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Author: Ilona Melnychuk, attorneyKey points
For many, a divorce certificate becomes a symbol of a completed stage and the start of a new life. But in practice a lot of confusion arises around it: some wait in vain for it after a court case, others confuse the certificate with an extract. This article explains in plain words who issues the certificate and when, what serves as the divorce document in each situation, how much it costs, and what to do if the document is lost.
A divorce certificate is an official document on a special form that confirms the fact of state registration of a divorce by the civil registry office (DRATSS). Its template is approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, and the document itself has its own serial number and registration data. The certificate states the surnames, first names and patronymics of the former spouses, the date and place of registration of the divorce, the number of the record entry, and also the surnames each spouse will bear after the divorce. So the certificate simultaneously records both the fact that the marriage has ended and which surname you will bear from now on.
The certificate has full legal force: it is accepted by banks, notaries, social protection authorities, and is also required for remarriage and in many other situations. It is issued on the basis of part 3 of article 115 of the Family Code of Ukraine, and the key word here is DRATSS. A certificate attests only to a divorce carried out by the civil registration authority. This is the starting point on which all the further logic depends: when the document will exist, and when another paper takes its place.
The certificate is issued by the civil registry office (DRATSS) on the day of state registration of the divorce, and this happens only in two cases of out-of-court divorce. The first is divorce on a joint application of spouses who have no shared minor children (article 106 of the Family Code). The spouses file a joint application, and after one month, if no one has withdrawn it, the registry office registers the divorce and issues each of the former spouses a separate certificate. We examine this route in detail in the material on divorce through the civil registry office (DRATSS) without a court.
The second case is divorce on the application of only one spouse (article 107). It is possible in exceptional situations: when the other spouse has been declared by a court to be missing or legally incapable. In such circumstances the registry office registers the divorce on the application of one spouse and also issues a certificate. In both cases the document is obtained directly at the registration authority, and the law deliberately gives a one-month period so that the decision is considered. The presence of shared minor children or of a dispute automatically transfers the case to court, where different rules on documents apply.
No, after a divorce in court a separate divorce certificate is not issued. This is the most common misunderstanding: people wait for weeks thinking that after the court judgment they must go to the registry office for a certificate, although the law does not provide for this. Under article 115 of the Family Code, a certificate attests only to a divorce processed through the registry office (DRATSS). When a court dissolves a marriage, it is precisely the court judgment that has taken legal effect that is the divorce document. The court itself sends a copy of the judgment to the registry office so that it enters the information into the State Register and marks the marriage record entry, so there is no need to run with papers between the court and the registry office.
What does this mean in practice? Your main document is a certified copy of the court judgment with a mark that it has taken legal effect. It is precisely this that you show to a notary, at a bank or during a remarriage. And if you are required to provide confirmation specifically from the register, you order not a certificate but an extract on the divorce. Read more about the court act itself in the article on the court judgment on divorce. It is also worth taking into account a historical nuance: before the reform that took effect around 2010-2011, court divorces were also registered at the registry office with a certificate. So if you have an old court judgment under those rules, the procedure may differ, and it is better to clarify the situation with a lawyer.
The main difference is that a certificate is issued once during the registration of the divorce at the registry office (DRATSS), while an extract is a reference from the State Register that can be obtained repeatedly and in fact an unlimited number of times. A certificate is printed on a secure form and attests to the act of registration itself. An extract is generated from the electronic register on an ordinary sheet; it reflects the current information about the divorce as of the date of issue and sometimes contains even more data than an old certificate.
For practice, the following is important. If you divorced through the registry office (DRATSS), your main document is the certificate, and an extract will be needed rather as additional confirmation. If you divorced through a court, you have no certificate at all, so the role of official confirmation from the register is played precisely by the extract together with the court judgment. Which document is needed when, how much an extract costs and how to order it, we explain in detail in a separate material on the extract on divorce.
The moment a marriage ends depends on the method of divorce and is directly defined by article 114 of the Family Code. If the marriage is dissolved by the registry office (DRATSS), it ends on the day of state registration of the divorce, that is, on the day you are issued the certificate. If the marriage is dissolved by a court, it ends on the day the court judgment takes legal effect, and not on the day you received a copy of the judgment or an extract. The date on the certificate and the date the judgment takes effect are the legal dates of your divorce.
This difference has a quite practical significance. The date the marriage ends determines from what moment property acquired by each spouse is no longer considered joint, when a new marriage can be entered into, and from what date important time limits are counted. Therefore the date on the certificate or the date the court judgment takes effect should be recorded and not confused with the date the application was filed or the date of the court hearing. If needed, the exact date can always be confirmed by an extract from the register.
For registering a divorce at the registry office (DRATSS) and issuing the certificate a state duty is paid, and the amounts here are symbolic. For a divorce on a joint application of spouses without children (article 106) the state duty is 0.5 of the tax-free minimum, that is, about UAH 8.50. For a divorce on the application of one spouse in the cases of article 107 the state duty is even smaller, about UAH 0.51. The certificate itself is not charged separately: it is issued within this registration procedure, without extra payment for the form.
