Pre-Purchase FAQ

All of us provide similar services, however, Express Divorce use experienced lawyers to supervise all divorces.  In the case of our premium services, the entire divorce documentation is drafted by a senior matrimonial solicitor who subsequently oversees the process through court.

In addition, our actual managed services are significantly less expensive than Divorce Online’s services.  Both Divorce Online and Quickie Divorce do outsource to solicitors, however, we are committed to keeping all divorces in-house to reduce delay and/or potential loss of documents.

Express Divorce are also entirely transparent about costs.  We started our online divorce service as an antidote to the rising legal fees charged by solicitors.  Our competitors’ websites are not particularly clear about the court fees and when you will need to pay them.  On the other hand, we are entirely upfront about these additional fees as we do not want to give any of our customers a nasty surprise after they have purchased one of services.

The process is broadly similar whether you apply online or use a traditional paper application.

There are 3 main stages:

The Application

The Applicant completes either an online or paper application.  The court issues the application by sending a copy to the Respondent together with an acknowledgement of service.  The Respondent must acknowledge receipt of the application confirming they are happy for the divorce to proceed.

Application for the Conditional Order

20 weeks after the application is issued, the Applicant can apply for the conditional order.

Application for the Final Order

The Applicant must wait a minimum of 6 weeks and 1 clear day after the date of the conditional order before they can apply for the final order.

The application is a simple one page form in the case of a paper application and several short questions if you are using an online application.

It is highly unlikely that you will need to attend court.  That said, we can never completely rule out the possibility as the judge, when considering the application, might want to see you and your spouse to make enquiries about how you reached your financial agreement.

There is only one ground for divorce - the irretrievable breakdown of your marriage.

No.  Since 6 April 2022, any application for divorce is based on the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage.  You can no longer divorce based on the fact of adultery, unreasonable behaviour or a period of separation.

On average, it takes between 7 and 8 months to get divorced.

Once the court have issued the divorce application, you must wait a minimum of 20 weeks before you can apply for the conditional order.  After the court grant the conditional order, you must wait a further 6 weeks and 1 day before you can apply for the final order of divorce.

The simple answer is ‘no.’  The actual process is the same although Express Divorce use the HMCTS online portal to issue divorce applications so there is less physical paperwork.

The entire online divorce process still takes between 30 and 35 weeks

All of our services require good communication within an amicable situation. If the respondent does not reply to the divorce application we would request you seek legal advice and help to progress

We do not accept cash although we can accept cheques made payable to ‘ExD Legal Services.’  Please note that, should you pay by cheque, Express Divorce will not carry out any work on your behalf until 24 hours after the money has cleared.

We can assist you with obtaining a replacement or you may want to contact your local Registry Office.  Replacement certificates normally take between 48 hours and 2 weeks depending on whether you use a private firm or your Local Registry to obtain the replacement certificate.  The cost of using a private firm varies depending on how quickly you want your replacement certificate.