Your Divorce has prepared this summary to assist in working out whether you can bring a divorce application. We hope this snapshot is a useful planning tool.
The Basics in Plain English
- You need to be married in either Australia or overseas.
- If you were married overseas and if you have taken Australian Citizenship/have permanent residency/intend for Australia to be your permanent home, you can apply for a divorce in Australia.
- To apply, if your marriage certificate is in a foreign language we can arrange for it to be translated into English to enable your application to be made.
- If you have been separated for more than 12 months you can apply for a divorce. Separation can mean living under the one roof but living separate lives. We will ask you a few simple questions such as sleeping arrangements, who is paying the bills and cooking the meals and whether a Government agency such as Centrelink has been informed of separation as evidence to prove that you are separated but living under the one roof.
- If you have only just been married then you may need to attend or consider counselling. This is called the 2 year rule. In other words, if you separate in the first year of marriage we usually recommend unless you are remarrying or there is some other urgent reason, that you wait for 2 years following the marriage date to actually make your application for divorce.
- If you have reconciled (got back together) for some period/s after separation then you may need to wait for a further period to ensure that the 12 month time limit is reached. Simply email us if you are unsure and we will work out your eligibility date for the divorce application.
Other Interesting Questions
If I don’t know where my spouse is, can I still apply for a divorce?
The simple answer is yes. We will assist you in working out how to proceed and even if it is impossible to locate your former spouse a divorce order can still be made.
My spouse is overseas – do they still need to be served with the application?
The startling answer is yes provided they can be reasonably located. If service is difficult then we may be able to arrange service by email or on a third party such as a relative who will bring it to their attention.
If we have children under 18 can we get divorced?
The simple answer is yes. There is a short section in the divorce application where we provide details of the children, their health, financial support and education status. If this information is provided we can proceed with the divorce.
If I have lost the marriage certificate or my spouse has it what can I do?
If you were married in Australia we can apply to the Registry of Births Deaths & Marriages in your State where you were married and obtain a duplicate copy. If you were married overseas we can make an inquiry to also obtain a further copy. This may take a little more time but can be resolved.
Is divorce expensive?
At Your Divorce, we provide you with a fixed quote to obtain your divorce. The Court fee to file an application for divorce costs $910 or $305 if you hold a Health or other Concession Card. Our fee is $550 in addition to the Court filing fee.
Getting ready to proceed
Once you have qualified for a divorce with the most critical element being the 12 month period of separation, then to avoid further delay the critical things to move matters forward will be getting a copy of the following:
- a copy of your Health Care or Concession Card if you have one;
- obtaining a copy of your Marriage Certificate either the one you received on the date of your marriage or one from the Registry in the State in which you were married (either can be used).
- we will need photo identification of yourself. A copy of your Driver’s Licence or Passport is sufficient.
- if you have been to Court in relation to Family Law matters in relation to property/children or domestic violence then a copy of those Orders will also need to be supplied or you will need to tell us the details of what has occurred.
Don’t let procrastination be a killer
As you can see above, getting a divorce is a process where if we follow the steps outlined above we can take all of the hassles out of your divorce. Once you are eligible simply complete the application or if you have any doubts email us at help@your-divorce.com.au and we will respond usually within 24 hours to answer your query.
We would love to be of assistance.