An uncontested divorce in Ontario runs on four court documents filed in two batches: Form 8A to start, then Form 6B, Form 36 and Form 25A to finish. A joint divorce drops Form 6B. A handful of other documents come into play only if you’re asking the court for something besides the divorce itself, such as spousal support or property division. Every one of them is free from the Ontario Court Forms website, published by the Ministry of the Attorney General, and all of them are filed in the Superior Court of Justice or its Family Court branch, the only courts in Ontario that can grant a divorce.

This page is the form-by-form walkthrough: what each document is for, what court staff look for in each section, who signs it and when it gets filed. It works from the current official versions (Form 8A and Form 36 were last revised in April 2024). For the bigger picture, including where to download them, the online portal and the filing fees, start with our overview of Ontario divorce papers and come back here when you’re ready to fill them in.

The court forms at a glance

The official list comes from the court’s own Simple Divorce Application Checklist and the Ontario guide to procedures in family court. Here is every document in the order you’ll meet it, for a simple divorce (one spouse applies) and a joint divorce (you apply together).

Document	What it does	Who signs it	When it’s filed
Form 8A: Application (Divorce)	Starts the case and asks for the divorce	Applicant (both of you in a joint divorce)	Stage one, with the $214 filing fee and $10 registration fee
Continuing record	Cover page and table of contents for the court file	Applicant prepares it	Stage one
Marriage certificate	Proves the marriage	Nobody; it’s the original document	Stage one, or with Form 36
Form 10: Answer (blank)	Served on your spouse so they can respond	Respondent, only if they choose to	Served with the application, never filed by you
Form 6B: Affidavit of Service	Proof of service on the other party	The adult who served the papers, sworn	Stage two (simple divorce only)
Form 36: Affidavit for Divorce	Your sworn evidence for the divorce	Applicant, sworn (each of you in a joint divorce)	Stage two, with the $445 fee
Form 25A: Divorce Order	The order the judge signs	Judge; you type the draft	Stage two, three typed copies
Form 36B: Certificate of Divorce	Official proof the divorce is final	Court clerk	Optional, 31 days after the order, $25
Form 35.1: Affidavit (decision-making responsibility, parenting time, contact)	Required if you ask for parenting orders	Each person asking	With a joint divorce that claims parenting orders
Form 13 or 13.1: Financial Statement, Form 13A	Required for spousal support or property claims	Each party, sworn	With a joint divorce that claims support or property on consent

If the list looks long, notice that the last two rows don’t apply to a divorce-only application. For most readers of this page the real set is Form 8A, Form 6B, Form 36 and Form 25A, and the supporting documents are your marriage certificate and, if you have one, your separation agreement.

Stage one: the forms that start the divorce

Form 8A: Application (Divorce), section by section

Form 8A is a six-page fillable PDF. Pages one and two are mostly notices to the respondent; the parts you complete are the boxes at the top and pages three to six.

• Simple or joint. The first tick box on page one. “Simple (divorce only)” means one spouse applies and the other party is the respondent. “Joint” means you both apply and there’s no respondent. Tick one.
• Names and addresses. Your full legal name exactly as it appears on your marriage certificate, including middle names. The court checks. If your name has changed since, you explain that in Form 36, not here.
• Family history (page three). Birthdate, age, where each of you lives, your first and last names on the day before the wedding, your gender on that day, whether either of you has been divorced before (with place and date), and whether each of you has been habitually resident in Ontario for at least one year. At least one of you must tick “Yes” to that last question or the court has no jurisdiction under section 3(1) of the Divorce Act.
• Relationship dates. The date you married, the date you started living together, and the date you separated. The separation date matters most: the divorce can’t be granted until a full year has passed from it. If you still live under the same roof but as separate households, you still have a separation date; our page on grounds for divorce in Ontario explains how that’s assessed.
• The children. List every child of the marriage, even though you’re not asking for orders about them: name, age, birthdate, where they live and who they live with. Leaving a child off is one of the most common reasons an application comes back.
• Previous cases or agreements. Any earlier court case between you, and any written agreement dealing with the issues. If you have a separation agreement, give its date and write that no terms are in dispute. Attach a copy; the judge will want to see how the children are provided for.
• Notice of Calculation. The current form asks on page four whether Ontario’s online Child Support Service has issued a Notice of Calculation or Recalculation, and whether you want an order that differs from it. For most couples the answer is “No” to both.
• Claims. Two frames. Sole applicants use the lower frame and tick “00 a divorce” (and “30 costs” if claiming costs, which uncontested applicants rarely do). Joint applicants use the upper frame, which lists every possible claim by number; tick “00” and anything else you’ve agreed to ask for together. Ticking a spousal support or property claim triggers the financial statement requirement described below.
• Important facts supporting the claim for divorce. The separation frame: the date you began living separate and apart, and whether you’ve tried living together again since. Up to 90 days of attempted reconciliation doesn’t restart the clock (Divorce Act section 8(3)(b)(ii)), but you must disclose the dates. The adultery and cruelty frames are for the two fault grounds; nearly every uncontested divorce leaves them blank.
• Applicant’s certificate. You certify that you’re aware of your duties under sections 7.1 to 7.5 of the Divorce Act: to act in the children’s best interests, protect them from conflict, try out-of-court resolution where appropriate, give complete and accurate information, and comply with orders. Date and sign. Joint applicants both sign.
• Lawyer’s certificate (page six). Only completed if a lawyer represents you. Leave it blank if you’re filing yourself.

