# Virginia HB1406: Foreign divorce decrees; exercise of power by courts of the Commonwealth, non-domiciled party.

Virginia HB1406, Foreign divorce decrees; exercise of power by courts of the Commonwealth, non-domiciled party., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Virgil Thornton (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-08 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0470)) (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1406-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB1406
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Foreign divorce decrees; exercise of power by courts of the Commonwealth, non-domiciled party.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-22
- Last action: 2026-04-08, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0470)
- Sponsor: Virgil Thornton (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 6 (183 yes, 0 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 1

## Summary

Foreign divorce decrees; exercise of power by courts of the Commonwealth; non-domiciled party. Provides that a court of the Commonwealth with proper jurisdiction may exercise certain powers relating to a foreign decree dissolving a marriage or granting a divorce from the bond of matrimony if a proceeding is initiated by a non-domiciled party to such divorce, provided that the party domiciled in the Commonwealth is still domiciled in the Commonwealth at the commencement of an action.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Virginia property relief after a foreign divorce: benefit, low. Virginia courts can address property and debts after a foreign divorce. Virginia must have been one spouse’s legal home when the foreign case began and remain so when Virginia proceedings begin. The foreign court must have lacked legal authority over that spouse. The Virginia case must start within…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Virgil Thornton (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-09 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-09 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-05 | Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice | pass | 14 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-17 | House | Read third time and passed House Block Vote | pass | 97 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | House | Reported from Courts of Justice | pass | 22 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-09 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 10 | 0 |   |

## Actions (26)

- 2026-04-08: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0470) (Governor)
- 2026-04-08: Approved by Governor-Chapter 470 (effective 7/1/2026) (Governor)
- 2026-03-31: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1406) (House)
- 2026-03-31: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor)
- 2026-03-31: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026 (House)
- 2026-03-31: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-03-30: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB1406ER) (House)
- 2026-03-30: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-03-30: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Passed Senate Block Vote (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Read third time (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-03-05: Reported from Courts of Justice (14-Y 0-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-18: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (Senate)
- 2026-02-18: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-17: Read third time and passed House Block Vote (97-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-16: Read second time and engrossed (House)
- 2026-02-13: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-11: Reported from Courts of Justice (22-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-09: Subcommittee recommends reporting (10-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-05: Assigned HCJ sub: Civil (House)
- 2026-02-03: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB1406) (House)
- 2026-01-22: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (House)
- 2026-01-22: Presented and ordered printed 26103533D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-08: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218095.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218094.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210759.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210758.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-22: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1093731.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1093730.PDF)

## Related bills

- HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with rental agreement. (signed)
- HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for certain individuals. (signed)
- HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord. (signed)
- HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil penalty. (signed)

## Sources
- [Chaptered (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218095.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218094.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210759.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1210758.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1093731.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1093730.PDF)

## Related
- [HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB5-2026)
- [SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB199-2026)
- [HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB95-2026)
- [HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1393-2026)
- [HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, terminat…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB834-2026)
- [HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB675-2026)
- [Virginia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia/bills)
- [Virginia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia)
- [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1406-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).