Notice of Satisfaction Victoria: How to Close a Judgment

What a Notice of Satisfaction Does

A Notice of Satisfaction is the formal document filed with the Magistrates' Court of Victoria to confirm that a registered judgment has been paid in full. Once the court records it, the judgment is marked as satisfied in the civil register. The enforcement case is closed.

Filing it is the creditor's responsibility. The court does not automatically know when you have been paid — you need to tell them. Until you file, the civil judgment register continues to show the judgment as unsatisfied. Whether a judgment can appear in a credit report depends on credit-reporting rules; only credit-related court judgments may be included, assessed case by case.

When to File

File the Notice of Satisfaction only when the entire judgment debt has been cleared, including:

• The original principal amount from the VCAT order or court judgment
• All court and enforcement costs — registration fee, warrant fees, Sheriff's execution fees, process server costs
• Accrued penalty interest at 10% per annum calculated up to the date of final payment

If the debtor has been paying in instalments, the Notice is filed after the last instalment brings the total — including interest on the reducing balance — to zero. Partial payments do not trigger a Notice of Satisfaction; the judgment stays on the register until fully cleared.

How to File

Prepare the Notice of Satisfaction and file it at the civil registry of the Magistrates' Court where the judgment was registered. Include:

• The court case number assigned when the judgment was registered
• The names of the parties
• A statement that the judgment has been satisfied in full
• The date on which the final payment was received

There may be a small filing fee. The registrar records the satisfaction and updates the civil judgment register.

Why Filing Matters

Leaving a satisfied judgment on the register as unpaid means the civil judgment register continues to show it as unsatisfied. A judgment unrelated to credit cannot be reported as publicly available information, and whether a credit-related judgment may appear on a credit report is assessed case by case.

If the debtor says the judgment has been paid but you do not agree, compare the payment records and the amount required to satisfy the principal, interest, and allowed costs. Contact the court registry about the process for correcting the record if you cannot resolve the disagreement.

Keep Your Records

Before filing, make sure your payment ledger is complete. Record every payment received, showing how each one was allocated (costs first, then interest, then principal). Keep copies of bank statements, receipts, and any written confirmation from the debtor acknowledging the amounts paid.

If a dispute arises later — the debtor claims they overpaid, or you discover a calculation error in the interest — your ledger is the primary evidence. Once the Notice of Satisfaction is filed and the judgment is marked as closed, reopening it is difficult and expensive.

The VCAT Order Enforcement Guide includes a penalty interest ledger worksheet that tracks the running balance from first enforcement step to final satisfaction, with automatic allocation of partial payments across costs, interest, and principal.

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