What to do today
1. Work out your deadline.
- Married: find your divorce certificate. It shows the date the divorce order took effect (usually 1 month after the order was made, Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) s 55). Your deadline is 12 months after that date (s 44(3)). If you are separated but not yet divorced, no property time limit is running yet.
- De facto: take the date you finally separated and add 2 years (s 44(5)(a)(i)). In Western Australia the same 2 years applies under the Family Court Act 1997 (WA) s 205ZB(1)(a)(i).
2. If you agree on a split, file for consent orders before the deadline. The Application for consent orders costs $215 (from 1 July 2026) and is usually decided on the papers without a hearing. The court still has to be satisfied the orders are just and equitable (s 79(2)).
3. If you do not agree, start the pre-action steps now. Before filing a contested financial case in the Federal Circuit and Family Court, the court's Family Law Rules require you to try dispute resolution (such as Family Dispute Resolution or mediation), write to the other party setting out your claim, and exchange financial documents. You then file a Genuine Steps Certificate with your Initiating Application ($455 for final orders only, from 1 July 2026). Exemptions include family violence or a risk of it, urgency, where you would be unduly prejudiced by complying, and where a family law application was filed in the last 12 months. If your deadline is close, get legal advice straight away.
4. Call the Family Relationship Advice Line on 1800 050 321 (free, Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm and Saturday 10am to 4pm local time, closed Sundays and national public holidays). It can refer you to Family Relationship Centres, Legal Aid and other services.
This is legal information about property settlement time limits in Australia, not personal legal advice.
Married couples: 12 months after the divorce takes effect
Section 44(3) says property proceedings cannot be started more than 12 months after the divorce order took effect, except with the court's leave or with the consent of both parties.
The clock runs from the divorce, not from separation. You can apply for property orders at any time after you separate, before or after you apply for divorce. You can apply for divorce once you have been separated for 12 months (s 48), and many people finalise property before the divorce goes through so the deadline never becomes an issue.
Example: a divorce order made on 20 January 2027 takes effect about a month later. If the certificate says it took effect on 21 February 2027, the deadline to start property proceedings without consent or leave is 21 February 2028.
In Western Australia, married couples' property cases are also under the Family Law Act, but they are filed in the Family Court of Western Australia.
De facto couples: 2 years after the relationship ends
Outside WA, a de facto partner must apply within 2 years after the end of the relationship (s 44(5)(a)(i)). The court can also only make property orders if the relationship lasted at least 2 years in total, or there is a child of the relationship, or you made substantial contributions and refusing orders would cause serious injustice, or the relationship was registered under a state or territory law (s 90SB).
The 2 years starts on the date of final separation. That date can be disputed, especially if you kept living under the same roof, so keep records of when the relationship ended.
In WA, de facto property is governed by Part 5A of the Family Court Act 1997 (WA). Section 205ZB gives the same 2-year period, the same consent route, and the same hardship test for leave (s 205ZB(2)).
If the deadline has passed
There are two ways to start late.
Consent. If your former partner agrees, proceedings can be started out of time with the consent of both parties (s 44(3) for married couples, s 44(5)(b) for de facto, s 205ZB(1)(b) in WA). Consent is not bulletproof: the court can dismiss the case if it is satisfied the consent was obtained by fraud, duress or unconscionable conduct and continuing would be a miscarriage of justice (s 44(3AA), s 44(5A), s 205ZB(1A) in WA).
Leave of the court. You ask the court for permission by filing an application with an affidavit explaining why. For married couples the court must not grant leave unless it is satisfied hardship would be caused to a party or a child if leave were refused (s 44(4)). For de facto couples the court may grant leave if it is satisfied of that hardship (s 44(6); s 205ZB(2) in WA). Even if hardship is shown, leave is not automatic. The longer the delay and the weaker your reasons, the harder it is.
If a binding financial agreement is later set aside or found invalid, the Act gives a fresh 12-month window from that date (s 44(3B) for married couples, s 44(5)(a)(ii) for de facto).
The 2024 property law changes
Changes to how courts divide property under s 79, made by the Family Law Amendment Act 2024, apply from 10 June 2025. They include taking into account the effect of family violence on a party's contributions (s 79(4)(ca)) and on their current and future circumstances (s 79(5)(a)). The time limits above are those in the current Act.
When people commonly use a lawyer
People commonly bring in a family lawyer when the deadline is close or has passed and they need consent or leave, when there is family violence, when one side is not disclosing their finances, or when the asset pool includes a business, trust, investment properties or large superannuation balances. Others use a lawyer only to check or draft consent orders they have already agreed on.
Useful things to bring to a first meeting: your divorce certificate or separation date, a list of assets, debts and superannuation with recent statements, your last three tax returns, and any letters or offers exchanged with your former partner.
If you are looking for a family lawyer, see family lawyers across Australia: the firms we picked and every firm Google lists.
Where to get help
- Family Relationship Advice Line: 1800 050 321. familyrelationships.gov.au
- Federal Circuit and Family Court: Financial or property: We cannot agree (time limits, pre-action procedures, leave) and fees.
- Family Court of Western Australia (all WA family law cases): familycourt.wa.gov.au
- Legal Aid in your state or territory, and community legal centres, can give free advice if you are eligible.