Bring three completed copies to the counter (four for a joint divorce), or upload one through the online portal. The court clerk issues the application by stamping it with a court file number, a date and the court seal. From that moment you have a case in the Superior Court of Justice.

The continuing record

Not a numbered form, but the clerk won’t accept your application without it. The continuing record is the binder, physical or electronic, that holds everything filed in your case. As applicant, you create the cover page and the table of contents and update the table each time you file something. Rule 9 of the Family Law Rules and the court’s “Formal Requirements of the Continuing Record” set out the format; court staff will help you with it, and Family Submissions Online builds it for you when you file electronically.

Your marriage certificate

The court needs the original Marriage Certificate or Marriage Registration Certificate, filed either with Form 8A or later with Form 36. It won’t be returned. If you married in Ontario and can’t find it, order a replacement from ServiceOntario (there’s a fee). If you married in another province, order it from that province. If you married outside Canada in a language other than English or French, file the certificate together with a certified translation. If it’s impossible to get a certificate at all, paragraph 4 of Form 36 gives you a place to swear to the date, place and officiant instead, and the judge decides whether that’s enough.

The Registration of Divorce Proceeding ($10)

The second fee at stage one pays to register your case with the federal Central Registry of Divorce Proceedings in Ottawa. The court sends the registration electronically; you no longer complete a separate form. The registry checks that no other divorce case has been started anywhere in Canada between the two of you and sends back a Clearance Certificate. That takes four to six weeks, and the judge cannot sign your divorce order without it. It’s the main reason even a perfectly prepared divorce takes months rather than weeks; see the divorce application timeline for the full sequence.

Serving the other party: Form 6B, Affidavit of Service

This section applies to a simple divorce only. A joint divorce has no respondent, so there’s no one to serve and no proof of service to file.

Once the application is issued, the other party must be served with three things: a copy of the issued Form 8A, a copy of the continuing record, and a blank Form 10: Answer. Because an application is an originating document, Rule 6 of the Family Law Rules requires special service, which means one of the following:

• Handing the documents to the respondent in person.
• Leaving them with the respondent’s lawyer, if the lawyer accepts service in writing on a copy.
• Mailing them with a prepaid Form 6 acknowledgement card, which counts only if the respondent signs and returns the card.
• Leaving them in a sealed envelope with an adult at the respondent’s home who shows identification, then mailing a second copy to the same address the same or next day.

You are not allowed to serve the documents yourself. Anyone else who is at least 18 can do it, a friend, a relative or a process server, and that person then completes Form 6B, your proof of service. The affidavit asks for the date and time of service (paragraph 1), the method (paragraph 2), the special-service details (paragraph 3), the server’s relationship to either party (paragraph 11), confirmation they’re over 18 (paragraph 12) and any travel and fee (paragraph 13). The server swears or affirms it before a commissioner for taking affidavits, a notary, a lawyer or a justice of the peace. Family court offices have commissioners who do this free.

Two deadlines run from here. Service must happen within six months of the issue date. The respondent then has 30 days to serve and file an Answer, or 60 days if served outside Canada or the United States. You cannot file the stage-two documents until that period has passed. Our page on acknowledgement of service covers what the respondent sees and what happens if they do file a Form 10. If the other party can’t be found, you’ll need a court order for substituted service first, which is a motion of its own and a good moment to get advice.

