Fiji - Obtain a Divorce Decree

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Procedure

Step 1: Obtain an application for dissolution of marriage form

1. If you wish to apply for a divorce, use Application for Dissolution of Marriage Form (Form 1).
   
2. You can download Form 1 from the judicial department Website through this link:Form1 or ask for a copy from your nearest Court Registry.
   
3. To end your marriage, you must be separated for 12 months before you can formally apply for a divorce.
   
   

Step 2: Complete the application for dissolution of marriage and serve partner with notice of application-order of nullity

1. Once you have completed filling in Form 1, you must file at the Court Registry nearest to you or your partner.
   
2. If the application is made by one partner. The partner seeking dissolution of the marriage is to serve the other partner with a notice of application-order of nullity. The notice of application – order of nullity is the last page of form 1.
   
3. If the partner agrees to all that is included in the divorce papers, the couple then proceeds to the magistrate’s court for a decree.
   
4. However if the partner does not agree to what is written in the divorce papers, the case is taken to the supreme court and in this case a lawyer is required.
   
   

Step 3: File the application for dissolution

• Once you have completed filling in Form 1, you must file at the Court Registry nearest to you or your partner.
  
  

Step 4: Processing / Granting of conditional order

1. An order for dissolution of the marriage must be based on the ground that the marriage has broken down irretrievably. The dissolution of marriage will not be made if the court is satisfied that there is a reasonable likelihood of cohabitation being resumed.
   
2. The applicant for a divorce decree is required to prove that the grounds for divorce provided in his / her submitted divorce papers are true.
   
3. The order for dissolution of marriage will be considered if, and only if, the court is satisfied that the parties have separated and have thereafter lived separately and apart for a continuous period of not less than 12 months immediately preceding the date of the filing of the application for dissolution of marriage
   
4. If you have met all the requirements and if the Court is satisfied that proper arrangements have been made for the children less than 18 years, the Court will grant a Conditional Order. However, in some circumstances, the Court can also grant a Conditional Order even though the Court is not satisfied that proper arrangements have been made for the children.
   
5. If you dispute some of the facts or Law in the judgement for dissolution of marriage, you can lodge an appeal but you must do this before the Final Order is granted. You must file your appeal by filling out Form 26Form 26 Notice of Appeal and file it in the Court Registry which issued the Order you are appealing against.
   
   

Step 4: Wait for conditional order to become final

• The conditional order becomes final after 1 month and one day under the following conditions.
  

• On the day on which the order would have become final no appeal should have been instituted.
  
• A condition order does not become final by virtue of this section, if either of the parties to the marriage has died.
  

• A Final Order will be issued by the Court one month and one day after the date of your Conditional Order.
  
• You can re-marry after the Final Order is granted.
  

Step 5: Pick-up of final order/ Divorce decree

• You should arrange to pick up your Final Order from the Court Registry and keep it in a safe place.

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Required Documents

• Proof of marriage
  
• Proof / evidence of existence of stated grounds for divorce for instance police reports, doctors reports or any other proof
  

1. For instance, in cases of cruelty or violence, the applicant must present evidence like police report (if at any time partner was violent and case was reported to police),
   
2. Doctors report (in cases where the partner was violated and went for medical examination) or a witness (present at any one time when a person was violated by partner) may be brought to court to support case,
   
3. In cases of insanity, a doctor’s report may also be required and any other proof may be presented to support case

Office Locations & Contacts

Judicial Department of Fiji Government Buildings Suva, Fiji
Phone: (679) 3211 362
Fax: (679) 3300 674
Website: http://www.judiciary.gov.fj/

Registrar General
Office of the Registrar General / Office of the Attorney General
Crown Law Office
P.O Box 2213, Suva, Fiji
Telephone: (011) 679-211-598
Addresses of different courts can be obtained fromLocations

Eligibility

• Any legal married persons can apply for divorce and must have reasonable grounds for applying for divorce.
  
• To end your marriage, you must be separated for 12 months before you can formally apply for a divorce. The Court does not consider whose fault it was that ended your relationship.
  
• An order for dissolution of marriage will not be made, if the court is satisfied that there is a reasonable likelihood of cohabitation being resumed.
  
• An order for dissolution of the marriage must be based on the ground that the marriage has broken down irretrievably.

Fees

SCHEDULE OF FEES MAGISTRATES COURT FEE(S) [VIP]

• Application for Dissolution of Marriage FJ$57.50
• Responses to Form 1 FJ$57.50
• Application for Final Orders FJ $57.50
• Appeal from Magistrates Court to High Court FJ$115
• Sealing Orders by Registry FJ$7.50
• Affidavit  No Fee

SCHEDULE OF FEES HIGH COURT [inclusive of VAT]

• Application for Dissolution of Marriage FJ$115.00
• Responses to Form 1 FJ$115.00
• Application for Final Orders FJ$115.00
• Application for Dissolution of Marriage FJ$115.00
• Appeal from High Court to Fiji Court of Appeal FJ$230.00
• Sealing orders by Registry FJ$14.95
• Affidavit of service form No Fee

Validity

• The validity of the divorce decree is forever as long as both parties are alive.
  
