How Long Does a No-Fault Uncontested Divorce Take?

What is the fastest way to get divorced in the UK?

The fastest way to get a divorce in the UK is to make a joint divorce application online and agree on all matters in advance, including finances, property, and child arrangements. This is the only approach that allows a divorce to be completed as soon as the law permits, which is around 26 weeks (6 to 7 months) from application to Final Order.

A joint divorce is the quickest way to divorce, as it demonstrates mutual agreement from the outset. When both spouses apply together, the court can see immediately that the divorce is uncontested and that both parties intend to cooperate throughout the process. This removes delays caused by waiting for a spouse to respond or challenge the application.

A joint application keeps the divorce moving through the legal stages without interruption. Combined with early agreement on finances and children, it avoids court hearings, contested applications, and prolonged negotiations, which are the main reasons divorces take longer than the legal minimum.

What can delay your divorce and how to avoid it?

Several factors can prolong the divorce process beyond the 26-week minimum. Common factors that can cause delays and affect timelines:

• Financial Settlement and Child Arrangements: Reaching a divorce financial settlement or agreeing on arrangements for children can add several months to the process. Disputes over property, pensions, or child custody often require solicitor negotiation or court hearings, which can extend the timeline for divorce to 12 months or more.
• Lack of Cooperation: The process moves faster when both parties are cooperative. An unresponsive spouse or a spouse who did not make the application may delay the divorce by failing to return paperwork or respond to the notice of the divorce. The court may need to re-serve documents or grant alternative service, which slows down progress.
• Complexity of the Case: Simple divorces with no assets or children are processed more quickly. Complex cases involving multiple properties, business assets, or international elements may take over a year. Any disagreement will cause divorce proceedings to take much longer.
• Method of Application: Using a joint divorce application often speeds up the process, as both parties confirm the breakdown of the marriage from the outset. Submitting a paper application instead of applying for divorce online can add several weeks to the process due to court handling times.
• Court Delays and Administrative Backlogs: The family court’s schedule can affect how long it takes to process each stage. Delays at the Conditional Order or Final Order stage are common, especially where paperwork is incomplete or the court is under pressure. These delays are outside your control but can add weeks or months.

The UK No-Fault Divorce Timeline: Step by Step

Here is a simplified breakdown of the no-fault divorce process in England and Wales:

1. Divorce Petition – Start divorce proceedings by submitting a divorce application online or by post. You’ll need to include a copy of your marriage certificate. You can apply individually (sole application) or with your ex-partner (joint application).
2. Acknowledgement from the Court – Once received, the family court will review the paperwork and issue the divorce. The court will then send a notice of the divorce to the other party. If you applied jointly, both of you are notified.
3. 20-Week Reflection Period – Every divorce includes a mandatory 20-week reflection period. This waiting time allows both parties to consider their options before continuing with the legal process. During this period, you can discuss the divorce financial settlement and arrangements for children.
4. Conditional Order – Once the reflection period ends, you apply for a Conditional Order. This confirms the court sees no reason why the divorce cannot proceed. You must still wait before finalising the divorce.
5. Final Order – Six weeks and one day after the Conditional Order is granted, you may apply for the Final Order, which legally ends the marriage. Your divorce cannot be completed sooner than 26 weeks from the start.

How long does an online divorce take vs using a solicitor?

The method you choose to manage your divorce can make a meaningful difference to the overall timeline, but not to the legal minimum (that is fixed at 26 weeks regardless), but to how efficiently you move through each stage, and how much unnecessary delay you introduce.

Applying for a divorce online

Since 2018, divorces in England and Wales must be filed through the HMCTS online portal. This replaced the old paper-based system.

Applications submitted online are generally processed more quickly by the court than paper applications sent by post, which can add several weeks due to administrative handling times.

An online divorce service like the one we offer here at Divorce-Online takes this a step further. Rather than dealing with the court’s system yourself, our team prepares and files everything on your behalf, checks for errors before submission, and manages communication with the court throughout.

Between April and June 2025, our team processed over 750 online divorce applications, with the average completion time being 7.5 months.

Using a high street solicitor

Instructing a traditional solicitor to manage your divorce is a perfectly valid route, and may be the right choice if your situation is particularly complex. However, it is not necessarily faster, and it is typically far more expensive.

Solicitor-led divorces can sometimes be slower because communication happens through intermediaries, appointments are required, and correspondence between firms can take time. The legal timeframes are identical regardless of who manages the process.

Doing it yourself (DIY divorce)

It is possible to file for a divorce directly through the HMCTS Portal without professional assistance. This is the cheapest option, but it carries the highest risk of errors.

Even small mistakes, such as a misspelt name, a missing detail, or an incorrect date, can result in your application being rejected and having to start again, adding weeks or months to your timeline.

In summary, the legal minimums are the same whichever route you take. But choosing an efficient, professionally managed online service reduces the risk of avoidable delays and keeps your divorce moving as quickly as possible.

Can you speed up a divorce in the UK?