Stage two: the forms that finish the divorce

Once the 30 or 60 days have run (or straight away, for a joint divorce), you file the second batch together with the $445 fee for placing the case on the list for a judge. This is the “set down” step. Everything below gets filed at once, in the same court file.

Form 36: Affidavit for Divorce, paragraph by paragraph

Form 36 is your evidence. A judge grants an uncontested divorce on paper, without a hearing, so this four-page affidavit is the only testimony the court will ever hear from you. Each numbered paragraph has a job:

• 1 to 3. That you’re the applicant, that there’s no chance of reconciliation, and that everything in Form 8A is still correct. If anything has changed since you filed (an address, a child’s living arrangement), paragraph 3 is where you say so; otherwise write “NONE”.
• 4. The marriage certificate. Tick whether it was filed with the application or is attached now; give the issuing details for an out-of-province certificate; or, if you couldn’t get one, state the date, place and officiant of the wedding.
• 5. The legal basis. For nearly everyone: separated at least one year, with the date. Adultery or cruelty goes under “Other”.
• 6. No collusion. You swear you’re not part of any arrangement to invent or hide evidence or deceive the court. Agreeing on separation, support, property or parenting isn’t collusion; the Divorce Act says so expressly in section 11(4).
• 7. The property time limit. You acknowledge that an equalization claim may be barred six years after separation or two years after the divorce, whichever comes first. The court makes you confirm this so nobody loses a property claim by accident; the rule is section 7(3) of the Family Law Act.
• 8. Paragraphs to include in the order. If you want parts of your separation agreement or an earlier order written into the divorce order, list the paragraph numbers here and attach the document. Most couples write “NONE” and keep the agreement as a private contract.
• 9 and 10. The children and the parenting arrangements. Names and birthdates of every child of the marriage, then a summary of where they live and how decisions are made. A sentence or two is enough if the arrangement is settled; a parenting plan can be attached.
• 11. Child support. The paragraph judges read most carefully. You state the paying parent’s annual income, the number of children, the table amount under the Child Support Guidelines for that income, and the amount actually being paid. Check the table figure with the child support calculator. If the two amounts match, move on. If they differ, the next page opens up and you must explain why the arrangement is reasonable, usually by pointing to a written agreement and the benefits it gives the children. Section 11(1)(b) of the Divorce Act obliges the court to refuse the divorce until it’s satisfied reasonable support arrangements exist, so a thin answer here is the commonest reason a file is sent back.
• 12 and 13. Costs, if claimed (write “NONE” otherwise), and the respondent’s last known address.

Put a line through any blank space on the last page, then swear or affirm the affidavit before a commissioner. Don’t sign it at home. In a joint divorce each of you completes and swears a separate Form 36. Swearing a false affidavit is a criminal offence, which is why Sarah, who prepares these every week for our Naked Divorce Filer clients, checks every figure in paragraph 11 against the income documents before anyone signs.

Form 25A: Divorce Order

You draft the order you’re asking the judge to sign. Form 25A must be typed, not handwritten; a handwritten draft is rejected at the counter. Paragraph 1 names both spouses with the place and date of the marriage and orders that they be divorced, with the divorce taking effect 31 days after the date of the order. If you listed paragraphs from an agreement in Form 36, add them as further numbered paragraphs here. Leave the judge’s name, the date and the “persons in court” line blank, strike through any blank space, and bring three copies (four for a joint divorce). When the judge signs it, this court order is your final divorce order.

Envelopes, the $445 fee and the review

With the stage-two forms you provide two stamped, self-addressed business-size envelopes, one addressed to you and one to the other party, so the court can mail each of you a copy of the signed order. The $445 fee is paid at the same time, or you show your fee waiver certificate. The court clerk checks the package, waits for the Clearance Certificate if it hasn’t arrived, and passes the file to a judge. If something is missing, the court directs you to supply it rather than dismissing the application. Our page on mistakes in divorce applications lists the ones we see most.

