{"id":1048,"date":"2026-10-13T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-13T04:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/?p=1048"},"modified":"2026-09-25T16:36:22","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T11:06:22","slug":"mutual-consent-divorce-process-6-month-waiver","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/mutual-consent-divorce-process-6-month-waiver\/","title":{"rendered":"Mutual Consent Divorce in India: Process, Timeline and Waiving the 6-Month Wait"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group tldr-box has-background\" style=\"border-left-color:#b8860b;border-left-width:4px;background-color:#fdf8ec;padding-top:16px;padding-right:20px;padding-bottom:16px;padding-left:20px\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Quick answer<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Under <strong>Section 13B of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955<\/strong>, spouses who have <strong>lived separately for at least one year<\/strong> and agree to divorce can file a joint petition.<\/li>\n\n<li>There are two motions. The second motion is normally filed after <strong>6 months<\/strong> and within 18 months of the first.<\/li>\n\n<li>In <strong>Amardeep Singh v. Harveen Kaur (2017)<\/strong>, the Supreme Court held the 6-month period is <strong>not mandatory<\/strong>. The Family Court can waive it if the conditions are met.<\/li>\n\n<li>Settle everything in writing first: alimony, stridhan, custody, and withdrawal of pending cases.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mutual consent divorce is the fastest and least stressful way to end a marriage in India. When both spouses agree on the terms, it can often be completed in a few months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who can file for mutual consent divorce?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Under Section 13B, both spouses must show that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>They have been <strong>living separately for one year or more<\/strong> before filing. Living under the same roof without living as husband and wife can also count.<\/li>\n\n<li>They <strong>have not been able to live together<\/strong><\/li>\n\n<li>They have <strong>mutually agreed<\/strong> that the marriage should be dissolved<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Under the Special Marriage Act, 1954, Section 28 is the equivalent provision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is the step-by-step process?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Settlement:<\/strong> Agree on alimony, stridhan and gifts, child custody and visitation, and withdrawal of pending cases (maintenance, domestic violence, Section 85 BNS, etc.)<\/li>\n\n<li><strong>First motion:<\/strong> A joint petition is filed in the Family Court, and both parties&#8217; statements are recorded<\/li>\n\n<li><strong>Cooling period:<\/strong> Six months from the first motion, unless waived<\/li>\n\n<li><strong>Second motion:<\/strong> Both parties confirm consent. The court passes the divorce decree<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Can the 6-month waiting period be waived?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yes. In <strong>Amardeep Singh v. Harveen Kaur, (2017) 8 SCC 746<\/strong>, the Supreme Court held that the period is directory, not mandatory. The court may waive it where:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The statutory period of 6 months plus the 1 year of separation has already passed before the first motion<\/li>\n\n<li>All efforts at mediation and reconciliation have failed<\/li>\n\n<li>The parties have genuinely settled all their differences, including alimony and custody<\/li>\n\n<li>Waiting would only prolong their agony<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An application for waiver can be filed a week after the first motion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What if one spouse withdraws consent?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Consent must continue until the decree. Either spouse can withdraw before the second motion. That is why a clear written settlement, with timelines for payments, is important. In <strong>Shilpa Sailesh v. Varun Sreenivasan (2023)<\/strong>, the Supreme Court also confirmed that it can itself dissolve a marriage that has irretrievably broken down, using Article 142.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Which documents are needed?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Marriage certificate or wedding photographs and invitation<\/li>\n\n<li>Address and ID proof of both spouses<\/li>\n\n<li>Proof of separate residence for one year, where available<\/li>\n\n<li>Income and asset details, and the signed settlement terms<\/li>\n\n<li>Details of children and any pending cases<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Can you appear by video conference?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many Family Courts, including those in Delhi NCR, allow a spouse living abroad to appear by video conference with permission. This is useful for <a href=\"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/nri-legal-services-lawyer.php\">NRI clients<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Need help?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">See our <a href=\"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/mutual-consent-divorce-lawyer-noida.php\">mutual consent divorce lawyer in Noida<\/a> page for fees, timelines and the documents we prepare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Sources<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 \u2014 Section 13B; Special Marriage Act, 1954 \u2014 Section 28<\/li>\n\n<li>Amardeep Singh v. Harveen Kaur, (2017) 8 SCC 746<\/li>\n\n<li>Shilpa Sailesh v. Varun Sreenivasan, 2023 SCC OnLine SC 544 (Constitution Bench)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This article is general legal information, not legal advice for your specific case. Law and procedure change; please consult an advocate before acting.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Step-by-step mutual consent divorce under Section 13B Hindu Marriage Act: eligibility, documents, settlement terms, and when the 6-month cooling period can be waived.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1074,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-family-law"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1048"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1048\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1106,"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1048\/revisions\/1106"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/advmriduljindal.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}