How to File for Divorce in Indiana: Forms, Fees, and 60-Day Wait

To file for divorce in Indiana, submit a verified Petition for Dissolution of Marriage to the circuit or superior court in the county where you meet the residency requirement, pay the filing fee, serve your spouse with the petition and summons, wait out a mandatory 60-day period, and then either present a signed settlement or go to a final hearing so a judge can enter the decree. One spouse must have lived in Indiana for six months and in the filing county for three months before you file.¹

Confirm You Meet Indiana’s Residency Rule

Before anything else, check the clock. At least one spouse has to have lived in Indiana for six months and in the county where you plan to file for the past three months. Military personnel stationed at an Indiana installation count as residents of the state and county where the base sits, even if their legal domicile is somewhere else.¹

You do not need a reason. Indiana is a no-fault state, and nearly every petition cites “irretrievable breakdown of the marriage.” The statute lists a few fault grounds — a felony conviction after the marriage, impotence at the time of the marriage, and incurable insanity for at least two years — but they require extra proof and are rarely used.²

Gather Your Information and Financial Records

Have this ready before you touch a form: full legal names, addresses, and dates of birth for both spouses and any minor children, plus the date and place of your marriage.³

Indiana courts require financial disclosure from both spouses, so pull records now. That means recent pay stubs (many counties ask for the last three), tax returns, and details on every income source. Then list your assets — real estate, bank accounts, retirement accounts, vehicles, business interests — and every debt, including mortgages, car loans, credit cards, and student loans. Skimping here is where settlements later fall apart. Incomplete disclosure creates fights that stretch the case out and raise the cost.

Prepare the Divorce Forms

The core document is the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage, the formal request that ends the marriage. Along with it you file a Summons, which is the court’s official notice to your spouse, and a Domestic Relations Appearance Form.³ If you need arrangements for custody, support, or property while the divorce is pending, you can add a motion for provisional orders when you file or submit one later.

Forms and instructions are on the Indiana Courts Self-Service Legal Center, which is set up for people without attorneys.⁴ Your county clerk can also point you to the correct local versions. Formatting rules vary by county; Marion County, for example, requires the petition to be typewritten on standard 8.5-by-11-inch paper with an original and one copy. The petition must be verified, meaning you sign under penalty of perjury that the facts in it are true.³

File the Petition and Pay the Fee

File in the clerk’s office of the county where you meet the three-month residency requirement. Indiana runs a statewide electronic filing system, and many counties accept or require e-filing.⁵

The base statewide civil filing fee, which covers divorce, is $157. Counties with an approved alternative dispute resolution plan add $20, bringing the total to $177. If you want the sheriff to serve your spouse, there is a separate $28 service fee.⁶ Payment methods depend on the county and generally include cash, check, and card.

Can’t afford the fee? File an affidavit describing your financial situation and ask the court to waive it. The judge reviews the request and enters an order granting or denying the waiver.

Once the clerk accepts your filing, the court assigns a case number and issues the summons. That case number stays with every document going forward.

Serve Your Spouse

Filing alone doesn’t put your spouse on notice. Indiana requires service of process, meaning the petition and summons reach your spouse through a legally recognized method.⁷ The usual options:

Certified mail through the clerk, with your spouse signing for the papers.
Sheriff’s service, where a deputy delivers the papers in person.
A private process server, which is often faster than waiting on the sheriff.

If you don’t know where your spouse lives or your spouse is ducking service, you can ask the court for permission to serve by publication in a newspaper for a set period. Courts treat publication as a last resort and expect proof that you tried the other methods first.⁷

Whichever method you use, proof of service goes into the court file. The case does not move forward until the record shows your spouse was properly notified.

Wait Out the 60 Days and Consider Temporary Orders

Indiana imposes a mandatory 60-day cooling-off period that starts on the filing date. No court can hear or decide the divorce before that window closes.⁸ Most cases run longer than 60 days; only couples with a signed, complete settlement can expect to finish right at the mark.

During the wait, either spouse can ask for provisional orders that govern the gap between filing and decree. Those orders can cover:

Temporary custody of the children.
Temporary child support or spousal maintenance.
Who stays in the house, who drives which car, and similar possession questions.
Restraining orders keeping either spouse from hiding, selling, or wasting marital assets outside normal daily use.

Provisional orders stay in force until the final decree and can be modified if things change.⁹

Settle or Go to a Final Hearing

The cheapest, fastest finish is a full written agreement covering every issue: property, debts, custody, parenting time, child support, and any maintenance. When both spouses genuinely agree, Indiana allows a summary dissolution. After the 60 days pass, both sign verified pleadings that include a written waiver of the final hearing along with either a statement that nothing is contested or a full settlement agreement. The judge can then enter the decree without any hearing.¹⁰

If issues remain contested, the case moves to a final hearing. The judge weighs the evidence, any partial agreements, and the verified pleadings already in the file. If the allegations in the petition are proven, the court enters a dissolution decree.¹¹

What the Final Decree Does

The decree handles property division, debt allocation, custody, parenting time, child support, and spousal maintenance. Terms from any settlement agreement get folded in and become enforceable court orders. The decree is final the moment it is entered. Either party can still appeal specific rulings, but the dissolution itself stands, and both spouses are free to remarry while an appeal is pending.¹²

1
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-6 – Residence; Filing in County
2
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-1-2 – Purposes and Policies of Article
3
indy.gov. File for Divorce
4
State of Indiana. To File for Divorce in Indiana
5
Indiana Judicial Branch. Statewide E-filing
6
State of Indiana. 2025 Court Costs and Fees by Case Type
7
Indiana Court Rules. Trial Rule 4 – Process
8
Indiana Court Rules. Trial Rule 6 – Time
9
Justia. Indiana Code Title 31, Article 15, Chapter 4 – Provisional Orders
10
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-13 – Summary Dissolution Decree
11
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-15 – Final Hearing; Evidence; Dissolution
12
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-16 – Dissolution Decree; Scope; Finality