Florida divorce process: a complete step-by-step guide

Last updated 2026-07-09

What are the basic requirements to file for divorce in Florida?

Two things have to be true before a Florida judge grants a dissolution of marriage. One spouse must have lived in Florida for at least six months right before filing. And the marriage has to be "irretrievably broken," which is Florida's no-fault standard ^[1][2]. You don't prove adultery, abandonment, or fault of any kind. You say the marriage is over, and that's enough.

The six-month rule is firm. A Florida driver's license or voter registration card is the easiest proof, but military orders, a lease, or utility bills also work. If neither of you has hit six months, you wait.

Florida Statute 61.021 puts the residency rule in one sentence: "To obtain a dissolution of marriage, one of the parties to the marriage must reside 6 months in the state before the filing of the petition." ^[1] There's no separation period required before you file. That sets Florida apart from states that make you live apart for months first.

File in the county where either spouse lives. If you both still live in Florida, file where you or your spouse currently resides. If one of you moved out of state, file in the Florida county where the remaining spouse lives.

What is the difference between a simplified and a regular uncontested divorce in Florida?

Florida gives couples who agree on everything two paths, and picking the right one saves you time.

The first is a Simplified Dissolution of Marriage. You qualify only if you have no minor or dependent children together, neither spouse is pregnant, neither is asking for alimony, you both agree on how to divide all property and debts, and you're both willing to show up at the final hearing together ^[3]. Check every one of those boxes and the paperwork gets shorter and the case moves faster. You file a Petition for Simplified Dissolution of Marriage, Florida Supreme Court Form 12.901(a).

The second path is a Regular Uncontested Dissolution. This is where you land if you have minor children, one spouse wants alimony, or only one of you plans to appear at the final hearing. You still agree on everything. You just use the standard petition forms plus the parenting plan forms when kids are involved. More paperwork, more flexibility on who shows up at the courthouse.

Here's the honest call: if you qualify for simplified, take it. Fewer forms, same $408 fee, same result. If you have kids or one spouse wants support, you're on the regular uncontested path no matter how friendly the split is.

For background on what divorce papers actually look like across situations, see our guide to divorce papers.

What forms do you need to file for divorce in Florida?

Florida uses standardized family law forms approved by the Florida Supreme Court, and they're free to download from the Florida Courts website ^[3]. These are the core forms for an uncontested divorce.

Form Number	Form Name	When You Need It
12.901(a)	Petition for Simplified Dissolution	Simplified path only
12.901(b)(1)	Petition for Dissolution (no children)	Regular, no kids
12.901(b)(2)	Petition for Dissolution (with children)	Regular, with minor children
12.902(b)	Family Law Financial Affidavit (short)	Assets under $50,000 combined
12.902(c)	Family Law Financial Affidavit (long)	Assets $50,000 or more
12.902(f)(1)	Marital Settlement Agreement (no children)	All regular uncontested cases
12.902(f)(3)	Marital Settlement Agreement (with children)	If you have minor children
12.995(a)	Parenting Plan	Required if you have minor children
12.903(a)	Answer to Petition	Filed by the respondent spouse
12.922(a)	Notice of Social Security Number	Required in all cases

Every case also needs a Summons (form 12.910(a)) unless the respondent waives service by signing a Waiver of Service of Process (form 12.913(a)(1)). In a real uncontested divorce where both spouses cooperate, the signed waiver beats hiring a process server every time.

One thing people get wrong: the Financial Affidavit is mandatory in almost every case. Florida Family Law Rule of Procedure 12.285 requires it ^[4]. Fill it out honestly. Judges read it even in agreed cases, and blank lines get your case bounced.

How much does it cost to file for divorce in Florida?

The Florida circuit court filing fee for a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage is $408 ^[5]. Same fee whether your case is contested or uncontested, simplified or regular. If you're the respondent filing an Answer, there's a separate $408 fee, though in fully cooperative cases the respondent usually waives formal service and that second fee rarely comes up.

