How to restore a divorce certificate if lost

Restoring a divorce certificate is necessary, as it may be needed to obtain certain state and municipal services, for example, when applying for an old-age or disability pension, dividing property after a divorce, entering into a new marriage, or collecting alimony. A document may be required to confirm a relationship, for example, with a child, if he is registered in the name of the father on the birth certificate, and the woman returned her previous surname after a divorce.

The certificate will also be needed when leaving the Russian Federation for further residence abroad. To confirm its legality, an apostille is required, which is affixed to two copies of notarized copies - in Russian and in the language of a foreign state.

Based on clause 1 of Article 9 of Federal Law No. 143 “On Acts of Civil Status”, a duplicate is issued if the original:

lost or damaged;
laminated;
became dilapidated;
the entries on it are not readable;
the seal is not visible.

The period for restoring the certificate is not regulated by law, but it is better to do it earlier . A document damaged in whole or in part has no legal force.

List of required documents

To obtain a duplicate you will need:

application in the prescribed form;
original passport (must have a divorce stamp);
power of attorney if a relative or other interested person applies (it must be certified by a notary);
receipt of payment of state duty.

There are cases when they present a passport without a stamp. Specialists will accept the application and look at the necessary information in the register books. If there is no record, they may refuse to accept the application.

Through the registry office

In any case of divorce, registration takes place through the registry office. It is in these institutions that register books containing civil status records are maintained. Even if the marriage is dissolved through the court, its decision must be submitted to the registry office to issue a certificate. Therefore, to restore the document, information from these authorities will be required, and to obtain a repeat form, citizens will have to contact the registry office.

Which department of the Civil Registry Office should I contact regarding this issue? Regardless of the place of issue of the original form, you can obtain a duplicate at any territorial civil registry office, including at your place of actual residence. Here are the rules to consider when applying for a duplicate:

if a citizen asks for a duplicate in the same registry office department where the divorce was registered, he will be able to receive the document immediately upon application;
If the place of residence has changed after the divorce, a written request will be required to restore the form. This will be done by the civil registry office specialist contacted by the citizen (naturally, the period for issuing a duplicate will increase due to sending correspondence by mail);
For each application option for issuing a duplicate, you need to pay a state fee of 350 rubles. (payment is made according to the details of the civil registry office to which the citizen applied).

To obtain a repeat form, you need to submit an application using Form No. 25. As a rule, it is completed by the civil registry office employee himself. You also need to show a stamp in your passport indicating the divorce. If the passport is not marked, the registry office specialists are obliged to accept the application, and the fact of divorce will be verified using the register books. A sample application for the restoration of a certificate can be downloaded in the appendix to this article. The lawyers of the website “Everything step by step” will provide assistance in filling it out.

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The law does not provide for the possibility of refusing to issue a certificate even in the following cases:

If the citizen has previously applied for a duplicate . The law does not contain restrictions on the number of applications, but for each repeated certificate you need to pay the state fee again;
If the citizen has already entered into a new marriage . A certificate of termination of marriage may be required to prove any legal facts, including probate or court proceedings.

Civil registry office employees will be able to refuse to issue a duplicate if there is no record of divorce at all in the register book.

An entry is also made in the register book regarding the issue of a duplicate. This allows you to avoid situations where the original document will be discovered after a long time. Accordingly, a new entry will be made upon receipt by the citizen of each repeated form.

Registration deadlines and amount of state duty

The duration of the procedure depends on where the applicant applied. If the application is submitted through the civil registry office that registered the divorce, a duplicate will be received on the same day. But it is not always possible to contact the department that issued the original document.

If information is requested from another territorial department, you will have to wait until a ready copy arrives from the registry office, which was responsible for processing the original. This will take up to 1 month, as time is needed for additional requests and shipping . To speed up the process, you can come for a copy in person, but this is not always convenient for the applicant. When sending an application through government services or the MFC, the processing period for the request should not exceed 30 days.

The cost of restoring a marriage certificate or its dissolution is 350 rubles. This is the amount of the state duty that must be paid.

