How to Get a Divorce Order in Australia

Paper Certificates Stopped in 2010

If you're searching for a physical divorce certificate, here's the first thing to know: the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia stopped issuing paper divorce certificates years ago. Since 2010, all divorce orders are issued as digital documents with an electronic seal and signature, downloaded through the Commonwealth Courts Portal.

This catches a lot of people off guard — especially when a bank or government agency asks for a "certified copy" of their divorce certificate. What they actually need is the sealed digital divorce order, which you can download and print as many times as you need.

When Your Order Becomes Available

Your divorce order does not become final on the day of your court hearing. There is a mandatory waiting period of one month and one day after the hearing date. Once that period expires, your divorce is legally finalised and the sealed order becomes available for download.

For example, if your hearing was on 15 March, your divorce order becomes final on 16 April and will appear in the Commonwealth Courts Portal on or shortly after that date.

How to Download It

The process is straightforward:

1. Go to the Commonwealth Courts Portal and log in with your existing account (the same one you used to file your divorce application)
2. Navigate to your case file
3. Look for the divorce order document — it will carry an electronic seal and digital signature from the court
4. Download and save the PDF

You can print this document as many times as you need. Each printed copy carries the same electronic seal and signature. If a receiving agency asks for a particular form of certification, check its requirements before relying on a printout.

What If You Cannot Access the Portal?

If you have lost access to your portal account, you can contact the FCFCOA registry directly on 1300 352 000 for help accessing the case file or finding out how to obtain the order.

If your divorce predates the digital system (before 2010), contact the court registry to find out how to obtain an archived copy; fees and processing times depend on the record.

What You'll Use the Order For

Your sealed divorce order is the foundational document for virtually every post-divorce administrative update. You'll need it for:

• Name changes at the Motor Vehicle Registry, passport office, and banks
• Property transfers at the Land Titles Office
• Superannuation splits — the fund trustee needs a copy alongside the splitting order
• Estate plan updates — your solicitor will need to sight it when drafting a new will

Keep the digital file backed up in at least two locations. Losing access to it means going back to the FCFCOA registry, which adds delays to every downstream update.

The Divorce Order Is Not a Property Settlement

One common misunderstanding: a divorce order only dissolves the marriage. It does not divide property, settle superannuation, or determine parenting arrangements. Those are separate processes that require their own applications — either consent orders agreed between both parties, or contested proceedings decided by the court.

If you have not finalised your property settlement, you have a strict 12-month window from the date your divorce order becomes final to apply to the court. After that deadline, you need the court's permission to proceed, which is not guaranteed.

The Northern Territory After-Divorce Checklist walks through every step that follows the divorce order — from downloading the document through to the 12-month property settlement deadline — so nothing falls through the cracks during that critical first year.

See more Northern Territory guides →