How to File for a No-Fault Divorce in New York

To file for a no-fault divorce in New York, one spouse swears under oath that the marriage has been irretrievably broken for at least six months, buys an index number from the County Clerk for $210, serves the other spouse with a summons, resolves every financial and custody issue by agreement or court decision, and submits a final packet of forms to a judge for signature. Minimum court filing fees come to $335 for an uncontested case, and the overall timeline turns almost entirely on how quickly the two spouses settle the money and parenting questions.¹

Who Can File in New York

Before a New York court will hear the case, you or your spouse must meet one of three residency thresholds:

Either spouse has lived in New York continuously for at least two years before filing.
Either spouse has lived in New York continuously for at least one year, and the couple married in New York, lived together in New York during the marriage, or the grounds for divorce arose in New York.
Both spouses live in New York when the case is filed and the grounds arose in the state.

The two-year option has no extra requirements and is the simplest to meet. If neither spouse fits any of these categories, the case cannot proceed in New York regardless of where you were married.²

The Six-Month Sworn Statement

The entire legal basis for a no-fault divorce is one sworn statement: the marriage has broken down irretrievably for at least six months. You do not have to prove adultery, abandonment, cruelty, or any other misconduct. You do not have to explain why the marriage failed.³

There is no required separation period. You can file while still living in the same household. The six months refers to how long the relationship has been broken, not how long you have lived apart.

Here is the catch that trips people up: filing on no-fault grounds does not get you a divorce by itself. The judge will not sign the final judgment until every financial and custody issue in the marriage has been resolved, either by agreement between the spouses or by court decision.⁴

What to Gather Before You Start

Pull these together before you touch the forms. Missing information slows the process, and incomplete financial disclosures can create problems later in the case.

Full legal names, dates of birth, addresses, and Social Security numbers for both spouses.
A copy of the marriage certificate, with the date and location of the ceremony.
Names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers for any children of the marriage.
Recent pay stubs, two to three years of tax returns, bank and investment account statements, retirement account statements, property deeds, mortgage documents, vehicle titles, and credit card statements.
Any prenuptial or postnuptial agreement.

These feed directly into the court forms, the maintenance and child support worksheets, and the eventual settlement agreement.

Filing the Case and Paying the Fees

Your first step is buying an index number from the County Clerk’s office in the county where you plan to file. The index number is the identifier for your case and costs $210. It goes on every document you file after that.⁵

With the index number, you file either a Summons with Notice or a Summons and Verified Complaint. The Summons with Notice is shorter and simply announces that a divorce action has started. The Summons and Verified Complaint lays out the specific grounds and the relief you want. Both are standard forms available through the New York State Courts website.¹

Later, when you file the Request for Judicial Intervention and Note of Issue to put your case in front of a judge, you pay another $125. That brings the minimum court fees to $335. Add costs for photocopies, notarization, mailing, and, if you use one, a process server.

Fee Waivers for Low-Income Filers

If you cannot afford the filing fees, ask the court to waive them. You submit an affidavit describing your income, assets, and expenses and explaining that you cannot pay. If the court approves, all filing and service fees are waived. If the court denies the request, you have 120 days to pay the fee before the case is dismissed. When a legal aid organization or nonprofit legal services provider represents you, the fees are waived automatically as long as the organization certifies that you qualify.⁶

Serving Your Spouse

After filing, you have to formally deliver the papers to your spouse. New York requires personal service. Someone other than you, at least 18 years old, physically hands the papers to your spouse. That can be a friend, a relative, or a professional process server. Process servers typically charge between $40 and $200.⁷

You have 120 days from filing to complete service. Miss that deadline and the case can stall or be jeopardized.⁸

If your spouse is cooperative, there is a shortcut. You can hand the papers over yourself, and your spouse signs and notarizes an Affidavit of Defendant confirming they received the papers and agree to the terms. That eliminates the need for a process server and is the standard path in a true uncontested case.

Automatic Orders That Take Effect the Moment You File

The second you file in New York, a set of automatic orders restricts what both spouses can do with money, property, and insurance. These bind the filing spouse upon filing and the other spouse upon being served. Nobody at the clerk’s window will warn you about them, and violating them can lead to court sanctions.

Under the automatic orders, neither spouse may:

Sell, transfer, hide, or encumber individual or joint property without written consent or a court order. Normal household expenses and attorney’s fees are the exceptions.
Withdraw from, transfer, or apply for benefits from retirement accounts (IRAs, 401(k)s, pensions) without written consent or a court order. Already-flowing retirement payments can continue.
Run up unreasonable debt, borrow against credit lines secured by the family home, or take cash advances outside normal household or business expenses.
Remove the other spouse or the children from existing medical, dental, or hospital insurance.
Change beneficiaries on life, auto, homeowners, or renters insurance.