Florida Statute 28.241 sets the base court fee, and counties can tack on a small surcharge. In most counties the total lands between $408 and $420 ^[5].

Here's what else can add to the bill:

• Process server or sheriff service: $40 to $75 if you skip the waiver of service
• Certified copies of the final judgment: $1 to $2 per page, usually $10 to $20 total
• Parenting class, required if you have minor children: $25 to $50 per person ^[6]
• Name change: no extra court fee in Florida, it's folded into the divorce decree
• Attorney fees if you hire one: $1,500 to $5,000 or more for an uncontested case, higher for contested

Can't afford the filing fee? Florida courts run a fee waiver process. You file an Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status (form 68), and the court checks your income against the federal poverty guidelines.

If you're handling your own paperwork, a document prep service cuts the cost hard. DivorceClear's $149 complete packet fills the forms so you're reviewing and signing instead of decoding legal language cold. In that scenario your total out-of-pocket runs about $560 to $600 for an uncontested Florida divorce with no children.

For a wider look at what divorce costs, the divorce rate in America data also covers average spending.

How long does a Florida divorce take?

Florida sets a mandatory 20-day waiting period after the respondent is served before a court can enter a final judgment ^[7]. That's the floor, not the ceiling.

For a simplified uncontested divorce with no children and clean paperwork, many counties schedule a final hearing within 30 to 60 days of filing. Big-population counties like Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach run longer because of backlog, sometimes 60 to 90 days even for agreed cases.

Minor children add time. Both parents have to finish a court-approved Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course before the court will finalize anything ^[6]. Most of these courses run online and take about four hours, so it's a small delay if you knock it out right after filing.

The number one cause of delay in uncontested cases is bad paperwork. A judge who opens a Financial Affidavit with blank lines, or a Marital Settlement Agreement that fights with the Parenting Plan, kicks the case back. Get the forms right the first time.

Contested divorces live on a different clock. Once spouses fight over property, custody, or alimony, the case enters litigation and routinely takes 12 to 24 months, sometimes longer. That's not this guide's job, but the contrast is worth knowing before you assume every divorce drags on.

What happens at the Florida divorce final hearing?

In a simplified dissolution, both spouses show up together. The judge asks a few questions to confirm the marriage is irretrievably broken, checks that you've reviewed the settlement, and signs the Final Judgment of Simplified Dissolution of Marriage. The whole thing usually takes 10 to 15 minutes.

In a regular uncontested dissolution, Florida allows a default final hearing where only the petitioner appears, as long as the respondent was properly served (or waived service) and filed no response in time. Some counties also let the parties submit a Motion for Final Judgment by Affidavit and skip the hearing entirely in clean agreed cases. Check your county's local rules, because this varies a lot.

Bring a photo ID, your original marriage certificate (some judges ask for it), and copies of everything you filed. The judge signs the Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage. That document is your official proof the marriage is over.

Grab at least two certified copies of the final judgment before you leave. You'll need them to change your name on a Social Security card, driver's license, passport, and financial accounts.

How does Florida divide property and debts in a divorce?

Florida is an equitable distribution state, not a community property state ^[8]. Marital property and debts get divided fairly, which usually means close to equal but not always an exact 50/50 line. The court weighs the length of the marriage, each spouse's economic circumstances, and contributions to the marriage.

The line between marital and non-marital property matters a lot. Property one spouse owned before the marriage, or received as a gift or inheritance during the marriage and kept separate, is generally non-marital and stays with that spouse. Property acquired during the marriage with marital funds is marital property that gets split.

In an uncontested divorce, you and your spouse make these calls yourselves in the Marital Settlement Agreement. The court honors what you agree to as long as it isn't unconscionable. That's the real payoff of the uncontested path. You control the outcome instead of a judge deciding for you.

Debt splits the same way. Credit card debt run up during the marriage for marital expenses is usually marital debt. Student loans taken before the marriage are usually the borrower's alone. Spell out every account in your settlement agreement with dollar amounts, account numbers, and who pays it. Vague language bites you later.