As for time frames: as a general rule the registry office (DRATSS) registers the divorce and issues the certificate one month after the day the joint application is filed. The law sets aside this month deliberately, so that the decision is considered and the spouses have time to change their minds. On the day of registration the certificate is received in person. If the divorce goes through a court, the main costs are not the duty for the certificate but the court fee for the claim, which in 2026 is about UAH 1,331; when the claim is filed electronically, a discount applies as a general rule. Remember that after a court case you receive not a certificate but the judgment and, if needed, an extract.
If a divorce certificate is lost, damaged or destroyed, a repeat certificate is issued instead, which in everyday life is often called a duplicate. It has the same legal force as the original and contains a mark of repeat issuance. Each of those who dissolved this marriage has the right to obtain it. The administrative fee for a repeat certificate is small, about UAH 0.51, and the application is processed within about three working days.
A repeat certificate can be ordered in several ways: online through the Diia portal with delivery by Ukrposhta or courier, in person at any registry office (DRATSS) branch regardless of where the divorce was registered, or through a diplomatic mission or consulate of Ukraine if you are abroad. Please note: ordering documents online through Diia is a working service, and it should not be confused with the pilot online divorce in Diia, which as of 2026 is only being launched and is not available to everyone. If the divorce was through a court and you never had a certificate, there is nothing to restore: you need a repeat copy of the court judgment or an extract from the register.
Yes, issuance of a repeat certificate may be temporarily refused if the record entry on the divorce is absent from the State Register or cannot be found straight away. This most often happens with old divorces, when the entry was made in paper books before the electronic register was created. Then the registry office (DRATSS) first finds and enters the data from the archive, and only after that issues the document, so the process may take longer than the standard three working days. A refusal is also possible if the applicant has not confirmed their identity or right to the document, or if the record entry is kept in a temporarily occupied territory or in a combat zone.
If the record entry has been lost or destroyed permanently, for example together with the archive, it is restored. Restoration of the record entry on divorce is carried out on an application to the registry office (DRATSS), and in disputed cases through a court. This is a more complex and longer procedure, and it is precisely here that a lawyer’s help is most often useful, who will gather evidence and prepare documents for restoring the entry. So it is not worth delaying the restoration of the document: the earlier you start, the easier it usually is to find the necessary information.
The certificate states the surname that each spouse chose in connection with the divorce, and this is directly provided for by article 113 of the Family Code. The spouse who changed their surname during the marriage has the right, after the divorce, to keep it or to return to the pre-marriage one. This decision is recorded during the registration of the divorce at the registry office (DRATSS), and it goes into the certificate. We consider all the details, time frames and documents in the article on choosing a surname after a divorce.
If you return to your pre-marriage surname, after receiving the certificate you will have to replace your passport and other documents where the surname appears: the foreign passport, the driver’s license, bank cards and so on. The divorce certificate will be the basis for such a replacement. So do not rush to hide the document away: it will be needed not only as proof of divorce, but also for updating your personal data at various institutions.
For a Ukrainian divorce document to have effect abroad, it usually needs to be legalized, most often by affixing an apostille. An apostille confirms the authenticity of the document for countries party to the Hague Convention. On a divorce certificate the apostille is affixed by the justice authorities, and on a court divorce judgment by the Ministry of Justice. Often, together with the apostille, a notarized translation into the language of the destination country is also required. We describe this procedure step by step in the material on apostille of a court divorce judgment.
If you live outside Ukraine, the certificate, the extract and repeat documents can all be ordered through consular institutions, and some services through Diia. Situations where one spouse is abroad have their own particularities, so we advise familiarizing yourself in advance with how to divorce from abroad, in order to obtain the necessary documents without unnecessary trips and loss of time.
Nowhere: after a court divorce a certificate is not issued. Your document is the court judgment that has taken legal effect, and if you need confirmation from the register you order an extract on the divorce at the registry office (DRATSS) or through Diia.
The original certificate is issued at the registry office (DRATSS) during the registration of the divorce, so it cannot be obtained fully online. But a repeat certificate (a duplicate) can be ordered online through the Diia portal with delivery by post or courier.
The administrative fee for a repeat certificate is small, about UAH 0.51. Delivery may be paid for additionally if you order the document online with dispatch by post or courier.
A certificate is issued once during the registration of the divorce at the registry office (DRATSS) on a secure form. An extract is a reference from the State Register that can be ordered repeatedly and without limit; after a court divorce it is precisely the extract that plays the role of official confirmation from the register.
Yes, divorce documents issued earlier remain valid. If, however, the document is damaged, of an outdated template or is not accepted, you can order a repeat certificate or an extract with up-to-date data.
Nothing to worry about: each of the former spouses has the right to independently obtain their own repeat certificate at the registry office (DRATSS) or through Diia. There is no need to depend on the other person’s copy.
Yes, to register a new marriage you must confirm that the previous one has ended. If you divorced through the registry office (DRATSS), the confirmation is the certificate; if through a court, the court judgment that has taken legal effect or an extract from the register.
As a general rule the application is processed within about three working days. If, however, the record entry is kept in another region or the document is ordered from abroad, the time frame may be longer.
Ilona MelnychukAttorney, Lexon law firmSpecializes in family, civil and commercial cases. Over 15 years of practice: representing clients’ interests in courts and negotiations.Author: Ilona Melnychuk, attorney In Brief You can dissolve a marriage through the registry office (DRATS, the body for the state registration of civil status
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