Meanings
- Money agreed in settlement of a divorce.
The former British wife of a Russian billionaire, who was ordered to pay a 453 million pound ($572 million) divorce bill, has claimed the first sliver of the award after seizing and selling a helicopter, her advisers said on Thursday.
2018 December 13, Kirstin Ridley, “Ex-wife of Russian billionaire secures first sliver of $572 million divorce bill”, in Reuters - UKgovernmentThe payment to be given to the EU on the UK's exit of the European Union, estimated at around £39bn.
Theresa May has told MPs the UK could withhold payment of its £39bn Brexit "divorce bill" if a deal is not reached with Brussels.
2018 September 13, Alec McGuinness, “Theresa May says UK might not pay Brexit 'divorce bill' in 'no-deal' scenario”, in Sky News3 more examples
In part, this is because it is impossible to know what the UK’s divorce bill will be until the EU knows what the relationship looks likes after 2019: if the UK seeks to stay as a paying member within some programmes, for example, that would reduce the bill.
2017 June 20, Daniel Boffey, “Brexit divorce bill: what is it and how does it affect talks?”, in The GuardianThe Brexit party revealed plans today to slash the foreign aid budget and withhold the £39billion so-called 'divorce bill' from the EU if it takes power.
2019 November 1, David Wilcock, “Cut the foreign aid budget and don't give Brussels a penny of the £39billion 'divorce bill' - the Brexit Party reveals its general election manifesto”, in The Daily MailThe UK's Brexit divorce bill could soar to £42.5 billion after the Treasury increased its estimate of the payments owed to the European Union by more than £5 billion.
2022 July 21, Sam Blewett, “Brexit Divorce Bill Could Soar to £42.5 Billion as Treasury Boosts Estimate”, in Bloomberg
Cite this entry
divorce bill. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/divorce%20bill
“divorce bill.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/divorce%20bill. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “divorce bill,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/divorce%20bill.
Source: divorce bill on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.