Form 36B: Certificate of Divorce (optional)

The divorce takes effect on the 31st day after the order. From that day you can request a Certificate of Divorce from the court office that made the order, for $25, in person, by mail with a self-addressed stamped envelope, or by submitting a completed Form 36B through Family Submissions Online. You don’t need it for the divorce to be valid, but you’ll be asked for it to remarry, and often by pension plans, insurers and foreign authorities. Only the court issues it; ServiceOntario handles marriage certificates, not divorce certificates. The steps after the judge signs are on how to finalize a divorce in Ontario.

Forms you only need in some cases

Form 35.1: when you ask for parenting orders

If a joint divorce asks the court to make orders about decision-making responsibility, parenting time or contact (what used to be called child custody and access), each person making the claim files Form 35.1, a sworn affidavit about the children, your parenting history, any involvement with child protection or criminal courts, and the plan you propose. It isn’t needed when you simply describe your existing arrangement in Form 36 without asking for an order.

Property and support claims: Form 13 or 13.1 and Form 13A

A divorce-only application needs no financial statement. The instructions printed on Form 8A itself set the rule: a claim for spousal support or child support requires Form 13; a property division claim, or one for exclusive possession of the matrimonial home, requires Form 13.1 instead; and a claim for child support in the Guidelines table amount alone needs neither. Where a financial statement is required, Form 13A, the Certificate of Financial Disclosure, lists the documents you’ve exchanged. If you’ve resolved money in a separation agreement and only want the divorce, you stay in the simple lane and skip all three.

Form 8 and the contested divorce: when claims go beyond the divorce

Form 8A is for the divorce alone (or a joint divorce with agreed add-ons). If one spouse wants the court to decide property division, spousal support or parenting and the other disagrees, that’s a contested divorce: the application is Form 8: Application (General), the case leaves the simple-divorce track, and this walkthrough stops applying. That’s usually the point to settle through mediation and return to Form 8A afterwards, which is cheaper than litigating.

Support deduction forms: when support is ordered

If the divorce order includes a support term, the court also makes a support deduction order and files it with the Family Responsibility Office, which collects and pays out support unless you both opt out in writing. The ontario.ca guide lists the support deduction order and its information form among the joint-application documents for exactly this situation.

Filing fees and the fee waiver certificate

The filing fees are $214 plus $10 at stage one and $445 at stage two, the same at the counter and online. If paying them would be a hardship, the fee waiver request is a separate form with a financial eligibility test. If you qualify, the court clerk issues a fee waiver certificate, and you file it in place of the fee. You can apply at stage one, stage two or both, and the certificate covers most court fees in the case.

The order you file them in

1. Download the current Form 8A, complete it on your computer, print three copies (four for a joint divorce) and sign.
2. Prepare the continuing record cover and table of contents; gather the original marriage certificate and any translation.
3. File at the Superior Court of Justice or Family Court branch for the municipality where either of you lives, or online through Family Submissions Online (the Ontario Courts Public Portal in Toronto). Pay $214 plus $10, or file your fee waiver certificate. The court clerk issues the application.
4. Sole applicants: have an adult who isn’t you serve the issued application, continuing record and blank Form 10 by special service, within six months. The server swears Form 6B.
5. Wait out the 30 or 60 days. In a joint divorce you skip steps 4 and 5.
6. Complete Form 36 and swear it before a commissioner; type Form 25A; address and stamp two envelopes.
7. File Form 36, Form 6B, the draft Form 25A, the marriage certificate if not already filed, and the envelopes. Pay $445 or file your waiver certificate.
8. The court waits for the Clearance Certificate, a judge reviews the file, and the final divorce order is mailed to both of you. Thirty-one days later the divorce takes effect and you can request Form 36B.

Court fees are set by regulation and checked against ontario.ca at the time of writing; the full cost picture, including what people pay for help, is on our page about the cost of divorce in Ontario.

Ten things that get court documents sent back

• Names that don’t match the marriage certificate, letter for letter.
• A handwritten Form 25A.
• The applicant serving the papers personally, or a Form 6B that doesn’t say how service was done.
• Filing Form 36 before the 30 or 60 days have run.
• A separation date less than a year before the judge’s review, with no explanation.
• Paragraph 11 of Form 36 left vague: no income figure, no table amount, or amounts that differ with no reasons.
• A child of the marriage left off Form 8A or Form 36, or a Form 13 missing when spousal support is claimed.
• An affidavit signed at home instead of in front of a commissioner.
• Blank spaces left open instead of struck through.
• A form downloaded years ago. The Ministry of the Attorney General publishes revisions (Form 8A and 36 changed in April 2024); use the current version.

