How to Complete and File the Indiana Petition for Dissolution of Marriage

The Indiana Petition for Dissolution of Marriage is the document that opens a divorce case in an Indiana court. To file one, you sign a verified petition that includes the information required by Indiana Code 31-15-2-5, submit it to the Clerk of the Court in a county where you or your spouse meets the residency rules, pay the filing fee, and arrange for your spouse to be served. Filing starts a mandatory 60-day waiting period before any judge can sign a decree.¹

Check Residency First

Before anything else, confirm that at least one spouse has lived in Indiana, or been stationed at an Indiana military installation, for at least six months immediately before filing. On top of that, at least one spouse must have lived in (or been stationed in) the specific county where you file for at least three months.² The statute says three months, not 90 days, which can matter when a month has 31 days and your timeline is tight. If neither spouse meets the county rule, the court lacks jurisdiction and the petition will be dismissed.

What the Petition Must Contain

Indiana Code 31-15-2-5 lists the averments your petition needs. Miss any of them and the court may reject the filing or make you amend it.³

The current address of each spouse and how long each has lived in Indiana and in the filing county.
The date of the marriage ceremony.
The date you and your spouse physically separated.
The name, age, and address of every living child of the marriage who is under 21 or incapacitated, and whether the wife is currently pregnant.
The grounds for dissolution. Indiana recognizes four: irretrievable breakdown of the marriage, a felony conviction after the marriage, impotence existing at the time of the marriage, or incurable insanity lasting at least two years. Nearly all petitions cite irretrievable breakdown.⁴
The relief you want the court to grant: division of property and debts, custody, child support, spousal maintenance, or any combination.
Whether either party is a lifetime sex or violent offender.

The caption uses the format the statute requires: “In Re the marriage of __________ and __________.”⁵ Do not title it “Plaintiff vs. Defendant” the way most lawsuits are captioned.

Signing Under Oath

The petition must be verified, meaning you sign it under oath or under penalty of perjury affirming that the facts are true.³ In practice, that usually means signing before a notary public. Many county clerks have a notary available; call ahead to confirm and schedule. Some Indiana courts accept a signed declaration under penalty of perjury without a separate notary, but the safest approach is to get it notarized.

Where to Get the Forms

Indiana Legal Help offers four free form packets. Pick the one that matches your situation.⁶

Divorce without children, spouses agree. The simplest packet.
Divorce without children, spouses do not agree.
Divorce with children, spouses agree. Includes custody, parenting time, and child support terms.
Divorce with children, spouses do not agree. The most involved packet.

Each packet includes the petition itself along with a summons, a proposed decree, and instructions. You can also pick up paper copies at the local Clerk of the Court. Complete every field in blue or black ink or type your entries; illegible forms slow the case down.

Filing the Petition

Electronic Filing

Indiana uses the Odyssey File & Serve system for e-filing. Attorneys must e-file. Self-represented filers may e-file but are not required to.⁷ Register through an e-filing service provider at the state’s e-filing portal. The system issues an electronic timestamp confirming when your petition was received.

Paper Filing

If you are filing on paper, bring your documents to the Clerk of the Court in the county where at least one spouse meets the three-month residency requirement. Bring the original plus at least two copies: one for the court file and one to be served on your spouse. The clerk stamps each copy with the filing date and assigns a cause number.

Filing Fees

Opening a new dissolution case costs about $157, though the exact figure varies by county. Adding sheriff service brings the combined cost to roughly $185. If you cannot afford the fee, you can file a fee waiver request asking the court to excuse it based on financial hardship. Indiana Legal Help provides the waiver form and instructions.⁸

Serving Your Spouse

After filing, you must deliver a copy of the summons and petition to your spouse through an authorized method. This step, called service of process, satisfies the constitutional requirement that your spouse receive notice of the case and a chance to respond. Indiana Trial Rule 4.1 allows several methods:

Certified or registered mail to your spouse’s home or workplace with a return receipt. The signed receipt is your proof of delivery.
Personal delivery by a sheriff’s deputy or private process server, who hands the documents directly to your spouse.
Dwelling service, in which a process server leaves copies at your spouse’s home. A copy must also be mailed to the same address by first-class mail.

Indiana Legal Help also provides a Spouse’s Waiver of Service form.⁶ If your spouse is cooperative, they can sign the waiver acknowledging they received the documents directly from you, by hand or by regular mail, and that the court doesn’t need to arrange formal service. This is the fastest and cheapest route when both spouses are on the same page.

File proof of service, or the signed waiver, with the clerk. Without it, the court cannot move the case forward or enter any final orders.

The 60-Day Waiting Period

Indiana imposes a mandatory 60-day cooling-off period that starts on the date you file. No final hearing can happen and no dissolution decree can be signed before those 60 days run.¹ Even if you and your spouse agree on every detail from day one, the judge cannot act until that period ends.

This is not dead time. You can use it to negotiate a settlement, exchange financial disclosures, and address urgent issues through temporary orders. Either party can ask the court for provisional relief covering child custody and support, temporary spousal maintenance, who stays in the family home, or restraining orders in cases involving domestic violence. Temporary orders stay in effect until the final decree replaces them.

Finishing the Case

Contested Final Hearing

Once the 60-day period passes, the court holds a final hearing. The judge reviews the evidence, including any agreements the parties have filed, and determines whether the grounds stated in the petition are true. If satisfied, the judge enters a dissolution decree. If the judge believes reconciliation is still possible, the court can order counseling and continue the case. Either spouse may then request dissolution 45 days after the continuance, and if nobody files a motion within 90 days, the case is automatically dismissed.⁹

Summary Dissolution When You Agree

If both spouses agree on everything, you may not need a hearing at all. Indiana allows a summary dissolution decree when both parties file verified pleadings that include a written waiver of the final hearing and either a statement that no issues are contested or a written settlement agreement resolving all contested matters.¹⁰ The court can enter this summary decree once the 60 days have elapsed, with no courtroom appearance required.

If Either Spouse Is in the Military

Two rules matter if either spouse serves. A spouse stationed at an Indiana military installation counts as an Indiana resident for filing purposes, even if their permanent home is in another state.² And if you later seek a default judgment because your spouse hasn’t responded, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act requires an affidavit stating whether the respondent is in military service. If they are, or if you cannot determine their status, the court cannot simply enter a default; a judge must first appoint an attorney to protect the absent servicemember’s interests.¹¹

1
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-10 – Final Hearing
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Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-6 – Residence Filing in County of Guardians Residence
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Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-5 – Verified Petition Averments Guardian
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Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-3 – Grounds for Decree
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Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-4 – Caption
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Indiana Legal Help. Divorce
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Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Judicial Branch Statewide E-filing
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Indiana Legal Help. Filing Fee Frequently Asked Questions
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Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-15 – Final Hearing Evidence Dissolution
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Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-13 – Summary Dissolution Decree
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3931 – Protection of Servicemembers Against Default Judgments