For how Florida handles spousal support separately from the property split, our piece on alimony covers it.

How does Florida handle child custody and support in a divorce?

Florida dropped the words "custody" and "visitation" from its statutes in 2008. The state now uses "parental responsibility" for decision-making and "time-sharing" for where the child lives and when ^[9]. The standard behind every ruling is the best interests of the child.

Shared parental responsibility is the default, meaning both parents share major decisions about the child's health, education, and welfare. A court gives one parent sole parental responsibility only when shared responsibility would harm the child, which is a high bar.

Time-sharing can follow any schedule you and your spouse agree on. Equal 50/50 splits are common, but 60/40, 70/30, or anything else works if it serves the child's best interests. Whatever you agree to goes into a Parenting Plan, and the court has to approve it ^[9].

Child support runs on the Income Shares Model under Florida Statute 61.30 ^[10]. The formula uses both parents' net incomes, the number of overnights each parent has, health insurance costs, and childcare costs. Use Florida's online child support guidelines calculator or our child support calculator to get an estimate before you lock in your agreement.

Both parents with minor children must finish the Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course before the final hearing ^[6]. Both of you. There's no doing it once for the household.

Does Florida require alimony, and how does it work?

Florida rewrote its alimony law in 2023. Governor DeSantis signed HB 1409 in July 2023, ending permanent alimony in Florida and moving to a formula-based approach ^[11]. This was a big shift.

Under the 2023 law, the alimony types are bridge-the-gap (up to two years), rehabilitative (tied to a specific plan), durational (capped by marriage length), and temporary (during the case). Durational alimony is capped at 50% of the marriage's length for marriages under 20 years.

For marriages under 3 years, durational alimony is rare. For marriages of 3 to 10 years, considered moderate-term, the court can award durational alimony up to half the marriage length. For marriages over 20 years, the court can award alimony up to the full length of the marriage, but never permanent.

In an uncontested divorce, if you both agree neither will pay alimony, you say so in the Marital Settlement Agreement and the court honors it. If one spouse wants alimony, you negotiate the amount and duration, write it into the agreement, and the court approves it as long as it's reasonable. The court only applies the statutory factors and decides for you when you can't agree.

For how spousal support works in practice, see our full guide on alimony.

How do you serve divorce papers in Florida, and what if your spouse agrees?

Florida requires the respondent spouse to be formally notified of the filing. This is service of process. The standard method is a process server or county sheriff delivering the Summons and Petition ^[3].

In a cooperative uncontested divorce, there's a far easier route: the respondent signs a Notarized Waiver of Service of Process (form 12.913(a)(1)). Signed in front of a notary, it acknowledges receipt of the papers and gives up the right to formal service. No process server fee, no stranger knocking on the door.

If your spouse genuinely can't be found and you've made an honest effort to locate them, Florida allows service by publication. You run a notice in a local newspaper for a set period. This almost never comes up in uncontested divorces, where both spouses cooperate, but it exists for the spouse who has vanished.

Once served, the respondent has 20 days to file an Answer. In a fully agreed case, the respondent either files an Answer agreeing to everything or files the waiver of service and lets the case move by default. Both work.

Can you file for divorce in Florida without a lawyer?

Yes. Florida backs self-represented filers. The Florida Courts website has a Self-Help Center with every approved form, instructions, and a county-by-county resource guide ^[3]. Many circuit courts also run self-help centers inside the courthouse where staff answer procedural questions. That's procedural guidance, not legal advice, but it helps.

Pro se divorce (representing yourself) works best in clean uncontested cases: no minor children or a simple agreed parenting plan, limited assets, and two cooperating spouses. The messier your finances or custody picture, the more a divorce lawyer earns the fee.

The real trap in DIY divorce isn't the filing. It's incomplete or inconsistent paperwork. A Marital Settlement Agreement that fumbles a retirement account, for instance, can blow up years later when you try to collect. Form accuracy matters more than most people expect.

