Divorce Without a Marriage Certificate
Do You Need a Copy of Your Marriage Certificate to Get a Divorce?
In order to get a divorce, one of the things you need is your original marriage certificate which proves that you and your partner are legally married.
If you have lost your marriage certificate and you got married in Ontario you can order a new one online, by mail or fax, in person or by telephone. Be prepared to give you and your partner’s first and last names, the date you got married and the name of the city or town that you got married in. There is a fee associated with ordering a marriage certificate.
If you are ordering online, fill out Service Ontario’s online application form and pay the associated fee with a credit card.
If you are ordering by mail or fax you should Download a Marriage Certificate Application Form, fill it out and mail it to the Office of the Registrar. You can pay the fee by either mailing a cheque made out to the Minister of Finance or you can write your credit card number on the form if you wish to pay by credit card.
You can only apply for a new marriage certificate in Toronto or Ottawa. You should download a Marriage Certificate Application Form, fill it out and take it to the address on the application form. Available payment options are the same as if you are ordering by mail or fax.
If you would like to order a new marriage certificate by telephone, you should call either Service Ontario or the Registrar General of Ontario and pay the fee with your credit card.
If you were married in Canada but outside of Ontario or outside of Canada, you should contact the government where you got married and ask them to send you the original or a copy of your marriage certificate.
If for some reason you cannot get your marriage certificate there is a box on the first page of Form 36: Affidavit for Divorce where you can explain why you were unable to get it.
How Do You Know if You Are Legally Married?
In order to get a divorce you must be legally married. To be legally married there are certain conditions that you must meet:
- For a marriage to be legal you must be at least 18 years old at the time that you were married. If you were between the ages of 16 and 18, you and your partner must have gotten written consent from each of your parents in order for the marriage to be legal.
- You must have gone through a marriage ceremony that was performed by someone who has the legal power to marry people. This marriage ceremony can have taken place in either Canada or another country.
- A marriage can be between people of the opposite or same sex but you cannot marry your child, parent, grandchild, or sibling whether your relation to them is by blood or adoption.
- You may only be married to one person at a time. In Canada, polygamy, the act of being married to more than one person at the same time, is against the law. However, polygamous marriages can be recognized if it was performed in a country where it is legal.
If you are able to satisfy all of these above criteria you are legally married.
Canada also recognizes marriages from different countries so long as they are performed in a way that is legal in that country, even if the marriage would not have been legal in Canada.
Meet Our Dedicated Team of Lawyers
Over a Century of Collective Experience
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Andrew Feldstein FounderRead BioAndrew Feldstein graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1992. Prior to focusing exclusively on family law, Andrew’s legal practice covered many different areas, including corporate commercial. One of Andrew’s fundamental objectives is to achieve those goals mutually and collaboratively, as set out by him and his client.
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Daphna Schwartz LawyerRead Bio
Daphna Schwartz joined Feldstein Family Law Group, P.C. in 2007 as an associate lawyer. She was previously practising family law in the Barrie area. Her practice includes all areas of divorce and family law, including custody and access, child support, spousal support, and property issues. Daphna is also qualified to practise Collaborative Family Law.
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Anna Troitschanski LawyerRead Bio
Anna Troitschanski joined the team at Feldstein Family Law Group, P.C. in 2012. Prior to that, she practised Family Law at a boutique Newmarket firm. Her experience covers all areas of divorce and family law, including custody and access, child support, spousal support, and division of property.
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Nick Slinko LawyerRead Bio
Nick Slinko attended York University from 2003 until 2007 where he majored in both Law & Society and Philosophy. Nick graduated in 2007 with an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree. He proceeded to earn a Juris Doctor in Law at the University of Western Ontario in 2011. Nick was Called to the Bar in June of 2012 after completing his Articling term with the Feldstein Family Law Group, P.C. He became an associate with the firm immediately thereafter.
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Veronica Yeung LawyerRead Bio
Veronica Yeung joined the Feldstein Family Law Group, P.C. as a summer student in 2014 and returned as an articling student in 2015. Following her call to the Ontario Bar in June 2016, Veronica was welcomed to the team as an associate lawyer.
Veronica attended York University for her undergraduate studies and graduated as a member of the Dean’s Honour Roll when she obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Honours Criminology.
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Shana Gordon-Katz LawyerRead Bio
Shana joined Feldstein Family Law Group P.C. as an articling student in 2017. Following her call to the Ontario Bar in June 2018, Shana was welcomed back to the firm as an associate. While completing her articles, Shana assisted with legal matters covering all areas of family law.
Shana attended the University of Western Ontario for her undergraduate studies, where she graduated as the gold medalist of her program, Honors Specialization in Classical Studies.
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Rachel Zweig LawyerRead Bio
Rachel joined Feldstein Family Law Group P.C as a Summer Student in 2019 and returned as an Articling Student in 2020-2021. Following her Call to the Ontario Bar in April 2021, Rachel was welcomed back to the firm as an Associate.
Prior to completing her legal studies and obtaining her Juris Doctor at the University of Ottawa, Rachel obtained her Bachelor’s Degree at Ryerson University with a major in English Literature.
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Lauren Harvey Associate LawyerRead Bio
Lauren joined Feldstein Family Law Group as a Summer Student in 2020 and returned as an Articling Student in 2021-2022. Following her Call to the Ontario Bar in April 2022, Lauren was welcomed back to the firm as an Associate.
Prior to completing her legal studies and obtaining her Juris Doctor at the University of Western Ontario, Lauren obtained her Honour’s Bachelor of Arts Degree at Wilfrid Laurier University majoring in Criminology and minoring in Law and Society.
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Quinn Held Associate LawyerRead Bio
Quinn spent two years as a Summer Student and then completed her Articling term at a boutique Family Law firm in Orangeville, where she was exposed to various complex Family Law matters. Following her Call to the Bar of Ontario in June 2022, she became an Associate with the Feldstein Family Law Group.
Prior to obtaining her Juris Doctor from the University of Windsor, Quinn obtained her Honour’s Bachelor of Arts Degree at the University of Guelph majoring in Criminal Justice and Public Policy and minoring in International Development.
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Kyla Johnson Associate LawyerRead Bio
Kyla is an approachable, understanding, and motivated advocate. This enables her to build strong relationships with clients. Her practice includes all areas of family law including parenting time, decision-making responsibility, child support, spousal support, division of property and divorce.
