How to Fill Out the Bucks County Sheriff’s Order for Service Form

The Bucks County Sheriff’s Order for Service form tells the Sheriff’s Office who needs to receive your legal papers and where to find them. You submit the one-page form together with your court documents and the required fee, and a deputy handles physical delivery. In Pennsylvania, the sheriff is the default server of original process in Court of Common Pleas cases, so most Bucks County litigants will need this form to move a case forward.

Where to Get the Form

The Order for Service is a downloadable PDF on the Bucks County Sheriff’s Office Forms and Fees page.¹ You can also pick up a printed copy at the Sheriff’s Office window inside the Bucks County Justice Center at 100 N Main Street, Doylestown, PA 18901.² The office is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.³

How to Fill Out the Form

The form is short, but every field matters. Errors or missing information can produce a “Not Found” return, which stalls your case and costs you a second filing fee.

Case Information

At the top, enter the Prothonotary number assigned when you filed. Check the box for the type of document being served (Writ of Summons, Complaint, Divorce, or Other). If you check “Other,” write in the specific document type. Fill in the case caption exactly as it appears on your filed documents: plaintiff on one line, defendant on the other.⁴ A mismatch between the caption on your form and the caption on your documents is an easy reason for the office to send everything back.

Defendant’s Address

The deputy needs a precise street address. Include apartment numbers, building names, and gate or access codes. A vague or outdated address is the most common reason service fails.

Special Instructions

The form has a space for anything that helps the deputy locate and identify the right person: the defendant’s physical description (height, build, hair color), the hours they’re most likely home, whether there is a dog on the property, or a second address to try. The more specific you are, the better your odds of first-attempt service.

Who the Deputy Can Serve

Pennsylvania’s rules spell out who can accept the papers, and getting this wrong can void the service. That affects what you write in the address and special instructions fields.

Individuals

The deputy can hand documents directly to the defendant. If the defendant isn’t available, the deputy can leave them with an adult family member at the defendant’s home, or with an adult in charge of the residence (such as a hotel or apartment building manager). The deputy can also serve the defendant at a workplace by handing the papers to an agent or the person running the office at that time.⁵ You can list both a home and a work address on the Order for Service to give the deputy more options.

Businesses and Partnerships

If you’re suing a partnership or unincorporated association, service goes to any partner, officer, registered agent, an agent the entity has authorized in writing, or the manager or clerk at a regular place of business, as long as that person isn’t also a plaintiff.⁶ For a corporation, look up the registered office through the Pennsylvania Department of State’s business search and use that address.

A Note on Suing a State Agency

If you’re suing a Commonwealth agency, you have to serve both the agency and the Office of Attorney General, which means a separate Order for Service for each location.⁷

Fees

The Sheriff’s Office charges a flat rate that includes a $30 computer fee. Current rates for service within Bucks County:

1 defendant: $110
2 defendants: $150
3 defendants: $190
4 defendants: $230

Each additional defendant beyond the first adds $40. Serving an extra document on the same trip costs $35, and notarizing an affidavit of service is $20.⁸

Serving Defendants in Other Counties

When the defendant lives in a different Pennsylvania county, Bucks County deputizes service to that county’s sheriff. You pay a Bucks County fee ($100 for one defendant, plus $40 for each additional defendant) and a separate deposit to the other county’s sheriff for their costs. Contact the other county’s Sheriff’s Office directly for their amount, then submit both payments with your documents to Bucks County.⁸

Fee Waivers

If you can’t afford the filing and service fees, file a Petition to Proceed In Forma Pauperis with the Prothonotary’s Office at the same time you file your case. The petition asks about your income, assets, debts, and dependents. A judge reviews it and must respond within 20 days. If approved, court costs, including sheriff service fees, are waived. If denied, you have 10 days to pay or risk having your case dismissed.

Submitting the Form

Bring the completed Order for Service, the original court documents to be served, and your payment to the Sheriff’s Office at the Justice Center in Doylestown. You can also mail everything in.

The Sheriff’s Office does not publish a list of accepted payment methods online. Call the civil process line at 215-348-6124 before your visit to confirm whether they accept personal checks, money orders, or other forms.³

The 30-Day Deadline

Once a writ is issued or a complaint is filed, the sheriff has 30 days to complete service within Pennsylvania.⁹ That window is tighter than most people expect, especially if the deputy can’t find the defendant on the first visit.

If 30 days pass without service, your process isn’t dead, but it does expire until you revive it. File a praecipe with the Prothonotary to reissue the writ or reinstate the complaint, and the 30-day clock starts over. You can do this as many times as needed.⁹ Don’t let this drift. Repeated reissuance without a genuine effort to serve can look like a lack of due diligence, and if the statute of limitations runs while you delay, you may lose the claim.

Checking Your Return of Service

The Return of Service is the document that proves delivery happened. It records the date, time, and location of service and the name of the person who accepted the papers. Since January 2019, the Bucks County Sheriff’s Office no longer mails returns. Completed returns are posted to the online docket. Look for a book-shaped icon in the “select” area of your case; clicking it displays the full return.³

Once the return shows successful service, file a copy with the Prothonotary if your case requires it. The date on the return starts the defendant’s response clock, typically 20 days for a complaint, so track that deadline yourself.

What to Do if Service Fails

A return marked “Not Found” means the deputy went to your address and couldn’t locate the defendant. Before a court will grant an alternative method of service, Pennsylvania requires you to show a genuine effort to track the person down. One “Not Found” return is not enough on its own.¹⁰

To request alternative service, file a motion with the Court of Common Pleas along with an affidavit describing your search. The court expects to see that you checked with postal authorities, contacted the defendant’s relatives or neighbors, searched voter registration and motor vehicle records, and ran a reasonable internet search.¹⁰ The more thorough your investigation, the stronger your motion. If granted, the court will typically order service by publication in the county’s designated legal publication and a newspaper of general circulation.¹¹

1
Bucks County, PA. Bucks County Sheriff’s Office – Forms and Fees
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Bucks County. Bucks County Justice Center
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Bucks County, PA. Civil Process
4
Bucks County. Order for Service
5
Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin. 231 Pa Code Rule 402 – Manner of Service
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Cornell Law Institute. 231 Pa Code Rule 423 – Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations
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Cornell Law Institute. 37 Pa Code 111.1 – Service of Process
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Bucks County Sheriff’s Office. 2024 Civil Process Fees
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Cornell Law Institute. 231 Pa Code Rule 401 – Time for Service, Reissuance, Reinstatement, and Substitution of Original Process
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Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin. 231 Pa Code Rule 430 – Service Pursuant to Special Order of Court
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Cornell Law Institute. 231 Pa Code Rule 430 – Service Pursuant to Special Order of Court