No-Fault Divorce

What No-Fault Divorce Is and Who Can Apply

No-fault divorce is the divorce law that has applied in England and Wales since 6 April 2022, when the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 replaced section 1 of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973. Under the new section 1, either or both parties to a marriage may apply for a divorce order on the ground that the marriage has broken down irretrievably. This page is part of our wider divorce and separation service.

Before the reform the petitioner had to satisfy the court of one of five facts: adultery, behaviour, two years' desertion, two years' separation with consent or five years' separation, and the court had to inquire into the facts alleged. None of that survives.

You must have been married for over a year, the relationship must have permanently broken down and the marriage must be legally recognised in the UK, which includes same-sex marriage. Section 3 of the 1973 Act bars any divorce application before the end of one year from the date of the marriage; within that year, judicial separation is available instead. The same no-fault framework applies to civil partnership dissolution.

The Legal Test: Irretrievable Breakdown

The only ground for divorce is irretrievable breakdown, and the application must include a statement by the applicant, or both applicants, that the marriage has broken down irretrievably. Section 1(3) of the 1973 Act requires the court to take that statement as conclusive evidence and to make a divorce order. The court does not investigate the reasons, and your spouse cannot argue otherwise.

A divorce order is made in two stages. It is first a conditional order, the 2020 Act's replacement for the decree nisi, and it may not be made final before the end of six weeks from the day it is made. Before the conditional order, the applicant or applicants must confirm that they want the application to continue, and that confirmation cannot be given before the end of 20 weeks from the start of proceedings. The final order, formerly the decree absolute, ends the marriage.

These are statutory minimums, not a forecast: the overall time depends on the court's workload and how quickly each of you responds, so we do not quote a timescale. GOV.UK's guide to getting a divorce is the official reference.

Joint or Sole Application: Which to Choose

You can apply jointly if you both agree that you should divorce and neither of you is at risk of domestic abuse. Joint applicants must use the same method, online or by post. If your husband or wife does not agree, or is unlikely to cooperate or respond, you apply alone as the sole applicant and they become the respondent.

Rule 7.9 of the Family Procedure Rules 2010 lets a joint application proceed as an application by one party only at the conditional order stage, so if your spouse stops engaging you can carry on alone. If you have been sent an application, see our page on how to respond to a divorce application.

Where there is domestic abuse, GOV.UK's guidance is that a joint application is not the right route; a sole application needs no agreement or cooperation from your spouse. If you are in immediate danger call 999, and the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is on 0808 2000 247. Our domestic abuse and injunctions pages cover protective orders.

Documents, Jurisdiction and Common Problems

The application needs both of your full names and addresses, your original marriage certificate or a certified copy, with a certified translation if it is not in English, and proof of any change of name since the marriage, such as a deed poll. The court needs your spouse's current address to serve them, and their email address if they have one, otherwise the court serves the papers by post.

The court in England and Wales must also have jurisdiction under section 5 of the Domicile and Matrimonial Proceedings Act 1973. The grounds include both of you being habitually resident here, the respondent being habitually resident here, you having been habitually resident here for at least a year, or either of you being domiciled in England and Wales; on a joint application it is enough that either of you is habitually resident here. If one of you lives abroad, see our international divorce page.

Common problems include a missing marriage certificate and a spouse whose address is unknown or who does not respond. If there is no response the court will tell you what you can do next, and the divorce can still go ahead without them. A spouse can dispute the divorce only for a genuine legal reason, such as the court having no power over the case, never simply because they do not want a divorce.

How the No-Fault Divorce Process Works

1. Check you can apply: married for over a year, a marriage recognised in the UK, and jurisdiction as above.
2. Choose joint or sole: we help you decide which route is realistic and safe.
3. Apply online or by post on form D8 with the statement, the marriage certificate and the court fee; the current fee and the help with fees scheme are on GOV.UK's court fees page.
4. Issue and service: the court issues the application and, on a sole application, sends your spouse a copy with an acknowledgement of service due back within 14 days. A spouse who wants to dispute the divorce must file an answer by the date given in the notice of proceedings the court sends them.
5. Conditional order: after 20 weeks from issue you, or both of you, confirm that you want to continue; if satisfied, the court sends you both a certificate stating when the conditional order will be made. You are still married at this point.
6. Finances: only a court order makes an arrangement for money and property legally binding, and GOV.UK's guidance is to apply for that order before you apply for the final order. See our consent orders page.
7. Final order: at least six weeks and one day after the conditional order, apply for the final order, which ends the marriage. See our page on the conditional and final order stages.

When Legal Advice Is Especially Important

The divorce order does not deal with money, property, pensions or the children. Those are separate, and timing matters: an agreement about money only becomes legally binding once the court approves it. Applying after the final order is still possible, but a spouse who remarries cannot then apply for financial provision or a property adjustment order (section 28(3) of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973), so take advice before the final order is made. Our financial settlements pages explain the options; arrangements for children are handled through our children matters service.

Advice matters most where one of you lives outside England and Wales, the certificate is missing, your spouse cannot be traced, there has been domestic abuse, or your spouse says they will dispute the divorce. A mediation information and assessment meeting (MIAM) is required before the children and finance applications listed in Practice Direction 3A, not for the divorce application itself: see our mediation and out of court options page. For the paperwork at each stage, see our divorce solicitors page.

How RakLAW Solicitors Can Help

RakLAW Solicitors is an SRA regulated firm (SRA number 8007405) at 42 Shad Thames, London SE1 2YD, a short walk from Tower Bridge. Our family team handles sole and joint applications from the first check to the final order: we prepare the statement and documents, submit the application, deal with service on a spouse in the UK or abroad, and keep the financial steps in the right order. We do not do legal aid work; our family law fees page explains how we charge, and our step by step guide to no-fault divorce is a useful first read.

Book a free 15-minute consultation on 0203 345 2000 or through our contact page.