DivorceClear's document prep service ($149) fits right in that gap. You get correctly prepared Florida-specific forms without paying attorney rates. You're still representing yourself, but with paperwork that's actually done right. If your situation is genuinely simple, it's a reasonable middle ground between bare forms and a full attorney.

For significant assets, contested custody, business interests, or an uncooperative spouse, get a divorce attorney. The cost of a mistake on those issues dwarfs what an attorney charges.

What happens after the divorce is final in Florida?

When the judge signs the Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage, the marriage is legally over as of that date. Get certified copies from the clerk of court right away.

Here's your after-judgment checklist.

Name change: if the judgment includes name restoration (it should if you asked for it), take a certified copy to the Social Security Administration first, then your state DMV for a new license. Passport and financial accounts follow. The order matters, because most agencies want an updated Social Security card before they'll change anything else.

Retirement accounts: a divorce judgment alone does not divide a 401(k) or pension. You need a separate Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO), a specific document that tells the plan administrator how to split the account. People forget this constantly, and fixing it later gets expensive.

Real estate: if you're transferring the family home under the settlement, record a new deed with the county. The judgment doesn't change the title on its own. Same goes for vehicle titles.

Health insurance: if you're on your spouse's employer plan, you lose coverage when the divorce is final. That's a qualifying life event, so you can enroll in your own employer's plan outside open enrollment or buy a marketplace plan under the ACA.

Estate planning: update your will, the beneficiary designations on life insurance and retirement accounts, and your healthcare proxy and power of attorney. In Florida, divorce does not automatically revoke a will, though it does revoke certain spousal provisions under Florida Statute 732.507 ^[12]. Don't leave this hanging.

Frequently asked questions

How long do you have to live in Florida before you can file for divorce?

One spouse must have lived in Florida for at least six months right before filing the petition. Florida Statute 61.021 states this directly. You can prove residency with a Florida driver's license, voter registration, a lease, utility bills, or similar documents. If neither of you has reached six months yet, you wait out the clock before filing.

What is the filing fee for divorce in Florida?

The circuit court filing fee for a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage in Florida is $408 under Florida Statute 28.241. Some counties add a small surcharge, so expect $408 to $420 in most places. If you can't afford it, apply for an indigency waiver using court form 68. The fee is the same whether your divorce is contested or uncontested.

Does Florida have a waiting period for divorce?

Florida has a mandatory 20-day waiting period after the respondent is served before the court can enter a final judgment. In practice, the realistic timeline for an uncontested divorce runs 30 to 90 days depending on your county's court volume and whether your paperwork is complete. There's no required separation period before you file.

Do both spouses have to appear in court for a Florida divorce?

For a simplified dissolution, both spouses must appear at the final hearing together. For a regular uncontested dissolution, Florida often lets only the petitioner appear if the respondent waived service or was served and didn't respond. Some counties permit a final judgment by affidavit with no hearing for fully agreed cases. Check your county's local rules.

Can I get divorced in Florida if my spouse won't agree?

Yes. Florida's no-fault law lets you file on grounds of irretrievable breakdown even without your spouse's agreement. If your spouse won't cooperate, you go through the contested process. The spouse is served, has 20 days to respond, and if they don't, you can seek a default. If they contest, the case goes to litigation, which typically takes 12 to 24 months and costs much more.

Are there income or asset requirements to qualify for a simplified dissolution in Florida?

No income or asset thresholds apply to the simplified path. The qualifiers are situational: no minor or dependent children, no pregnancy, neither spouse wants alimony, both agree on all property and debt division, and both will appear at the final hearing together. Check every box and you qualify, no matter how much or how little you own.

Do parents have to take a parenting class to get divorced in Florida?

Yes. Florida Statute 61.21 requires both parents with minor children to finish a court-approved Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course before the final hearing. Most courses run online, take about four hours, and cost $25 to $50 per person. You submit a certificate of completion to the court. Skip this step and your case stalls.

How is child support calculated in a Florida divorce?

