Divorce ruling hits non-EU nationals

A person who is allowed to live in Ireland because they are married to an Irish citizen can be thrown out of the country if they divorce in particular circumstances, the European Court of Justice has ruled.

Three men, all non-EU nationals, took their cases to the High Court and the judge asked the European Court of Justice to decide whether they could remain in Ireland when they were divorced by their wives who had already left the country.

None of the couples were Irish while the women were from EU states Latvia, Germany, and Lithuania. All left their husbands, left Ireland, and then got divorces in their own country — except for the German woman who got hers in Britain.