.

In mediation, we help you discuss these questions carefully and transparently. Topics such as divorce and mortgage, ownership, future housing and financial feasibility can be explored step by step. Where specialist financial or legal advice is needed, this can be added to the process.

When children are involved, the focus shifts from ending the relationship to building a stable co-parenting situation. This requires clear agreements about care, holidays, communication, decision-making and the children’s daily routines.

We can help you create a parenting plan that reflects your family’s needs. Instead of using a generic sample parenting plan, we work towards agreements that fit your children, your schedules and your way of communicating as parents. A parenting plan template can be useful, but the final plan should always feel personal and workable.

For some couples, faith plays an important role in how they approach divorce, communication and future agreements. Christian mediation offers space for those values while still focusing on practical decisions and clear arrangements.

The process is respectful, careful and solution-oriented. We create room for both partners to be heard, while helping you work towards agreements that are realistic and sustainable. The aim is not to force a specific outcome, but to guide the conversation with attention to both practical needs and personal values.

Whether you are just beginning to explore your options or already need concrete agreements, Novum Mediation offers English-speaking divorce mediation in the Netherlands. The process is personal, structured and tailored to your situation.

We can support you with counselling for divorce, parenting arrangements, a customised parenting plan, divorce and mortgage questions, financial agreements and Christian mediation. Together, we create clarity about what needs to happen next and help you take the next step in a calm and constructive way.