The Affidavit of Means does not stop at the border. A spouse in Irish proceedings must disclose assets wherever situate: the apartment in the Algarve, the sterling account in Newry, the brokerage account in New York, the interest in a Jersey structure. In an economy as internationally connected as Ireland's, foreign elements now appear in entirely ordinary cases, and they change the work involved.
Finding and proving foreign wealth
Where disclosure is suspected to be incomplete, the tracing toolkit extends abroad: discovery of Irish bank records showing transfers out, exchange and conveyancing files from the original purchase, land registry searches in the relevant country, and in substantial cases foreign lawyers or investigators instructed for local searches. The pattern of funding usually betrays the asset: property abroad is generally bought with money that passed through disclosed accounts at some point, and the paper trail from that passage survives.
Provision and enforcement
The Irish court makes proper provision on the totality of resources, including foreign ones, but its orders bite most reliably on Irish assets and on the person of a spouse within its jurisdiction. Sensible settlements therefore balance the ledger domestically where possible, offsetting the foreign apartment against Irish assets, rather than ordering transfers that require enforcement in another legal system. Where a foreign transfer is genuinely needed, the settlement should specify the mechanics, local conveyancing, costs, timing, and specialist tax advice should be obtained in both jurisdictions before terms are ruled.
The strategic point for both sides is early candour with your own solicitor. Foreign assets half-disclosed have a way of surfacing at the worst procedural moment, and credibility lost on an Algarve apartment infects the evidence about everything else.
This article is general information, not legal advice. For the full practice area, see International and Cross-Border Divorce, or contact the practice to discuss a matter in confidence.