How to Get an Uncontested Divorce in Ontario: Forms, Fees, Steps

An uncontested divorce is one where nobody fights the divorce itself. Either you file together, or your spouse is served and does not file an answer. The process is mostly paperwork, and getting the forms right is what keeps it moving.

This guide walks through who can file, which forms and documents the court expects, the fees, how online filing works, and what happens after a judge reviews your file. Your situation may have extra wrinkles, such as property, support or parenting, so a lawyer can confirm what applies to you.

Who can apply for a divorce in Ontario

An Ontario court can hear a divorce only if at least one spouse has been habitually resident in Ontario for at least one year immediately before the case is started. Only the Superior Court of Justice, including its Family Court branch, deals with divorce.

The only ground for divorce is that the marriage has broken down. Your spouse does not have to consent, and there is no minimum length of marriage. Breakdown is usually shown by living separate and apart for at least one year, and you must have been living apart when the case started.

• Spouses count as living apart for any period they lived apart while either one intended to live separately, so only one of you needs to intend the separation.
• Living together again for a total of not more than 90 days, mainly to try to reconcile, does not interrupt the one-year period.
• Breakdown can also be shown without waiting a year if the other spouse committed adultery or treated you with physical or mental cruelty that makes living together intolerable.

Simple application or joint application

Either spouse can start the case with an application (Form 8A, Application (Divorce)) naming the other spouse as respondent. Or both spouses can file a joint application, which has no respondent. In a joint application, the divorce and any other order can be made only with both spouses' consent.

If you file alone, the documents must be served by someone 18 or older who is not the applicant. A respondent served in Canada or the US has 30 days to serve and file an answer. A respondent served elsewhere has 60 days. If no answer is filed, the case can usually proceed as uncontested. If an answer is filed, it may become a contested case with conferences.

What to file with the court

The evidence in an uncontested divorce is an affidavit on Form 36 (Affidavit for Divorce). It confirms the information in the application, proves the marriage if no certificate is filed, and proves any earlier divorce or death of a spouse. It also gives the child support arrangements and financial information. Form 36 is not the same as Form 36A, which is the clerk's Certificate of Clerk (Divorce).

The applicant files the affidavit if the respondent files no answer or withdraws the answer. In a joint application, the joint applicants file it, and Ontario's joint divorce checklist says each spouse completes a separate Form 36.

• Application (Form 8A), simple or joint
• Form 36 Affidavit for Divorce, one for each spouse in a joint application
• Marriage certificate or marriage registration certificate, translated by a certified translator if not in English
• A report from the Central Registry of Divorce Proceedings on any earlier divorce cases
• Three copies of a draft Divorce Order (Form 25A) and stamped envelopes for each party
• If support is included, an extra copy and two draft support deduction orders

If you do not have the original marriage certificate, the court can grant the divorce if it accepts the explanation in your Form 36 affidavit.

Financial statements, fees and fee waivers

Anyone claiming support or property must serve and file a financial statement, sworn before a commissioner of oaths. If the only support claim is child support in the table amount, no financial statement is needed, unless there is also a property claim or a claim for exclusive possession of the matrimonial home. Consent claims for spousal support under the Divorce Act are also exempt.

If you cannot afford court fees, you can request a fee waiver. If granted, it covers most later fees, but the federal $10 divorce fee cannot be waived.

Filing online, the judge's review and what comes next

A simple or joint divorce can be filed online. Toronto filings go through the Ontario Courts Public Portal, and filings elsewhere go through Family Submissions Online. Court staff review submissions within 3 business days.

An uncontested divorce is decided on paper. The clerk prepares a Certificate of Clerk (Divorce) (Form 36A) and presents the file to a judge. The judge may grant the divorce as drafted, return the papers for correction, or grant it with changes or refuse it after giving the applicant a chance to respond. Rule 36 does not require anyone to attend in person. The court must also be satisfied that reasonable arrangements have been made to support any children of the marriage, and if not, it delays the divorce.

• The divorce takes effect on the 31st day after the judgment is made.
• The court can make it take effect earlier only if special circumstances justify it and both spouses agree and undertake not to appeal.
• No appeal may be brought more than 30 days after the order was made, although an appellate court can extend that time on special grounds, and a pending appeal delays when the divorce takes effect.
• Once it takes effect, the clerk will issue a Certificate of Divorce (Form 36B) at either party's request, after checking that no appeal is pending. It costs $25.

What to do next

Before you file, settle whether you will apply alone or jointly, and gather your documents. A lawyer can help if property, support, parenting or a will are also affected by the divorce.

• Confirm one of you has been habitually resident in Ontario for a year.
• Find your marriage certificate, or note why you cannot.
• Decide whether you need a financial statement.
• Prepare the draft Divorce Order and envelopes.
• Request the Certificate of Divorce once the divorce takes effect, with the court location, file number and year granted.

After the divorce, update your will and beneficiary designations. Gifts to a former spouse in a will are generally revoked on divorce unless the will shows a contrary intention.

Frequently asked questions