Where can I apply and how do I do it?

To restore the certificate, an application should be made to the civil registry office where the divorce was registered, or to the department at the address of your residence or stay. This can also be done through the MFC and the government services portal.

At the registry office

The simplest and fastest procedure is to issue a repeat certificate through the civil registry office at the place of issue of the primary document. The applicant pays the state fee, collects and submits the necessary documentary information. After checking them, a repeated paper is issued, which has legal force and is an independent document. A duplicate is issued on the same day when the citizen applies for the service.

When submitting an application through the relevant civil registry office at the applicant’s place of residence, a request is made to the registration authorities that recorded the act of divorce. Papers for registration are sent to them for execution. At the same time, the time for consideration and re-issuance of the certificate may take from a month to several months.

Through MFC

Multifunctional centers have the authority to receive documents for issuing a duplicate , and act as an intermediary between the applicant and the civil registry office. The applicant should apply for a second divorce certificate with a full set of papers and paid state duty to the MFC department of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation in which the divorce document was originally issued.

The application can be prepared in advance or completed at an appointment at the center. After submitting the papers, a receipt is issued, which can be used to track the status of the application. It is reviewed within 30 days, after which the applicant is given the result.

Through State Services

You can re-order the required document without leaving your home through the State Services electronic portal . To do this, follow these steps:

in the search bar, type the name “Registration Office”;
select the “Obtaining a repeated divorce certificate” tab, click “Get a service”;
fill in the required fields about the applicant, information about spouses, certificate details;
select the registry office department to receive a duplicate document.

After completing all the steps, the application will be submitted, and the applicant will be sent a notification and a link to pay the state fee electronically by email. After payment, you will receive a notification about the status of consideration of the application, and eventually you will receive an invitation to receive a duplicate indicating the date and time of issue.

The application is reviewed within 30 days. After receiving an invitation with a complete package of papers, you should contact the selected civil registry office for a completed certificate.

The procedure for obtaining a second divorce certificate

The first step to take if you have lost your marriage or divorce certificate is to submit an application. It is accepted unilaterally; the consent and notification of the ex-spouse is not required. You can submit an application using one of the methods specified in Art. 9 Federal Law No. 143:

Issue a duplicate through the registry office that issued the original. Its first copy is kept there. To do this you need to visit the institution. You can fill out the form in advance. The form is available on the official website of the registry office, you just need to download it, enter the necessary data and print it out. You can fill out the document manually. The staff will issue the form; all you have to do is fill in the details carefully. You can also send your application by mail. This method is usually used by out-of-towners or foreigners.
Submit an electronic request through the public services service. To do this, on the main page, through a search query, enter “Obtaining a repeat certificate/certificate of state registration of divorce” or “Registration Office”. To receive the service, you must have a personal account. If it is not there, registration is required. This is easy to do by filling in the required information. After registration, click the “Receive” button and select the registry office where you will receive a copy. When generating an electronic document, the personal data specified during registration will be filled in automatically. All that remains is to add the missing information. The request is signed with an electronic signature.
Contact the MFC and make an appointment. The application can be completed under the guidance of the multifunctional center staff. The MFC will perform some of the functions of the registry office, but the procedure will take more time. Employees may have questions, so it is necessary to leave contact details for communication.

Through the government services portal

Through government services or the MFC, you can implement many functions, including ordering and receiving a duplicate of the divorce certificate. To do this, you need to register on the site and verify your account. When filling out an application electronically, you must provide information about the place and time of termination of the family relationship (this can be taken from the passport stamp).

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As with other options for restoring the form, through government services or the MFC you need to pay a state fee in the amount of 350 rubles. There are three ways to obtain a document:

by sending by mail;
by personal appearance at the MFC office (when submitting an application, you must indicate the MFC unit where the citizen plans to receive the completed form);
at the civil registry office selected when submitting the application.

In a number of regions, civil registry offices offer their own service for obtaining duplicates, certificates and other official documents. The period for consideration of electronic applications can be up to 30 days (this issue must be clarified when filling out the application).

