Form A and the financial remedy application

General information for people handling their own family law case in England & Wales — not legal advice. Rules and forms change; check current versions on GOV.UK and consider getting advice for your specific situation.

If you are divorcing (or dissolving a civil partnership) and need the court to divide your money, property and pensions, the formal start of that process is Form A. It is the application that launches financial remedy proceedings and secures a court order you will almost certainly need — even when you and your ex are negotiating perfectly well.

What Form A is

Form A is the standard application notice for a financial remedy under the Family Procedure Rules (Part 9). It asks the court to make one or more of the available orders — sharing the home and other capital, spousal maintenance (periodical payments), a pension sharing or attachment order, and a settlement or transfer of property. It is a short form: it identifies the parties, states which orders you are applying for, and is signed with a statement of truth. You start it yourself as the applicant, or the other side can start it against you.

When and why to issue it

You issue Form A once a divorce petition (or dissolution application) has been issued, and normally after the decree nisi / conditional order. You can start financial proceedings before the divorce finalises, but the financial order itself cannot be made until the divorce is granted.

Issue it even if settlement discussions are going well. Here is the central point: a court order is needed to finalise any financial agreement. A signed agreement made purely between the two of you is not automatically enforceable and does not stop either side making a later claim. Filing Form A:

Protects against the limitation trap — if divorce financial claims are never made, they can be lost or become much harder to run later (particularly pension claims).
Puts an order within reach — you cannot get a consent order (below) without proceedings in progress, so Form A provides the vehicle for sealing a deal you have agreed.
Triggered by the other side's involvement — if you delay, your ex can issue Form A against you.

Fees

The court fee to issue Form A is a fixed application fee (currently £277) — the same whether you are applying for one order or several. Fee remission (help with fees) is available if you meet the qualifying income and capital thresholds; check the current GOV.UK calculator, because the limit and process change. There is no court fee to seal a consent order once proceedings are underway, but a solicitor will typically charge for drafting one.

What triggering it does

Issuing Form A (paying the fee and filing it with the court) officially opens financial remedy proceedings and allocates you to a track. The court sends a copy to your ex, who becomes the respondent. From this point the rules dictate the sequence, and the clock starts on the steps below — you no longer control the pace entirely, which is why many couples still try to reach agreement before issuing if they are close.

Timelines after issue

The first milestones are fixed by the court's directions (form FL403 and the notice of first appointment):

The court issues and serves the application on the respondent.
Both parties must file and exchange Form E (the detailed financial statement) — normally 35 days before the first appointment.
The automatic directions require disclosure via Form E and key documents ahead of the deadline (see the separate Form E guide).
The First Appointment (FDA) is listed, usually around 12–16 weeks after issue, a direction hearing to identify issues, direct further disclosure, and set a timetable.
Unless a consent order is approved at the FDA, the case runs on to a Financial Dispute Resolution (FDR) hearing and, if unresolved, a final hearing.

Interaction with consent orders

If you reach agreement at any stage, you ask the court to approve it by way of a consent order (Form D81-style draft, increasingly filed via the e-filing service). Form A does not have to go all the way to a final hearing — issuing it creates the court file that lets a consent order be made. Both sides sign the agreed draft (plus a D81 and statements of information for a disputed needs case), and the judge scrutinises it to ensure it is fair and properly informed before sealing it. Once sealed, the consent order is the enforceable court order you were ultimately after.

Last reviewed: August 2026. Check the current Form A fee and the latest Family Procedure Rules, Part 9 on GOV.UK / justice.gov.uk before filing.