Florida uses the Income Shares Model under Florida Statute 61.30. The formula factors both parents' net monthly incomes, the number of overnights each parent has, the child's health insurance premiums, and work-related childcare costs. The state provides an online child support calculator, and you can use our child support calculator at DivorceClear to estimate the amount before filing your agreement.

What happened to permanent alimony in Florida?

Florida ended permanent alimony in July 2023 when Governor DeSantis signed HB 1409. The law replaced it with durational alimony capped at 50% of the marriage's length for marriages under 20 years. Marriages over 20 years can produce alimony up to the full length of the marriage, but never permanent. Bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative, and temporary alimony remain available.

Do I need a lawyer to get divorced in Florida?

No. Florida allows self-represented (pro se) filers and provides free approved forms on the Florida Courts website. Self-help centers in many courthouses give procedural guidance. For a simple uncontested divorce with agreed finances and no children, DIY is viable. For significant assets, contested custody, business interests, or an uncooperative spouse, an attorney protects you from costly mistakes.

How do I divide a retirement account in a Florida divorce?

A divorce judgment alone does not split a 401(k), 403(b), or pension. You need a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO), a separate document submitted to the plan administrator. The QDRO tells the plan how to divide the account. Skip it and the account stays entirely in the original holder's name regardless of what your settlement agreement says.

What forms do I need for an uncontested Florida divorce with no children?

At minimum: Petition for Dissolution of Marriage (12.901(b)(1)), Financial Affidavit (12.902(b) or 12.902(c) depending on asset levels), Marital Settlement Agreement (12.902(f)(1)), Summons or Waiver of Service of Process, and Notice of Social Security Number (12.922(a)). The clerk also needs a proposed Final Judgment form. All are free on the Florida Courts website.

What is equitable distribution in Florida and does it mean 50/50?

Equitable distribution means the court divides marital property and debts fairly under Florida Statute 61.075. It usually starts from a 50/50 presumption, but judges can deviate based on factors like marriage length, each spouse's economic situation, and contributions to the marriage. In an uncontested divorce, you and your spouse set the terms in a settlement agreement, and the court generally approves what you both agree to.

Sources

1. Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 61.021 (Residency requirement): At least one party must reside in Florida for 6 months before filing for dissolution of marriage
2. Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 61.052 (Dissolution of marriage): Florida uses irretrievable breakdown as its no-fault grounds for divorce
3. Florida Courts Self-Help Center, Florida Supreme Court approved family law forms: Florida Supreme Court provides approved standardized family law forms free of charge, including petition and settlement agreement forms
4. Florida Supreme Court, Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure Rule 12.285: Financial Affidavit is mandatory in Florida family law cases under Rule 12.285
5. Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 28.241 (Filing fees for trial and appellate courts): The circuit court filing fee for a petition for dissolution of marriage is $408
6. Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 61.21 (Parenting course): Both parents with minor children must complete a court-approved parenting education course before divorce is finalized; courses cost $25 to $50 per person
7. Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 1.140 (Defenses; how presented): Florida requires a 20-day waiting period after service before a default judgment can be entered
8. Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 61.075 (Equitable distribution of marital assets and liabilities): Florida is an equitable distribution state; marital assets and debts are divided fairly, beginning with a presumption of equal distribution
9. Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 61.13 (Support of children; parenting and time-sharing): Florida uses 'parental responsibility' and 'time-sharing' instead of custody and visitation; shared parental responsibility is the default; a Parenting Plan is required for all cases involving minor children
10. Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 61.30 (Child support guidelines): Florida calculates child support using the Income Shares Model, factoring both parents' net incomes, overnight timesharing, health insurance, and childcare costs
11. Florida Legislature, 2023 Florida HB 1409 (Alimony reform, signed July 2023): Florida eliminated permanent alimony in 2023 and capped durational alimony at 50% of the marriage length for marriages under 20 years
12. Florida Legislature, Florida Statute 732.507 (Effect of subsequent marriage, divorce, or death on prior testamentary disposition): A divorce in Florida revokes certain spousal provisions in a will but does not automatically revoke the entire will