Form E Divorce Explained: How to Complete Your Financial Disclosure

By Jess 30th June 2026 in Financial Settlements

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If you have reached the point in your divorce where Form E has been mentioned, the Form E divorce form in front of you can look daunting: nearly thirty pages of questions about every part of your financial life. Every account, every pension and every asset has to be listed and evidenced, and getting it wrong can hold up your case or, worse, lead to a settlement that does not reflect what is fair.

The good news is that Form E is far more manageable once you understand what it is asking for and why. This guide explains what goes in each section, the documents you will need to gather, the deadlines that apply, and how to get help if you would rather not face it alone. Form E is one important step in the bigger picture, so we will also show where it fits in the wider process. At Family Law Service we help people complete their financial disclosure every week, so we know exactly where it tends to trip people up.

Form E Divorce Explained: What the Form Is

Form E is the standard financial statement set out in the Family Procedure Rules. It is used in financial remedy proceedings, the part of a divorce that deals with money and property under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973. The aim is simple: to give both people, and the court, a complete and honest picture of the finances available, so that a sensible decision can be made.

Each person completes their own Form E. You both set out your income, your assets, your debts and what you will need going forward, then you swap the completed forms so each of you can see the full position. There are two shorter versions, Form E1 and Form E2, used for some other financial applications, but a standard divorce uses Form E. Because it is the foundation of every figure that follows, accurate financial disclosure in divorce matters more than almost anything else you will do in your case.

When Do You Actually Need Form E?

This is the question that catches most people out, so it is worth being clear. A full Form E is not part of every divorce. You only need to complete one when your finances are being decided by the court.

If you and your former partner can agree how to divide everything, often after mediation or solicitor negotiation, you do not complete a full Form E at all. Instead, you summarise your finances on a shorter form called Form D81 and apply for a consent order to make the agreement legally binding. If you cannot agree and one of you applies to the court for a financial order using Form A, the court will then order both of you to complete and exchange Form E.

In other words, Form E is the disclosure document for the court route. Mediation and negotiation use lighter disclosure built from the same underlying information, which is one reason so many couples reach a settlement without ever completing the full form. If you would like to try sorting things out away from court first, our sister company Mediate UK can help.

What Goes in Each Section of Form E

Form E is divided into five sections. At first glance it can feel like a lot, but each section is asking a clear question. Here is what each one covers.

Section 1: General information

Your personal details, information about the marriage or civil partnership, the children, and your health. It also asks for an early summary of your contributions and any existing child maintenance arrangements or other court cases between you.

Section 2: Financial details

This is the largest part and the heart of your financial disclosure. You list everything you own and owe, including:

• Property: the family home and any other property, with mortgage details and your share of the equity
• Bank and savings accounts: every current account, savings account and National Savings holding
• Investments: shares, ISAs, bonds and similar
• Life insurance: any policy with a surrender value
• Cash and money owed to you: larger cash sums and anything others owe you
• Personal belongings: single items worth more than £500, such as a car, jewellery or art
• Liabilities: loans, credit cards and overdrafts
• Business interests and directorships: any business you own or have a stake in
• Pensions: the cash equivalent (CE or CETV) value of every pension, taken from each provider
• Income: from employment, self-employment, investments, benefits and any other source

Section 3: Financial requirements

Your income needs and capital needs going forward, for yourself and any children. Take real care here. People often understate what they will actually need to live on, and this section helps the court understand your future position, not just your past.

Section 4: Other information

Significant changes to your assets or income in the last 12 months and any expected in the next 12, the standard of living during the marriage, the contributions each of you made, and, only in exceptional cases, conduct.

Section 5: Order sought

The orders you are asking the court to make, for example a pension sharing order, a lump sum, a transfer of property or maintenance.

A useful rule to remember: you disclose assets held in your sole name, in joint names, and broadly anything you have an interest in. If you are unsure whether something belongs on the form, the safe answer is almost always to include it.