Simple or joint divorce: what changes

A simple divorce is one spouse applying, with the other as respondent; a joint divorce is both of you applying together. The joint divorce uses the same documents with four differences. Both of you sign Form 8A and tick “Joint”; you file four copies instead of three. Each of you swears your own Form 36. There is no service, so no Form 6B and no 30-day wait, which means the two filing stages can collapse into one visit if you bring everything. And if you’re asking the court for agreed orders on spousal support, property division or parenting as well as the divorce, Form 35.1 and the Form 13 or 13.1 package come along. The cheapest way to get a divorce in Ontario is a joint application you file yourselves, and the court documents above are all it takes.

Do it yourself, or have the documents prepared?

The court’s checklist is written for self-represented applicants, and plenty of Ontarians file the four core documents without help. It’s a realistic plan when the marriage is clearly over, a year has passed or will have by the time a judge reviews the file, everything about money and children is settled, and you’re careful with paperwork.

Having the documents prepared makes sense when they keep coming back, when the other party lives abroad or can’t be located, when your marriage certificate is foreign, or when you’d rather hand the whole package to someone who does it every week. Our Naked Divorce Filer service prepares the uncontested divorce application for a flat fee, with one-on-one support from Sarah Bates, a Certified Divorce Specialist and family law clerk, and we help you file it. It isn’t a law firm and it isn’t the cheapest document service in Ontario; what you’re paying for is one accountable person who gets paragraph 11 right the first time. If you want a lawyer instead, see what uncontested divorce lawyer fees look like. And if money or parenting isn’t settled yet, none of these forms is your next step; mediation is.

Ontario divorce forms: FAQ

What forms are required for a divorce application in Ontario?

Form 8A to start, then Form 6B, Form 36 and a typed Form 25A to finish; a joint divorce skips Form 6B

You also file the continuing record and your original marriage certificate. Form 35.1 and a Form 13 or 13.1 financial statement are needed only if you ask the court for parenting, spousal support or property orders as well as the divorce.

What is Form 8A in an Ontario divorce?

The Application (Divorce): the six-page form that opens the case and asks the court for a divorce only

You complete the family history, relationship dates, children, any agreements, the claims frame and the facts supporting the divorce, then sign the applicant’s certificate. The clerk issues it with a court file number. Form 8, the general application, is used instead when other claims are in dispute.

What is Form 36, the Affidavit for Divorce?

Your sworn written evidence; the judge grants an uncontested divorce from it without a hearing

Its 13 paragraphs cover the marriage certificate, the separation date, no collusion, the property time limit, the children, the parenting arrangement, child support compared with the Guidelines table amount, costs and your spouse’s address. It’s sworn before a commissioner, free at any family court office.

Who can serve the divorce application and sign Form 6B?

Any adult other than you: a friend, relative or process server, who then swears Form 6B before a commissioner

The application must be served by special service, normally by handing it to your spouse, within six months of issue. Form 6B is your proof of service: when, how and by whom. There’s no service in a joint divorce.

Does Form 25A have to be typed?

Yes, the court’s checklist requires a typed draft divorce order; handwritten ones are rejected

You prepare three copies (four for a joint divorce) with both names, the place and date of marriage, and the 31-day effective date. The judge signs it and the court mails a copy to each spouse.

Do I need a Form 13 financial statement for a simple divorce?

No, a divorce-only application needs no financial statement

Form 13 is required when spousal support is claimed, Form 13.1 when property division or the matrimonial home is claimed, and neither when the only support claim is the Guidelines table amount for child support. The rule is printed on page one of Form 8A.

What is the $10 Registration of Divorce Proceeding fee for?

It registers your case with the federal Central Registry of Divorce Proceedings, which issues the Clearance Certificate

The court sends the registration electronically. The registry confirms no other divorce case exists between you anywhere in Canada, which takes four to six weeks. A judge can’t sign the order without the certificate.

Can the divorce forms be filed online in Ontario?

Yes, through Family Submissions Online, or the Ontario Courts Public Portal for Toronto cases

You upload the same documents as PDFs to the online portal, pay the fees online and receive the issued application by email. Form 36 still has to be sworn before a commissioner before you upload it.