How Much Does a Divorce Cost in the UK?

Did you know 99% of divorce cases in England and Wales are uncontested, according to Co-op legal services.

• If you are the one seeking the divorce then you are the petitioner and will pay £450 to £950 in solicitor’s fees and £550 in a divorce centre fee – making a total of £1,000 to £1,500.

• If you are the other spouse then you’re the respondent. You will not need to pay a divorce centre fee and your solicitor’s fees should be lower. Making your total £240 to £600

Whether you do it yourself and apply for divorce by downloading the forms online, or you instruct the help of a solicitor, that £550 fee can’t be avoided and needs to be paid by the petitioner. That is unless you are eligible for financial help because you are on a low income or receive benefits.

The average cost of a divorce in the UK is £14,561.

Although, if there’s property involved then the costs significantly increase. If a couple needs to move house as a result of the divorce, then a report by Aviva reveals an average spend of around £35,000 on rent and if either party needs to buy a new property, then it’s an average of £144,600 on a new house.

Some of the divorce costs can be typically broken down as follows:

Legal fees

If you hire family solicitors to handle your divorce, both parties can expect to pay thousands of pounds in legal fees. How much you pay in legal fees will depend on the complexity of your divorce; for example, if you choose to organise your childcare arrangements and your marital finances through your respective solicitor, expect a hefty bill at the end.

Solicitors charge anywhere from £200-£500 per hour billed, although some solicitors also offer fixed-price services. Fixed price services are mostly reserved for managing simple divorce documents (such as helping you write your divorce petition or drawing up an already-established financial settlement).

However, hiring solicitors before you’ve established agreements on your post-spousal life can cost thousands.

Court fees

There are a number of various court fees that you’ll be obliged to pay if your divorce procedure goes to court. In England and Wales, you’ll typically be expected to contribute a fee of £593 to cover the administrative costs of your divorce and your divorce application.

You might also face additional court fees, for example, if you cannot reach a financial settlement or childcare agreement with your former spouse. You may also be obliged to pay the following fees where necessary:

• £593 court fee paid by the divorce applicant (previously known as the petitioner)

• £275 to apply for a Financial Order (by means other than consent)

• £53 to apply for a Financial Order (with consent)

Child maintenance costs

Often when a couple divorce there are children involved, so living arrangements and child maintenance costs need to be sorted.

If you can’t agree how much child maintenance one parent should pay the other, you can ask the Child Maintenance Service to calculate it for you.

There are several factors that it will take into account:

• How many children you have

• The income of the paying parent

• How much time they spend with the paying parent Whether the paying parent is paying child maintenance for other children

The financial settlement

A financial settlement adds to the above costs. A simple agreement where nothing is too complicated or contested will cost around £300 plus VAT, as this involves a solicitor drafting a Financial Remedy Consent Order and the court charging £50.

Where there are more complicated assets then this fee rises to around £1,500. If, however, you need to discuss your assets and the settlement at mediation, then costs will be around £100 an hour for mediation and you'd be looking at at least three to four mediation sessions.

How can you reduce divorce costs?

There are three main ways you can reduce the cost of your divorce: either by claiming government assistance, hiring a mediator, or opting for divorce online.

Get government help

If you earn less than £1,170 before tax as a single person or £1,345 with a partner, you may not be required to pay the £593 divorce fee.

You may also be eligible for help with fees if you’re on one or more benefits, including Job Seeker’s Allowance, Universal Credit, Income Support, and Pension Credit. In order to qualify for government help, your savings must not exceed £3,000 (for those under 61), and must not exceed £16,000 (for those over 61).

Hire a mediator

Many couples use the 20-week reflection period to hire a mediator and organise their post-spousal life in a calm, controlled environment. With a mediator, you can sit down and organise your finances, child agreements, and any other settlements that might take time to agree on.

A mediator is much cheaper than hiring solicitors, although the mediator method might not be suitable for all couples; if your divorce is highly acrimonious, or if domestic abuse occurred throughout the marriage, a mediator might be unable to take on your case.

It’s worth bearing in mind that, like the courts, this route means a decision is made for you. You can find a qualified arbitrator listed on the Institute of Family Law Arbitrators website, however costs very case to case and by the level of experience the arbitrator has.

Most will also charge by the hour, but a fixed fee can be arranged for more simple cases.

Costs range from £220 per hour and, according to one solicitor on a Mumsnet forum, costs on average £3,000 - £3,500 shared between the couple.

Opt for divorce online

One of the easiest ways to get your divorce finalised as soon as possible is by choosing to carry out your divorce online. While there’s no such thing as a free divorce, an online divorce service will keep your costs to an absolute minimum, replacing the need for solicitors, mediators, and court appearances.

You won’t need to go anywhere in person; all you need to do is upload the right documents and the divorce company will take care of the rest for you.