How to pay the fee?

Payment is made by bank transfer. It can be done directly at the registry office or MFC, taking the details from the employees. As a rule, such institutions install payment terminals. If they are not there, you will have to use the services of the nearest Sberbank branch. However, you will need to pay a commission. Or you can make a payment in advance via the Internet using electronic means.

If the request is submitted through the public services service, then after the application is generated, a message with a link will be sent to your email. By clicking on it, you can pay in one of the following ways: by credit card or using an electronic wallet.

If payment is made on the government services portal, a 30% discount is given. Then the state duty will be only 245 rubles.

How to restore divorce documents in another city

To obtain a second certificate in another city, you can use two options:

Send a registered letter by mail with a request for a duplicate certificate to the registry office where the marriage was registered. The new document will not arrive at the applicant’s place of residence, but at the nearest registry office. The time frame for receiving a duplicate is a maximum of 10 days (this is how long it takes to process the request). However, this period is counted from the receipt of the request to the sending of the documents by mail, so the duration of delivery in both directions should be taken into account.
Issue a power of attorney to a person located in the city where the marriage was registered, so that he/she will carry out all actions to obtain a repeated certificate on your behalf.

Regardless of the chosen route for submitting your application, you will need to send along with it copies of your passport pages and a receipt for payment of the state fee.

Where can I get a copy of the divorce certificate?

You can obtain the document by visiting the MFC or registry office, to which the citizen applied to obtain a copy of the certificate.

If the application was generated through a government service, you must regularly check the notifications that come to your email address. The status of the application will be indicated in one of them. Once the copy is ready, the applicant will receive a message telling them when they will be able to pick it up at the branch they selected when submitting their application. You can also receive a copy by mail. If you lose your marriage document, you can get a duplicate marriage certificate in the same way through government services.

Based on clause 2 of Art. 9 Federal Law No. 143, a duplicate is issued to one of the spouses, as well as to one of the relatives or to another person by proxy.

To receive a copy of the divorce certificate, you must present:

identification;
documents giving the right to receive a copy.

The list of such documents is established by executive authorities.

If a marriage registration document is lost, you need to find out what is needed to restore the marriage certificate.

There are no penalties for the loss or damage of a divorce document. You are allowed to apply for a copy more than once, but each time you will have to pay a state fee. Sometimes you can do without a document. For example, if it is needed for a trial, the court only needs to request the necessary information from the registry office.

Is it possible to get a duplicate?

A duplicate divorce document is usually applied for when it is lost or damaged. In paragraph 1 of Art. 9 of the Law reflects all cases that are the basis for issuing a duplicate certificate of termination of marriage relations:

when the primary document is lost;
in the presence of mechanical damage;
if the form is worn out;
in the presence of lamination;
if the document text or printed data cannot be read.

Next, we will tell you in detail what to do if you have lost a document or it has been damaged, and how to restore it.

Special cases

Duplicate document of deceased parents/other relatives

One of the relatives or other persons, such as heirs, can obtain a second certificate of divorce for relatives who no longer exist. To do this, you need to present evidence of the citizen's death. You must confirm your relationship with the deceased, as well as provide documents explaining why it is important for you to obtain a duplicate.

In the event of the death of a spouse

If the termination of the marital relationship occurs after one of the couple dies, a divorce certificate will not be issued. A document confirming the death of a citizen is sufficient. Therefore, in such cases, only an application for a duplicate of this document can take place if its original is lost.

For incapacitated citizens

If the divorce certificate of an incompetent person is lost, guardians are responsible for issuing a duplicate, since the citizen himself does not have the right to receive such documents. To do this you must present:

a court decision on the basis of which a citizen is declared legally incompetent;
guardian's certificate.

Recovery

Documentation

The following documents are attached to the application:

a copy of the passport, including the page on which there is a divorce stamp from the registry office (if any);
court decision, if the divorce proceeding went through the court;
notarized power of attorney, if the application is submitted by a representative;
receipt of payment of state duty.

How to make an application?