This is one of the most common questions we are asked. When you have made the difficult decision to end your marriage, the last thing you want is to feel stuck in a slow-moving legal process.

The honest answer is: you cannot shorten the 26-week legal minimum. That waiting period is set by the Government and applies to every divorce in England and Wales, without exception.

However, there is a significant difference between a divorce that takes 7 months and one that drags on for 18 months or more, and much of that difference comes down to the decisions you make early in the process.

What you can control

These are the steps most likely to keep your divorce moving as quickly as the law allows:

1. Apply jointly if you can: If you and your spouse both agree the marriage is over and are willing to cooperate, a joint application is your fastest starting point. It removes the 14-day acknowledgement of service window and demonstrates mutual agreement from day one.

2. Resolve financial matters early: Finances are the single biggest cause of delays in divorce proceedings. Agreeing on how to divide assets, property, savings, and pensions before you reach the Final Order stage prevents the divorce from stalling.

If you reach a financial agreement, it should be formalised in a financial consent order (sometimes called a clean break order), which makes it legally binding and protects both of you going forward.

3. Consider mediation: If you and your spouse cannot agree on finances or arrangements for children, mediation is a faster and far less expensive alternative to court proceedings. A trained mediator helps you reach a workable agreement outside of the court process.

Before applying to court for financial matters, most people are required to attend a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM), so engaging with mediation early can prevent the costly delays that come with contested court hearings.

4. Be prompt with paperwork: It sounds simple, but delays in returning documents from either party are one of the most common reasons divorces take longer than they need to. Responding to court correspondence quickly and keeping your contact details up to date with the court makes a real difference.

5. Use a professional service: Having someone experienced manage the paperwork on your behalf significantly reduces the risk of errors that trigger rejection and resubmission. A rejected application can set your timeline back by weeks.

What you cannot control

Court processing times are outside your hands. The family court system in England and Wales has faced sustained pressure in recent years, and delays at the Conditional Order or Final Order stage do occur, particularly during busy periods. These delays are frustrating, but do not reflect any problem with your application.

The best way to protect yourself against court delays is to ensure your application is submitted correctly from the outset, all paperwork is accurate and complete, and you do not wait until the last moment to apply for each stage of the process.

There is no such thing as a ‘quickie divorce’ in UK law — that concept no longer exists under the no-fault system.

Joint Application vs Sole Application: Which is quicker?

One of the first decisions you will make is whether to apply for divorce jointly with your spouse or alone as a sole applicant. This choice can genuinely affect how long the process takes.

A joint divorce application is made by both spouses together. You both sign and submit the application, which immediately signals to the court that you are in agreement about the divorce itself. Neither of you is the ‘petitioner’ or the ‘respondent’; you are simply two people applying together.

A sole application is made by one spouse, known as the applicant, without the other. The other spouse becomes the respondent and must be formally notified by the court. They are then given time to respond.

A joint application is generally the faster route. Here is why:

• No acknowledgement of service delay – With a sole application, once the court sends the divorce papers to your spouse, they have 14 days to complete and return an acknowledgement of service form. If they are slow to respond — or difficult to locate — this can add weeks to the process. A joint application removes this step entirely.
• Fewer opportunities for dispute – Because both parties confirm the divorce from the outset, there is less room for the process to stall due to disagreement or non-engagement.
• Signals cooperation to the court – A joint application shows from the start that this divorce is uncontested, which can help it move through the legal stages more smoothly.

That said, a sole application is sometimes the only option, for example, if your spouse refuses to engage, is unreachable, or you are leaving a difficult relationship. In these circumstances, the law still protects your right to divorce. Your spouse cannot prevent it from happening; they can only slow it down.

If your spouse is cooperative but simply prefers not to be involved in the paperwork, a sole application can still proceed efficiently. The key factor is whether your spouse responds to the court’s acknowledgement within the required timeframe.

How long does a divorce take if one party doesn’t agree?

Even if one party does not agree, a divorce in the UK still takes a minimum of 6 months, due to mandatory waiting periods built into the no-fault divorce process. One spouse cannot prevent the divorce from progressing once an application has been made.

However, the overall process often takes much longer than 6 months when one party is uncooperative. Disputes over finances or child arrangements, slow responses, or refusal to engage can delay financial settlements and extend the process to 12 months or more, even though the divorce itself cannot be stopped.

The risk arises where the divorce is finalised before finances are resolved. Ending the marriage without a financial consent order in place can affect important rights, including pension claims, inheritance entitlements, and ongoing financial protection.

How long does it take to get a financial settlement?

Reaching a financial settlement in divorce is often a complex and stressful matter.

The time it takes to get a financial settlement usually depends on how complex your financial situation is.

Do you have overseas property, investments, inheritance, and so on? Or do you simply have joint savings to divide?

If you can agree on the terms of your financial agreement before applying for the Final Order, it can ensure that your agreement becomes legally binding upon divorce.

Now, you can get divorced without a financial settlement in place, but that does come with some potential repercussions down the line.