How can I establish residency to file for divorce if I am stationed at a military base?

Aliens, out of state students and military personnel are all capable of establishing adequate residency in North Carolina to meet the jurisdictional requirement for absolute divorce. One need not be a citizen of the United States in order to establish residency or domicile within North Carolina for the purpose of divorce actions.

Further, an adult student, who has become independent of parental control and support, may acquire a domicile at the place where his or her university or college is situated if the student regards that place as home, or intends to stay there indefinitely, and has no intention of going back to the place of the former home.

A serviceman stationed on a military reservation in the state is capable of establishing his domicile in North Carolina by virtue of section 50-18 of the North Carolina General Statutes. This statute removes the barriers which might otherwise pre-vent a serviceman so situated from establishing a legal residence in this state where the serviceman actually has the present intention of changing his domicile to this state.

However, the serviceman must establish both physical presence and intent. In one case, the North Carolina Court held that the domicile of a soldier or sailor in the military or naval service of his country generally remains unchanged, domicile being neither gained nor lost by being temporarily stationed in the line of duty at a particular place, even for a period of years. A new domicile may, however, be acquired if both the fact and the intent concur.

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