Regardless of where you apply to restore your certificate, you must write an application. The form can be downloaded on the Internet or you can ask for the form at the registry office . There is no statutory application form; it can be written in any form and it must contain the following:

In the header, indicate the authority you are applying to, as well as the full details of the applicant (last name, first name, patronymic, residential address, series and number of the passport, when and by whom it was issued, telephone number);
request to issue a second divorce certificate;
the name of the civil registry office that must restore the document;
indication in full of the surname, name and patronymic of each of the divorced spouses (the surnames are those that were written in the primary certificate);
the reason why a duplicate is requested (loss, damage);
date and number of the record of the divorce deed.

Corrections and crossing outs are not allowed in the application. In case of errors, it is better to rewrite the application again.

Where can I obtain a duplicate certificate?

If you lose your certificate, you can request its restoration:

to the registry office that issued the original document;
to the registry office located near the place of registration, or any of its branches in another city at the place of actual residence;
to the nearest MFC institution;
to the Unified portal of public services created on the Internet.

Expert commentary

Kamensky Yuri

Lawyer

When choosing a method for obtaining a document, it is important to consider how long this procedure will take. If there is an urgent need for a duplicate, of course, it is better to find a way to personally visit the registry office that issued the original document, or to entrust its requisition to your principal. The minimum period for receiving a duplicate is ten days. The period of receipt through another registry office may take 6 months.

The MFC is an intermediary organization between citizens and the Civil Registry Office. Let's look at how to get the required duplicate from the MFC. When applying there, you will not need to directly contact the registry office; the entire procedure can be carried out at the MFC. To do this, you must submit an application there, to which you must attach the necessary documents to restore the certificate. After accepting the documents, the MFC service specialist is obliged to issue the applicant a receipt of their receipt and set a deadline for receiving a duplicate. To receive the document, you can come to the applicant himself on the specified date or wait for a notification that the duplicate is ready from the specialist who accepted the documents. Usually, the message arrives via SMS to the applicant’s mobile phone. Restoring the certificate through the MFC service will take about 30 days.

Purpose of a divorce certificate

A document on the termination of marital ties is an officially issued paper that confirms the end of the relationship between husband and wife. This document is issued by the appropriate authority.

It is necessary to understand that this kind of paper has full legal force and allows divorced citizens to use it to carry out a variety of legal actions.

For example, a certificate will be required so that in the future citizens will be able to resolve the following situations:

New marriage.
If the wife wants to return her previous premarital surname
To resolve issues regarding the acquisition of real estate, since when making a transaction, the law requires the consent of the second spouse
The citizen wants to rid himself of the property or financial claims of his former other half.

Why is certificate restoration required:

Without it, the formation of new family relationships is not possible
It will not be possible to register a child at the place of residence if the mother and children have different surnames
impossibility of confirming education information if the last name changes.

Receipt procedure

In accordance with Article 31 of Federal Law No. 143 “On Acts of Civil Status” (hereinafter referred to as Federal Law No. 143), the basis for making an entry in the registration book at the civil registry office is a court decision that has entered into force on the termination of family relations, as well as a certain package of documents approved by law , not to mention submitting an application in the prescribed form.

The decision is considered to have entered into force only after thirty days from the date of adoption, and even then on the condition that one of the spouses does not want to protest it. If a complaint against the decision is nevertheless filed, then challenging the court decision may take from 30 days to a couple of months.

It is worth noting that, according to Article 35 of Federal Law No. 143, in order to obtain a marriage certificate, spouses must present at least an extract from the court decision, but the application can be submitted both in writing and electronically through the same government service website.

What to do if the divorce paper is lost?

Don’t panic, for such situations there is the possibility of document recovery. Once the marriage union is officially terminated, you can make a request to the registry office to obtain a duplicate document . It is advisable to contact the civil registry office where you collected the original certificate. Then the procedure will be quick and you won’t have to wait long to receive the document.

Nevertheless, you can also contact the civil registry office, regardless of the place where the original was issued, but in this case, the wait may take a longer period.