Your Form E Divorce Document Checklist

Form E is not just figures, it has to be backed up with evidence. Gathering the documents usually takes longer than filling in the form itself, so it helps to start early. Here is what you will typically need:

• Property valuation: dated within the last six months for the family home and any other property
• Mortgage statement: the most recent statement for each mortgage
• Bank statements: the last 12 months for every account in your sole name or held jointly
• Investment statements: the most recent statement for each investment, ISA or bond
• Surrender value: a current surrender valuation for any life insurance policy that has one
• Business accounts: the last two years of accounts, plus anything that supports your view of the value
• Pension valuations: a cash equivalent (CE or CETV) figure for every pension, requested from each provider and ideally less than 12 months old
• Income evidence: your P60, last three payslips and last P11D if you are employed, or your last two years of tax returns and accounts if you are self-employed

The 35-Day Rule and What Happens Next

Once you are on the court route, Form E sits inside a clear timetable. Here is how it usually runs:

• Step 1: Form A is filed and the court sets a date for the First Appointment, sometimes called the First Directions Appointment.
• Step 2: You both complete your Form E and exchange it at the same time, at least 35 days before that hearing. This is the 35-day rule, and the simultaneous exchange means neither of you sees the other’s figures first.
• Step 3: After exchange, each of you can send a questionnaire asking for missing information or clarifying anything that is unclear.
• Step 4: You each prepare a short set of documents for the hearing, including a chronology, a statement of the issues and your questionnaire.

Your duty to give honest, up to date disclosure continues until the final financial order is made, so if your circumstances change along the way, you must say so. If you have a hearing coming up and feel out of your depth, we can prepare a financial position statement and court prep package so you walk in knowing what to expect.

Full and Frank Financial Disclosure: Why Honesty Matters

Form E ends with a statement of truth. By signing it, you are confirming that you have given full and frank financial disclosure. This is not a box to tick lightly. Signing a statement of truth that you know to be false can amount to contempt of court.

If the court believes someone has hidden assets or income, it can draw what are called adverse inferences. In plain terms, it can assume there is more than the person has declared, and treat them as if they had it. The court can also make a costs order against someone who has not been open. Most seriously of all, a financial order can be set aside years later if it turns out that disclosure was not honest. In Sharland v Sharland [2015] UKSC 60 and Gohil v Gohil [2015] UKSC 61, the Supreme Court reopened settlements because one spouse had not been truthful about their finances.

There is a reassuring side to this too. Full disclosure protects you. An honest, well evidenced Form E is far harder to challenge, tends to reduce arguments and usually speeds the whole process up. Being open is not just the right thing to do, it is also the smart thing to do.

DIY vs Legal Help: Which Route Is Right for You?

There is no single right way to complete Form E. The best choice depends on how complex your finances are, how confident you feel, and your budget. Broadly, there are three routes.

Doing it yourself is the cheapest option and suits straightforward cases with few assets, where you are organised and happy to work through the form carefully. The risk is that Form E is long and technical, and a single mistake on a pension or a missed asset can cost far more than any fee you saved.

Fixed-fee completion support is the middle ground, and it is where Family Law Service sits. A trained professional helps you complete Form E correctly for a fixed fee, and you can add a session of solicitor-led legal advice on the finances if you want a steer on what is fair. You stay in control of your case without paying full solicitor rates.

Full solicitor representation is the most thorough and the most expensive. A solicitor-completed Form E alone often costs between £1,000 and £3,000, before the rest of your case is even considered. For complex, high-value or high-conflict situations, that level of support can be money well spent.

We compare these options in more detail in our guide to doing your divorce yourself versus getting legal help. And if your real question is “what am I actually entitled to”, our AI Barrister Review gives you a clear, written report based on real case law, so you go into your disclosure with a sense of where you stand.

Common Form E Mistakes to Avoid

A few errors come up again and again. Knowing them in advance makes your form stronger and your case smoother:

• Leaving sections blank: write “none” or “not applicable” rather than leaving gaps, so it is clear you have not simply missed it
• Forgetting assets in your sole name or held abroad: these still count and still need to be disclosed
• Guessing pension values: always use the cash equivalent figures from your providers
• Underestimating your future needs: Section 3 is your chance to set out what you will genuinely need
• Listing items without the evidence: every figure should be supported by a document

For a wider look at where settlements go wrong, our article on the most common financial settlement mistakes is well worth a read before you finalise anything.

Frequently Asked Questions