• The divorce decree can lose its validity if the divorced parties decide to get married.

Documents to Use

Application for Dissolution of Marriage (Divorce) :Application

Sample Documents

Please attach sample completed documents that would help other people

Processing Time

The processing time will take between two (2) to four (4) months.

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications. 
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Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
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sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

• Divorce decree is applied for by only the parties in married this is either husband or wife;
  
• Before applying for divorce, ensure that the reasons you have are strong enough;
  
• Divorce should always be considered as the last option;
  
• Endeavor to get to know the effects of divorce on all parties in a family this is husband, wife and children if any;
  
• It is advisable that couples who wish to divorce seek legal advice and counseling before making a final decision;
  
• A person applying for divorce is advised not to use children (if any) as weapons against the other partner;
  
• To obtain a divorce decree, applicants are advised to always follow procedures applicable to their type of marriage (Customary, religious or civil marriage);
  
• No matter which procedures are adopted, the district registrar should always be notified about any divorce occurrence;
  
• Partners may decide to stay together or stay separate, if application for divorce is submitted;
  
• Applicants with cases of adultery, dissertation or cruelty must present evidence or get a witness to support them;
  
• Applicants must be separated for at least twelve (12) months prior to formerly applying for divorce.

Required Information

• Name and address of applicant
  
• Name and address of partner
  
• Period of marriage
  
• Reason for applying for divorce
  
• Type of marriage to be dissolved
  
• Details of children if any

Need for the Document

• Divorce is a legal ending of any legal marriage. A divorce decree is that final order given by a court to complete divorce proceedings and it is usually signed by a judge. Like in any other country, in Fiji a divorce decree is obtained from court.

Information which might help

• If any of the partners is not satisfied with any decisions made by court, he / she can file an appeal I court and in any case the appeal must be filed before the final order (Divorce Decree Absolute) is issued in the court registry that issued the Divorce Decree Nisi. The appeal is always filled by obtaining and filling Form 26. Notice of appealForm

other uses of the Document/Certificate

• The divorce decree is needed when applying for a name change
  
• The divorce decree is needed when applying for a passport , visa or work permit
  
• The divorce decree finalizes divorce proceedings;
  
• It saves a person any cruel or violet treatment that has been in a marriage;
• It makes the divorce official;
  
• It is proof that two people are no longer married;
  
• A person can re-marry legally once the divorce decree is obtained

External Links

• Judicial Department :Judicial dept

• Dissolution of Marriage :Marriage

• Family court registry filing fees :Fees

Others

Grounds for Divorce:
The following can be considered as grounds for divorce:

• Annulments: Although it is not as common as it once was, a marriage annulment states that a marriage never existed. Whereas divorce is the end of a marriage, an annulment decrees that, for various reasons, the union was not a legal marriage due to a defect in the legal marital contract.
• The Reason for the Divorce: Grounds are the legal reasons for requesting a divorce. When one spouse initiates a divorce by filing a complaint or petition, he or she must state the reason for the divorce. The reason or reasons are the grounds, and the parties -- the spouses -- present that reason to the court.
  
• Fault versus No-fault Grounds: California took the lead in 1970 with the first modern no-fault divorce law, and within the decade almost every state followed suit. Today every state offers no-fault as an option. However, 33 states still have fault grounds for divorce.
  
• Liberalization of Divorce: Liberalization of divorce did not make it less painful to get a divorce. Emotionally for most people divorce is a wrenching experience, one right up there with the death of a spouse or a serious illness or accident in terms of pain and suffering.
  
• Adultery and Divorce: Adultery is one of the oldest grounds for divorce because adultery was considered the worst possible violation of marriage vows and proof of a marital breakdown.
  
• Cruelty and Divorce: Another popular fault ground was cruelty, both mental and physical. Often the cruelty was mental, which is a catchall term that often meant that one spouse verbally and psychologically abused the other.
  
• Abandonment and Desertion in Divorce: When one spouse just up and leaves the marriage, the other may have a fault ground for divorce, abandonment, which is also known as desertion, a term with very unfavourable connotation.
  
• Imprisonment and Divorce: Confinement in prison is fault grounds for divorce, but the particulars of the imprisonment can matter.
  
• Alcoholism and Drugs in Divorce: Habitual drunkenness is a fault ground in some jurisdictions, and usually a defendant must be a habitual drunk for a period of one year.
  
• Insanity and Divorce: Insanity is a fault ground for divorce. Most states with fault grounds consider incurable insanity to be adequate fault for a divorce.
  
• Fault Grounds Reconsidered: All fault grounds are ways the legal system through its courts comes to terms with a failed marriage, and this means that the law must reach inside a very intimate human relationship.
  
• Historic Defences to Divorce: Under traditional fault grounds, one spouse could defeat the claims of fault by the other spouse by raising certain defences.
  
• No-fault DivorceRC: No-fault means that no one is alleging that anyone has done anything wrong in the marriage, but rather that the couple desire to terminate their marriage.