Procedure: step-by-step instructions

Where to begin?

The first thing you need to do is go to the registry office. Reception of citizens on such issues is carried out on weekdays, except Friday.

Required documents

Passport with a note about divorce. (When contacting a government agency, you must provide the original document, and you will also need a copy of the passport page containing data on the date of termination of the marriage).
Marriage certificate from your former spouse.
If you have a copy of the court decision on divorce, you can take it with you. However, this document is not mandatory.
A notarized power of attorney is required if the repeated divorce document is received not by a direct person, but by a close relative or friend.
Receipt for payment of state duty. (Payment details can be obtained upon application. Payment is due on the same day.)

How to make an application?

To restore a lost document as quickly as possible, you must first fill out the application correctly. Usually, Form No. 19 is suitable for an application to the registry office, but it is not mandatory under Russian law. A statement in any form is also appropriate.

The following information must be indicated in the application:

The name of the government agency that must issue a duplicate of the document.
Information about the applicant (full name, telephone number, registration).
Information about a previously registered marriage (for example, place of registration, number of the certificate of registration of a family union).
Information about the ex-spouse (full name, telephone number, registration).
The name of the state civil registry office that formalized the divorce.
If after the divorce the last name or first name was changed, the application must include the previous last name and first name that were indicated in the lost document.

Using the sample, you can safely fill out the application at home.

Can it be done through the MFC, online through State Services?

The registry office is not the only body through which the document is restored. You can also contact the MFC. What does that require:

You need to submit an application to any multifunctional center (the application does not have to be filled out in advance, you can do it on the spot).
Attach all necessary documents.
The specialist who accepts the application will issue a receipt.
You can pick up a duplicate on the day specified in the receipt or after an SMS notification that will be sent to the phone number specified in the application.

Another option for document recovery is online through State Services. Its advantage is that it saves time, because the application is submitted without leaving home. What is needed for this:

If you are not registered on the site, first register.
Find the State Services section, in it you will see a subsection about family.
Fill out an application electronically on the State Services website.
Attach electronic copies of documents.
Submit an application.

The application is submitted to the government agency. After submitting it, the applicant receives a letter by email notifying him of the need to pay the state fee and a link through which he can make the payment online. You can obtain a duplicate certificate yourself at the civil registry office, the address of which you indicate on the State Services website or by mail.

Service cost

For issuing a duplicate divorce certificate, you only need to pay a state fee, which is 350 rubles (clause 6, part 1, article 333.26 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

Deadlines

If you contacted the civil registry office where the original document was issued, the maximum wait for a duplicate will be 10 days. When applying to any other department of the registry office, the terms may increase to 6 months. When registering a duplicate through the MFC or the State Services portal, you must wait at least 30 days before it reaches you. After receiving a duplicate of the divorce certificate, the original document ceases to be valid. If you manage to find it by chance, you still won’t be able to use it.

When does the decision take effect?

If the decision on divorce is made by the court in which the case was heard, then the spouses will be able to consider themselves free only after a month. This is the period provided for the decision to take legal force. The effective date is henceforth considered the date of divorce.

If the parties change their minds about terminating the relationship, then the court decision can be canceled before a month from the date of its adoption expires by filing an appeal. After entry into force, it will only be possible to remarry (having previously received a certificate of divorce).

The document that confirms that the spouses are divorced will be a certificate that must be issued by the registry office. It can only be obtained after the decision made by the court has entered into legal force. To receive, each party (or both at the same time) must contact the civil registry office (where the marriage was once registered or located at the place of residence of one of the parties), providing the following documents:

identification of the person making the application;
a document from the court confirming its decision (extract);
a document confirming the transfer of the state fee (each party pays the fee for its own copy of the certificate).

If at the time of filing an application by one of the parties, the registry office already has confirmation of the court decision, then there is no need to bring it again. Only after receiving the certificate will the parties be able to confirm their divorce in official bodies or remarry. If necessary, you can obtain from the court a document confirming its decision at any time, after any time has passed.