The orders stay in effect until the judge signs the final judgment or the case is dismissed.⁹

The Four Issues You Have to Resolve

A no-fault judgment will not be signed until property, spousal maintenance, child support, and custody are all settled. In an uncontested case, you and your spouse put the terms into a written settlement agreement. If you cannot agree, the court decides, and at that point the case is contested, more expensive, and much slower.

Equitable Distribution of Property

New York divides marital property equitably. That means fairly given the circumstances, not automatically 50/50. Marital property covers most assets and debts acquired during the marriage no matter whose name is on the account or title. Property one spouse owned before the marriage, inherited, or received as a personal gift is generally separate property and stays with that spouse.

One trap: a divorce decree that assigns a joint debt to one spouse does not release the other from the original contract with the creditor. If your name is on a joint mortgage or credit card and the court orders your ex to pay it, the lender can still come after you if your ex stops paying. The only clean fix is to refinance the debt into one spouse’s name or close the account.

Spousal Maintenance

Spousal maintenance (formerly alimony) follows a guideline formula. One formula applies when the paying spouse also pays child support for children of the marriage; a different formula applies when they do not. Both use percentages of each spouse’s income and compare the result against a cap tied to combined income to produce a guideline amount.¹⁰

A court can deviate from the guideline amount if the result would be unjust or inappropriate, weighing factors like the length of the marriage, each spouse’s age and health, earning capacity, and household contributions. The income cap and self-support reserve are adjusted periodically, so check the current worksheet before running numbers.

Child Support

New York’s Child Support Standards Act sets percentages of combined parental income that must go toward supporting the children:

One child: 17 percent
Two children: 25 percent
Three children: 29 percent
Four children: 31 percent
Five or more children: at least 35 percent

The percentages apply to combined income up to a statutory cap, which is $193,000 as of 2026. For income above the cap, the court can apply the same percentages, use other factors, or both. Each parent’s share is then prorated based on their share of combined income.¹¹

Custody and Parenting Time

Custody arrangements have to put the children’s best interests first. In an uncontested case, the parents propose their own plan for legal custody (who makes major decisions about health, education, and welfare) and physical custody (where the children live). Courts rarely reject a custody plan both parents agree on unless something in it clearly harms the children.

If the parents cannot agree, the court decides, and that process can involve evaluations, hearings, and a court-appointed attorney for the children. Reaching agreement outside court, with a mediator if needed, is almost always faster and cheaper.

Submitting the Final Uncontested Packet

Once every issue is resolved and your spouse has either signed the Affidavit of Defendant or defaulted, you prepare the uncontested divorce packet for the judge. It is substantial. The packet includes the Verified Complaint (if not filed earlier), proof of service, a sworn statement from the plaintiff, maintenance and child support worksheets, findings of fact and conclusions of law, a proposed Judgment of Divorce, a Request for Judicial Intervention, a Note of Issue, and several other required forms.¹²

The forms are available as a single downloadable packet from the New York State Courts website in two versions: one for couples with children under 21 and one for couples without. Accuracy at this stage is where most self-represented filers trip. A single error or missing form can get the submission bounced back and add weeks. If you are handling the case yourself, read the court’s instructions carefully, and consider having an attorney review the finished packet before you file it.

If Your Spouse Never Responds

If your spouse was properly served and does not respond at all, they are in default and the case can still proceed. You wait 40 days from the date of service, then file the remaining papers with the County Clerk, paying the $125 Request for Judicial Intervention and Note of Issue fee. The judge reviews the paperwork and, if it is in order, signs the Judgment of Divorce. You then serve your ex with a copy of the signed judgment and file proof of service with the County Clerk.⁸

A default does not mean the judge will rubber-stamp whatever you asked for. The court still reviews property division, support calculations, and custody arrangements for fairness and compliance with state guidelines.

Restoring a Prior Name

You can ask the court to restore a prior surname as part of the divorce judgment. The restoration is limited to a last name you actually used before the marriage; the divorce process cannot be used to adopt a brand new name. If the judge grants the request, the Judgment of Divorce is the legal basis for updating identification, bank accounts, and other records.¹³

1
NY CourtHelp. Filing for an Uncontested Divorce
2
New York State Senate. New York Domestic Relations Law 230 – Required Residence of Parties
3
New York State Senate. New York Domestic Relations Law 170 – Action for Divorce
4
New York State Unified Court System. Residency and Grounds for a Divorce
5
New York State Unified Court System. Filing Fees
6
New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules 1101 – Waiver of Costs, Fees and Expenses
7
New York State Unified Court System. Serving the Defendant in an Uncontested Divorce
8
New York State Unified Court System. Uncontested Divorce Overview
9
New York State Senate. New York Domestic Relations Law 236 – Equitable Distribution, Maintenance, and Child Support
10
New York State Unified Court System. Maintenance Guidelines Worksheet and Calculator
11
New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 413 – Parents Duty to Support Child
12
New York State Unified Court System. Uniform Uncontested Divorce Packet Forms
13
New York State Unified Court System. Marriage and Divorce – Name Change