How Can I Find My Divorce Date?
If you are planning to remarry or to prove your marital status, you may need to provide your final date of divorce. If you have forgotten the exact date or if you have misplaced your Final Order or Decree Absolute, the good news is that it is easy to find your divorce date online. In this article, we will explain how you find your divorce date.
How do you find out the date of your divorce?
In England and Wales, you can easily find your divorce date by requesting a copy of your Final Order or Decree Absolute. Decree Absolutes were issued up to 5th April 2022 and were replaced by Final Orders. Both documents confirm that the marriage has formally ended and include the date of divorce.
The exact process you will need to follow depends on whether you know your case reference and which court to apply to for a copy of your divorce records.
How to find your divorce date if you know your divorce case reference
If you know your divorce case reference, it is a quick and easy process to request a copy of your Final Order or Decree Absolute. If your case reference is 16 digits, you will need to apply directly to the Divorce Service Centre. If your case reference is less than 16 digits, you will need to apply to the court that handled your divorce originally. Details of the courts in the UK can be found online on the government website.
Your application can be sent by post to:
HMCTS Divorce and Dissolution Service
PO Box 13226, Harlow
CM20 9UG
Alternatively, you can apply by email to: access.divorce@justice.gov.uk
Your application should contain your name and address, case number, and confirmation of how you want to pay the £11 administration fee. You can also pay by cheque made payable to ‘HM Courts & Tribunals Service’ or by credit/debit card.
How to find your divorce date if you don’t know your divorce case reference
If you don’t know your case reference, you will need to use another method to get a copy of your Final Order or Decree Absolute. If you applied for divorce online on the government website after January 2019 or by post after April 2022, you can apply to the Divorce Service Centre.
If you applied at any other time for your divorce, you must request a copy of the divorce documents from the court concerned (see below for what to do if you don’t know the court that finalised your divorce).
Because you don’t know your divorce case number, the Divorce Service Centre or court will need to carry out a search to find it. You will need to provide your name and address and the most likely date that you think the case happened. On receipt of your request, they will carry out a search spanning 5 years of records on either side of the date you provided.
If you are not sure of the date or if you don’t provide a date, they will carry out a search that spans the last 10 years of records. They will also change a search fee of £45 for each 10-year period searched.
How to find your divorce date if you don’t know your divorce court or service centre
It is not uncommon for individuals to lose the details of the court or Divorce Service Centre that handled their divorce. In this case, you can apply online to the Central Family Court to search for your Final Order or Decree Absolute. The cost of this service is currently £65 for each decade searched for.
You must provide your name and contact details and the address to which you want the final order or decree absolutely sent. To make it easier to find your divorce records, the Central Family Court may request some or all of the following details:
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The name of the person who applied for the divorce, annulment, or dissolution
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The name of the person who responded to the application
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The start and end dates of the search
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The marriage date
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The date the divorce, annulment, or dissolution application was filed
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The date and court where the conditional order or decree nisi (Form D84) was granted, and
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The date the final order or decree absolute was granted
If you would prefer not to apply online, you can complete form D440 to ask the Central Family Court to search for your Decree Absolute or Final Order.
Final words
Losing access to your divorce dates can be frustrating, but it can easily be resolved by getting a copy of your divorce records and following the process set out above. If you are still unsure how to find your divorce date and related records, please feel free to speak to a member of our friendly and extremely experienced divorce and family law team, who will be glad to assist you.
Guillaumes LLP Solicitors is a full-service law firm based in Weybridge, Surrey. Our highly experienced divorce and family law team can assist you with all relationship matters. To make an appointment, please call us on 01932 840 111 or fill out a contact form.