3.2.2 - Recovery and location orders

Legal aid is onlyavailable for proceedings under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) for the recovery of a child where the applicant:

• is an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person, or
• has or is experiencing domestic and family violence.

To be eligible for legal aid the applicant must satisfy:

• the Means Test,
• the Merit Test, and
• the Forum Test

Note: a grant of aid for a recovery order application covers an interim application for a location and/or Commonwealth information order where necessary.

Note: see Family law policy 3.2.3: Court proceedings for parenting matters, for recovery applications where there are no parenting orders in place.

See Family Fee guideline 2.4 Cost Management about costs cap for these types of matters.

Date last published: 1 July 2026