Principle of drawing up and submitting an application

The following people can draw up and submit an application to receive a duplicate certificate of official separation of marriage ties:

One of the former spouses.
Close relatives of the deceased husband or wife. Typically, such a procedure is needed to resolve issues that arise when entering into an inheritance.
Parents, and in some cases guardians, if the citizen whose divorce certificate was lost was a minor.
Official representatives of former spouses holding a power of attorney certified by a notary.

To obtain a duplicate of the certificate, you need to contact the registry office that registered the marriage of the spouses and issued the original:

When drawing up an application for a duplicate, you should indicate the following information:

Full name of the civil registry office where the citizen applies.
All personal data of the husband and wife whose divorce was registered - last name, first name, patronymic, date of birth. If, after a divorce, the wife kept her maiden name, or remarried and took her husband’s last name, she must indicate the one she had at the time of the divorce. It is important that the last name indicated in the application is the same as in the original.
The full name of the civil registry office where the divorce of the spouses was registered.

Who can apply?

By virtue of Article 35 of Federal Law No. 143, any of the former spouses can apply to the registry office to make a record of divorce and subsequently receive a divorce certificate, and not necessarily together or even on the same day.

That is, if a woman and a man live in different cities, they only need to visit the registry office in their locality at a time convenient for them during the corresponding opening hours of the specified institution.

At the same time, on the basis of this norm, other persons may apply for the issuance of a certificate. In particular:

guardian of an incapacitated person if the marriage is dissolved unilaterally in the cases specified in Art. 34 Federal Law No. 143;
an authorized representative of the former spouses in accordance with a legally issued power of attorney to represent their interests.

What kind of document is this?

When, where is it issued and why is it needed?

A divorce certificate is an official document issued by the civil registry office (that is, the civil registry office).
This document is important; it can be used to confirm a divorce between spouses. Legal relations related to restoration, as well as the registration and issuance of a divorce certificate, are regulated by the norms of Federal Law No. 143-FZ “On Acts of Civil Status” dated November 15, 1997. But there are situations in which you can only obtain a divorce certificate through the court:

There are minor children (Article 21 of the RF IC).
One of the parties refuses to dissolve the marriage (Article 22 of the RF IC).
Property disputes between spouses.

The court decision will serve as the basis for registering the divorce. After the divorce process and receiving the court decision in your hands, contact the registry office to issue a certificate.

Consequences of loss: will there be a fine?

There is no penalty for losing a divorce document. At the same time, it doesn’t matter whether the owner lost it or someone else; whether it was damaged accidentally or intentionally. You can safely contact the registry office with an application to restore the divorce certificate. But this does not mean that expenses can be avoided altogether. Nobody canceled the state duty.

Why is restoration necessary?

The absence of a divorce certificate from one of the parties is not a reason to consider the marriage valid. Confirmation of a divorce between spouses is also a corresponding mark in the passport. However, most often you still cannot do without a certificate.

In a number of situations it may be required:

A new marriage is impossible without evidence that the person is truly divorced.
If a woman decides to return her last name after a divorce, she will have to change all her documents, starting with her passport. When applying to change your last name, a new document can only be issued if you have a divorce certificate.
Widows also cannot do without a certificate. It will be needed, for example, when applying for benefits for minor children.
If one of the parents decides to leave the country with their common child, then in addition to a notarized permission, he will again need a certificate.
It is also necessary to resolve property disputes.

These are just some of the situations where a divorce document may be needed. There are many examples, so it is recommended to carefully store your certificate so as not to think about restoring it later.

Why is document recovery necessary?

Unfortunately, after a divorce, many citizens are negligent about the safety of this document. If lost, it is necessary to restore the divorce certificate. To avoid getting into a difficult situation, let’s consider when presentation of a document is mandatory:

When entering the municipal or state civil service.
When concluding a new marriage.
When changing your passport.
If one of the spouses changed their surname at the conclusion of the union, the certificate must be attached:
to information about ownership of premarital property;
to the documents of a child who bears the father’s surname;
in other cases when it will be necessary to prove a change of surname.