The £62 consent order application — clean break and financial consent orders explained

REVIEWED BY: Sean McNamara on 2026-08-30

When you and your ex agree how to divide money and property after divorce or dissolution, you ask the court to make that agreement binding with a consent order — and the application fee is just £62 (from 13 July 2026). Compared with a contested financial remedy case (£321 just to start, then weeks of hearings), consent is by far the cheapest and fastest route. This guide explains the process. It is general information, not legal advice.

What a consent order does

A consent order turns your agreed settlement into a court order with the same force as any judge's decision:

Property transfers (home, buy-to-lets, cars, valuables) with specified timescales
Lump sum payments
Pension sharing or pension attachment
Maintenance (periodical payments) — or the mutual agreement to have none
A "clean break" clause — dismissing both parties' future financial claims against each other, which most agreements include

Without a consent order, financial claims remain open indefinitely after divorce — either of you could bring a claim years later, after an inheritance, a lottery win, or a property value surge. Many people wrongly believe divorce alone settles finances. It doesn't.

What you file

1. The draft consent order — the agreed terms, drafted in the required form (a solicitor usually drafts it; fixed-fee drafting services exist) 2. Form D81 — the statement of information (current version 04.25) summarising both parties' finances so the judge can check fairness 3. Form A — notice of intention to proceed with a financial application (unless already filed) 4. The £62 fee, or a Help with Fees (EX160) reference

You can apply before your conditional order; the order is normally sealed after it, so the timing often slots in during the divorce's statutory waiting periods.

The fairness check

The judge isn't rubber-stamping: the court reviews the D81 figures and the proposed division against the statutory criteria (needs, contributions, the welfare of any children). In practice:

Agreements broadly within the range a judge would order pass without question
Agreements that leave one party in clear hardship — or that don't provide for children's housing — may attract judicial questions or, rarely, a short hearing
A clean break with children still minor is scrutinised more closely — the court wants to see children's needs are genuinely met

What happens after sealing

The order is binding; transfers and payments must be implemented per its terms
Pension sharing needs the order plus a pension sharing annex sent to each pension provider
Property transfers go to the Land Registry with the certified order
If the other side then doesn't comply, enforcement is available (see our enforcement guide)

When consent isn't possible

If you can't agree everything, options short of contested litigation:

Mediation — with the £500 voucher for child-related disputes; legally aided if eligible
Collaborative law — four-way meetings with both solicitors
Private FDR — an early neutral evaluation by a retired judge or barrister
Arbitration — a binding private determination (Ilanacurie scheme for family finance)
Part-heard concessions — courts encourage agreement even mid-litigation; most cases settle at or before FDR

If genuinely nothing is agreed, the contested route (Form A → disclosure via Form E → FDR → final hearing) applies, and the fee picture changes entirely.

Common mistakes

Settling without a clean break clause — leaving future claims open
Ignoring pensions — the single most commonly mishandled asset
Waiting too long — there is no deadline, but remarrying before applying for a financial order can extinguish some claims (get advice before remarriage if finances aren't sealed)
DIY drafting errors — imprecise transfer dates, missing annexes, unfilled undertakings; these cause delay and cost more to fix than a professional draft

Official links

YourFamilyCase.co.uk is an independent information directory — we are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to HMCTS or gov.uk. This page is general information and is not legal advice. Consent order drafting is precise work — a fixed-fee solicitor draft is usually money well spent.

Content verified against the official HMCTS court directory, gov.uk forms and fees pages, and the professional body registers (SRA, FMC, Bar Council). Last reviewed September 2026.