To file for legal separation in California, you submit a petition and summons to the superior court in a county where you or your spouse lives, pay a $435 first-appearance fee, have your spouse formally served by another adult, and exchange financial disclosures before the court can enter a judgment. The process looks a lot like divorce, and uses many of the same forms, but you stay legally married at the end and there is no six-month waiting period.
Who Can File and Where
California imposes almost no residency requirement for legal separation. Only one spouse needs to live in California at the time of filing. There is no six-month state residency or three-month county residency rule like the one that applies to divorce.1Judicial Branch of California. Legal Separation
That makes legal separation useful if you just moved to California and need court orders in place quickly. You can file now and, once you meet the divorce residency rules, amend the petition to request a dissolution instead.1Judicial Branch of California. Legal Separation
You also need a legal ground. California is a no-fault state, and nearly every petition cites irreconcilable differences; the other option is permanent legal incapacity to make decisions.2California Legislative Information. California Family Code 2310 You do not have to prove wrongdoing or explain the breakdown.
The Forms That Open Your Case
You file the opening paperwork with the family law clerk in your county’s superior court. Every form is a Judicial Council form available free on the California Courts website.
- Petition — Marriage/Domestic Partnership, Form FL-100. This opens the case. Check the box for legal separation, list the date of separation, and mark the orders you want the court to make about property, support, and custody.3Judicial Branch of California. Petition — Marriage/Domestic Partnership (Family Law) (FL-100)
- Summons, Form FL-110. This is the notice to your spouse. Its reverse side carries the automatic restraining orders that take effect immediately once the case is filed.
- UCCJEA Declaration, Form FL-105. Required if you have minor children. It tells the court where the children have lived and whether any other custody case exists.
If you have children or plan to request support, additional forms will apply. Your county’s family law self-help center can confirm the complete list before you file.
Filing Fees and Fee Waivers
The first-appearance filing fee is $435.4California Courts. Statewide Civil Fee Schedule Effective January 1, 2026 Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Francisco counties add a local courthouse construction surcharge, so expect a slightly higher total there. Your spouse pays a separate filing fee when they respond.
If the fee is out of reach, file a Request to Waive Court Fees (Form FW-001) at the same time as your petition. The court reviews your income and either waives the fee, allows installments, or denies the request.
Serving Your Spouse
Once the clerk stamps your paperwork, your spouse has to be formally served. California requires that someone other than you, and other than any party to the case, hand-deliver the file-stamped Petition, Summons, and any related forms. You cannot serve the papers yourself.
Any adult who is not part of the case can do it: a friend, a relative, a professional process server, or the county sheriff. After delivery, that person completes a Proof of Service of Summons (Form FL-115), which you then file with the court to show your spouse received notice.
Restrictions That Start the Moment You File
The automatic temporary restraining orders, or ATROs, print on the back of Form FL-110 and bind both spouses as soon as the case is filed and the summons is issued. They restrict both of you from:5California Courts. FL-110 Summons (Family Law)
- Removing minor children from California, or applying for new passports for them, without the other spouse’s written consent or a court order.
- Changing, canceling, cashing out, or altering beneficiaries on life, health, auto, or disability insurance.
- Transferring, hiding, or selling community or separate property outside the normal course of business or basic living expenses.
- Modifying nonprobate transfers, including transfer-on-death designations and rights of survivorship.
Both spouses also have to give each other at least five business days’ notice before any extraordinary spending. These orders stay in force until the case is dismissed, the judgment is entered, or the court modifies them. Violations can bring sanctions, so read the back of the summons carefully before you file.
The Preliminary Declaration of Disclosure
Both spouses have to exchange a full set of financial disclosures. This step cannot be waived, even by agreement, and skipping it will hold up your judgment.
The petitioner has to serve the disclosure on the other spouse either with the petition or within 60 days of filing. The respondent has the same 60-day window running from the date they file their response. Written agreement or a court order can extend those deadlines.6California Courts. FL-140 Declaration of Disclosure
The package includes:
- Declaration of Disclosure, Form FL-140, as the cover sheet.
- Schedule of Assets and Debts, Form FL-142, listing everything each spouse owns and owes and identifying each item as community or separate property.
- Income and Expense Declaration, Form FL-150, showing income, monthly expenses, and obligations.
- Copies of all tax returns filed in the two years before you served the disclosure.
You serve these on your spouse directly. They do not get filed with the court. Hiding assets or income at this stage can lead the court to set aside a judgment later.
What Happens After Your Spouse Is Served
Your spouse has 30 days after service to file a Response (Form FL-120).7Judicial Branch of California. Learn Your Options The response tells the court whether they agree with your requests on property, support, and custody, or want something different.
If they respond and agree with everything, the case moves forward as uncontested. If they disagree on any point, you will need to negotiate on your own, through attorneys, or through a mediator. California courts require mediation for contested custody disputes before a judge will hear them.
If your spouse never responds, you can ask the court to enter a default after 30 days. In a default case, the court can make final orders without further input from your spouse.7Judicial Branch of California. Learn Your Options A late response is still allowed if you have not yet requested the default, but once the default is entered your spouse would need a judge’s permission to participate.
The Consent Rule That Can Change Everything
A California court cannot grant a legal separation unless both spouses agree to it.8California Legislative Information. California Family Code 2345 If your spouse files a response asking for a divorce instead, the court has to proceed with the divorce. You cannot force a legal separation on a spouse who wants the marriage dissolved.
The one exception is if your spouse never makes a general appearance in the case. In that situation, you can obtain a legal separation judgment by default. But once your spouse responds and requests dissolution, that request controls. If your spouse has already said they want a divorce, filing for legal separation will not keep the case a separation case.
Finalizing the Judgment
There is no six-month waiting period for legal separation. If both spouses agree on every issue, the judge can sign the judgment as soon as the paperwork is complete and correctly submitted.
To finalize, you submit the final forms along with either a written settlement agreement or, in a default, a proposed judgment reflecting the petitioner’s requests. The court reviews everything and the judge signs the Judgment (Form FL-180), which becomes the binding order.9Judicial Branch of California. Finalize Your Divorce The judgment addresses property division, debt allocation, spousal support, custody and child support, and attorney fee orders where applicable.10California Courts. FL-180 Judgment (Family Law)
Special Timeline Rules for Military Spouses
If your spouse is an active-duty servicemember, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act can affect your case. A servicemember who receives notice of a legal separation proceeding can request that the court pause the case for at least 90 days if military duties prevent them from appearing. The court must grant the stay when the servicemember provides documentation showing duty requirements prevent attendance and military leave is unavailable, and additional stays are possible.11United States Courts. Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) Build this into your timing if your spouse is deployed or stationed away.
After the Judgment
Legal separation leaves you legally married, which has real consequences for tax filing status, health insurance eligibility, Social Security spousal benefits, and how your estate passes on death. Once the judgment is signed, review your will, beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance, and any trust documents to be sure they still match your intent. The ATROs restricted many of these changes while the case was pending; once the judgment is final, that restriction lifts.