Jurisdiction for Divorce

You can apply for a divorce in Australia even if your marriage did not take place here. However, being married in Australia alone is not enough to establish jurisdiction for an Australian divorce. For the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia to hear and grant your divorce application, at least one party must demonstrate a sufficient connection to Australia at the time the application is filed.

To establish jurisdiction, one of the following requirements under section 39 of the Family Law Act 1975 must be met. Either party to the marriage must:

1. Be an Australian citizen by birth or descent
2. Be an Australian citizen by grant of citizenship
3. Regard Australia as their home and intend to live in Australia indefinitely
4. Be ordinarily resident in Australia and have lived here for at least 12 months prior to filing the divorce application

The Court takes jurisdiction requirements seriously. If you’re relying on just one of the above grounds—particularly if neither party is an Australian citizen—you’ll need to provide detailed supporting information. If you’re filing a sole application and relying on the other party to meet the jurisdiction criteria, this can be challenging if they are uncooperative or if you cannot access the necessary documents.

At Prime Lawyers, we can guide you through the divorce process and help ensure your application includes all the required documents and information to meet the Court’s jurisdiction requirements.

We have offices in Sydney, Chatswood, Parramatta, Sutherland and Wollongong.