Form D81 is one of the most important documents in any consent order application. It is a statement of information that tells the court about the financial position of both parties and helps the judge decide whether the proposed order is fair and should be approved.
If you have reached a financial agreement with your former spouse and want the court to make it legally binding, you will need to file a D81 alongside your draft consent order. Without it, the court cannot approve the order.
This guide explains what D81 is, what it asks for and the most common mistakes people make when completing it.
Form D81 is the statement of information for a consent order. Its formal name is the Statement of Information for a Consent Order in Relation to a Financial Remedy.
The form has one job: to give the judge the information they need to decide whether the proposed financial settlement is fair. Even though both of you have agreed, the court still has a duty to scrutinise the order. A consent order is only legally binding once the court has approved it.
D81 sits alongside the draft consent order (which sets out the actual terms) and gives the court the financial context. Without that context, the judge cannot tell whether the agreement is reasonable.
You will need a D81 in any application for a financial remedy consent order. That includes:
You do not need a D81 if you are still in contested financial remedy proceedings. In that situation, financial disclosure is provided through Form E. D81 is specifically for cases where both parties have reached agreement and want the court to approve it.
The form is divided into sections covering both parties. Each of you must provide your own information about:
Property, savings, investments, businesses, vehicles, valuables and any other capital assets. The form asks for both current values and any debts secured against them.
The cash equivalent value of each pension, including state pension entitlement. Both parties must list every pension they hold.
Gross and net income from all sources, including employment, self-employment, investment income, state benefits and child maintenance.
All outstanding debts including mortgages, credit cards, loans and any other financial commitments.
Where you intend to live, what your future housing needs will be and how you propose to fund any housing.
The form includes a section for anything else that might affect the court's decision, such as ill health, care responsibilities or expected inheritance.
The figures in a D81 need to be accurate but they do not need to be itemised to the level of a Form E. You are giving the court a summary of your financial position, not full disclosure documents.
That said, accuracy matters. The court relies on the D81 to assess fairness. If figures are misleading or significantly out of date, the court can refuse to approve the order. In serious cases of misrepresentation, a consent order can later be set aside.
If you are unsure about a value, give your best estimate and note the basis. For example: "Property valued at £450,000 based on Zoopla estimate August 2025."
There are two ways to submit D81 information:
A joint D81 is more common where the parties are cooperating and the figures are agreed. Separate D81s are used where there is disagreement about specific figures or where one party prefers to keep some information confidential.
Either approach is acceptable to the court. The judge will look at the same information either way.
The figures in your D81 should be consistent with anything you have previously told the court, particularly if there was a Form E earlier in proceedings. Inconsistencies often trigger questions from the judge.
Pensions are one of the most overlooked assets in consent order applications. Every pension must be listed, including small dormant pensions from former employers and state pension entitlement.
The court wants to know that both parties will have somewhere reasonable to live after the order. Vague answers can lead to the order being queried.
If one party is taking on the bulk of the debts as part of the settlement, the court needs to see that reflected. Failing to list significant debts can make the order look unbalanced.
Form D81 includes a statement of truth. Both parties must sign. The court will reject the application if signatures are missing.
You submit the D81 alongside the draft consent order and the court fee. The court will then consider both documents. There are three possible outcomes:
Most consent orders are approved without difficulty if the D81 is complete and the order appears reasonable. Problems usually arise when figures are missing, the housing position is unclear or one party appears to be giving up significantly more than the other without explanation.
Many people complete D81 themselves, particularly where the financial position is straightforward and the agreement is genuinely mutual. Where the figures are more complex, or where pensions, business assets or significant property are involved, taking advice before filing can prevent the order being rejected.
A direct access barrister can review a draft D81 and the proposed consent order, identify anything that might cause the court to query the application and suggest amendments before filing. This is usually significantly cheaper than fixing problems after the application has been rejected.
If anything in this guide matches your situation, we can match you with a specialist barrister who handles cases like yours every week. The initial enquiry is free and you receive a clear fixed-fee quote before any work begins. Tell us about your case and we will be in touch the same working day.