FE16 form: ask the court to search for an attachment of earnings order
Form FE16 asks the court to search its records for any attachment of earnings order in force against a debtor. The court officer completes the result on the same form.
Fill in the FE16 form with Wren
How Wren helps with the FE16
Official forms are written for lawyers. With Wren you do not have to decode this one on your own, and you still follow the court’s procedure.
- Plain questions, one at a timeEach part of the FE16 becomes short questions in everyday words. Answer at your own pace and come back to it.
- Help beside each questionWhat the question is asking and what the official guidance says about it, in plain English.
- The official form, filled inYour answers go into the official FE16. You check it, sign it and send it yourself. Nothing goes to the court for you.
- What comes next, kept with your caseWhat usually happens after you send it, with the dates worked out from the published rules.
Time and money
- On your own
- A day or more
- With Wren
- About an hour for most forms
- Solicitor for this form
- £740 to £1,2403 to 5 hours
A solicitor’s time for the FE16 can run to £1,240. With Wren it is part of £19.99 a month, and it takes about an hour for most forms rather than a day or more.
Times and hours are Wren’s estimates for a typical case, not quotes. Solicitor costs are those hours at £247 an hour, the courts’ guideline rate for a solicitor with over four years’ experience, outside London (GOV.UK, Solicitors' guideline hourly rates (in effect from 1 January 2026)). The guideline runs from £200 to £295 an hour outside London depending on experience, firms set their own rates, and VAT is added on top.
Key facts
- Official title
- Request for, and result of, search of the attachment of earnings index (Family Court): Form FE16
- Edition
- 04.17 (2 pages).Source: official page (external source, opens in a new tab)
- What the court does
- The court officer searches the court records for an attachment of earnings order in force against the debtor and issues a certificate of the result (FPR 39.3).Source: official page (external source, opens in a new tab)
- Fee
- The EX50 fee list does not show a fee for this search. Ask the court office if you are not sure.Source: official page (external source, opens in a new tab)
Who uses the FE16
A person who has a maintenance order against a debtor and wants to know whether an attachment of earnings order is already in force against them, for example before applying on form FE15.
When it is used
At any time while the maintenance order is in force. On request, the court officer searches and issues a certificate of the result (FPR 39.3).
Before you start
- The debtor's full name, address and, if known, date of birth.
- Your own name and address, or your solicitor's, for the result to be sent to.
How to fill in the FE16
Open each part for what it asks and how to answer it. In Wren, each part is a few plain questions, and your answers fill in the form.
Page 1: the request
You give the debtor's details and your own. The rest of the page is the result, which the court completes.
Page 2: the result
The court officer records whether an order was found and its details.
Prepare your FE16 with Wren Family
Wren Family turns official forms into short, plain-English questions you can answer at your own pace. You check everything before you send it: nothing goes to the court for you.
Get startedFree for 14 days, no card. Then £19.99 a month, with your money back within 14 days if it’s not right.
What happens after you send it
The court returns the form with the result of the search. If an order is in force, that may affect whether and how you apply on form FE15.
Common mistakes
- Giving too little detail about the debtor for the court to search reliably.
- Filling in the result section, which is for the court.
Common questions
Do I have to search before applying on FE15?
The rules do not require it. FPR 39.3 lets a person with a maintenance order ask for the search.
Is there a fee?
EX50 does not list one for this search. Check with the court office.
Where these facts come from
These are the official rules and pages this page is based on. They are listed so you can check a detail for yourself; you do not need them to use Wren. They are outside Wren and open in a new tab.
- GOV.UK: Request for, and result of, search of the attachment of earnings index (Family Court): Form FE16 (external source, opens in a new tab)
- FPR 2010 Part 39: attachment of earnings (external source, opens in a new tab)
- Court fees (EX50) (external source, opens in a new tab)
- Pinned template FE16 (04.17) (external source, opens in a new tab)