How to Complete the Division of Property Form (UD-7) in Divorce

Form UD-7 is the Affirmation of Defendant in New York’s Uniform Uncontested Divorce Packet, and it is the document a defendant signs to confirm they are not contesting the divorce and agree to the relief the plaintiff has requested. If you are the defendant in a New York divorce and you have decided not to fight the case, the UD-7 form is how you tell the court so and how you consent to the plaintiff’s proposed terms on property, support, and custody. The form is short compared with the financial disclosure paperwork that accompanies a divorce, but every section carries legal weight, so work through it carefully and return it to your spouse or their attorney once complete.¹

What UD-7 Does

UD-7 is built for one situation: the defendant does not want to contest the divorce. By signing it, you waive your right to answer the complaint, waive the statutory response period, and consent to the case being placed on the uncontested divorce calendar right away.¹ If you disagree with anything your spouse is asking for — the property split, the custody arrangement, the amount of support — this is not your form. You would file an answer instead, and the case would proceed as a contested divorce.

UD-7 sits inside a larger packet of numbered forms. Alongside it are the Summons (UD-1a), the Verified Complaint (UD-2), the Affirmation of Regularity (UD-5), the Sworn Affirmation of Plaintiff (UD-6), and several others that together move an uncontested case from filing through judgment.² The plaintiff prepares most of the packet. UD-7 is the piece that comes from your side.

Where to Get the Current Form

Download the current version, revised March 1, 2026, from the New York State Unified Court System website. UD-7 is available as a standalone PDF and inside the composite uncontested divorce packet.¹ You can also pick up a paper copy at the Supreme Court clerk’s office in the county where the divorce was filed. Use the most current revision; courts may reject outdated versions.

Completing UD-7 Section by Section

The form looks brief but covers several distinct legal topics. Work through it in order. Skipping sections invites rejection.

Residence and Service

The opening fields ask for your name, address, and a statement confirming your residency. You then acknowledge that you were served with the Summons with Notice or Summons and Complaint and identify the grounds for divorce your spouse has alleged. These are typically drawn from Domestic Relations Law Section 170, which ranges from cruel and inhuman treatment to the no-fault ground of irretrievable breakdown under DRL §170(7).¹

Waiver of Time Periods

This is the section that actually makes the divorce uncontested from a procedural standpoint. You waive the statutory response period and the 40-day waiting period for placing the matter on the calendar. Once you sign, the plaintiff can move the case forward without waiting for a formal answer from you.

Military Status

You must declare whether you are currently in active military service. Active-duty service members have protections under the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act and the New York Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Civil Relief Act, and the court needs to know your status before entering a default-style judgment.¹

Service of Future Papers

You choose whether to waive service of all future papers or ask for copies of specific documents: the Note of Issue, the Request for Judicial Intervention, the Proposed Judgment of Divorce, the Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, and any proposed orders. If you want to see the final judgment before it is entered, check the boxes for the documents you want served on you. Otherwise, the case proceeds and you receive only the final paperwork.

Equitable Distribution and Maintenance

This is the property section, and it is the reason many people go searching for UD-7. You make declarations about how marital property will be divided and whether either spouse will receive maintenance. If you and your spouse have a written settlement agreement covering these issues, this section confirms you agree to its terms. For divorces commenced on or after January 25, 2016, specific language regarding equitable distribution and maintenance must appear here.¹

One important limit applies if the divorce is filed on the no-fault ground of irretrievable breakdown under DRL §170(7). Every economic issue must already be resolved before the court will grant that kind of divorce. Equitable distribution of marital property, spousal support, child support, and attorney’s fees all need to be settled by agreement or prior court order and incorporated into the judgment.¹ You cannot sign UD-7 on a §170(7) ground while property division is still open.

Child Support and Custody

If children are involved, you declare whether you are the custodial or non-custodial parent, whether you want Support Collection Unit services, and acknowledge income deduction orders under CPLR §5242(c). You also complete records-checking declarations required by DRL §240(1)(a-1), which cover Orders of Protection, child abuse or neglect proceedings, and Sex Offender Registration Act status.

Removal of Barriers to Remarriage

This section addresses DRL §253, which requires the plaintiff to affirm they have removed any barriers to the defendant’s remarriage. The provision is most often relevant in religious contexts where a spouse must grant a religious divorce. You either affirm that barriers have been removed or waive the requirement.

Signature

You sign the form under penalties of perjury. UD-7 does not need to be notarized. It is an affirmation, not a sworn affidavit, so your signature alone, affirming the truth of the contents, carries the legal weight.¹ That is a real difference from other divorce paperwork, most notably the Statement of Net Worth, which does require a notary. Read every declaration before you sign; you are attesting to all of them at once.

Returning UD-7 to the Plaintiff

After signing, send the completed UD-7 back to your spouse or their attorney. The plaintiff includes it with the rest of the uncontested divorce packet when submitting the case to the court. You do not file UD-7 with the court yourself. The plaintiff handles that as part of the full submission, along with a Request for Judicial Intervention (UD-13) and the associated fees, which in New York Supreme Court run $210 for the index number and $95 for the RJI.

UD-7 Is Not the Financial Disclosure Form

UD-7 confirms you agree to the proposed property split, but it contains no actual financial data. That is a common point of confusion, so it is worth stating plainly: the form that collects the numbers, account balances, income, expenses, assets, and liabilities is the Statement of Net Worth, a separate document required under Domestic Relations Law §236-B(4) in any matrimonial case where maintenance, support, or equitable distribution is at issue.³ Both spouses complete a Statement of Net Worth, and both sign it before a notary. If you are looking for the form that discloses your finances, that is the one; UD-7 is only your consent to the plaintiff’s proposed terms.

Before You Sign

Because UD-7 waives your response rights and locks in your consent to how property, maintenance, custody, and support will be handled, treat the signature as the moment of decision. Read the plaintiff’s complaint and any settlement agreement carefully alongside the form. Confirm that the grounds recited match what was served on you, that the equitable distribution and maintenance language reflects what you actually agreed to, and that the child support and custody declarations are accurate. If anything is off, do not sign; raise it with the plaintiff or consult an attorney before the case moves forward. Once UD-7 is in the packet and the case is on the uncontested calendar, unwinding it is far harder than getting it right the first time.

1
New York State Unified Court System. Form UD-7 Affirmation of Defendant
2
New York State Unified Court System. Uniform Uncontested Divorce Packet Forms
3
New York State Senate. New York Domestic Relations Law 236 – Special Controlling Provisions