How to Find and Request Divorce Records in Texas

Texas divorce records are held at the county level by the District Clerk of the county where the divorce was granted, and that office is the only source for a certified copy of the decree itself. The Texas Department of State Health Services keeps a statewide index going back to 1968 and can issue a verification letter confirming that a divorce was recorded, but the letter is not the decree and does not carry the same legal weight.¹

Which Office Holds What

Every Texas divorce is finalized in a district court, and the District Clerk in that county keeps the permanent case file. That file contains the original divorce decree along with the motions, pleadings, and exhibits from the case. Certified copies of any of those documents come from the District Clerk and nowhere else.¹

The DSHS Vital Statistics Section plays a narrower role. It maintains a public index of Texas divorces recorded since 1968 and can issue verification letters based on that index. A verification letter confirms that a divorce was recorded and gives the names, location, and date, but it is not certified and government agencies, lenders, and courts will usually ask for the decree instead.²

Decree or Verification Letter

Figure out which document you actually need before you order anything.

A divorce decree is the court order that ended the marriage and sets out property division, custody, and support terms. This is what most agencies and lenders require.³
A verification letter from DSHS simply confirms that a divorce since 1968 was recorded with the state. Useful for proving marital status in low-stakes situations, or for identifying the county if you’ve lost track of where the case was filed.
The full case file includes everything filed during the proceedings. You rarely need this unless you’re preparing to modify the order or dispute its original terms.

What to Gather Before You Request

The more of the following you can bring, the faster the clerk can pull your record:

Both spouses’ full legal names at the time of the divorce, including any maiden or prior married names.
The year the divorce was finalized, or a rough range.
The Texas county where the divorce was granted.
The case number, if you have it. This uniquely identifies the file and skips the index search entirely.

If you don’t know the county, a DSHS verification letter will confirm where a post-1968 divorce was recorded, which then tells you which District Clerk to contact.

Requesting the Decree From the District Clerk

Methods vary by county, but most District Clerks accept requests at least two of three ways:

In person. Bring valid photo ID. Staff can usually pull the record and produce a certified copy the same day.
By mail. Send a written request (some counties use a specific form), a photocopy of your ID, and payment. Include as much identifying information as you can. Turnaround typically runs one to three weeks.¹
Online. Some counties offer their own case search or document ordering portals. Texas has no single statewide court records database, but re:SearchTX is a free tool that searches civil case records across many counties and district courts. Coverage is uneven, so you may still have to contact the clerk directly.⁴

Requesting a DSHS Verification Letter

If you only need to confirm that a divorce happened, or you’re trying to locate the county before ordering the decree, request a verification letter from DSHS Vital Statistics. Orders go through Texas.gov online or by mail. The fee is $20 per verification.⁵ Current processing times run 20 to 25 business days for online orders and 25 to 30 business days for mail-in requests. Expedited processing is available if you submit the application by overnight mail with the expedited fee. Orders ship back by USPS First Class mail.⁶

What It Costs

Texas law sets the base District Clerk fee for a certified copy of any court record at $5, which covers the certificate and seal. Each additional page is $1 for paper or scanned copies.⁷ A short decree runs $6 or $7; a lengthy one with exhibits costs more. Some counties add convenience fees for online ordering.

DSHS verification letters are $20 each.⁵ If you need an apostille for use abroad, the Texas Secretary of State charges $15 per document.⁸

Who Can Get a Copy

Texas divorce cases are generally part of the public court record. You do not have to be one of the parties to request a copy from the District Clerk. The Texas Public Information Act does not directly govern court records, since the judiciary is excluded from its definition of “governmental body.” Instead, judicial access is controlled by rules adopted by the Texas Supreme Court, and the default is openness.⁹

Certain portions of a file can still be sealed or redacted. Financial account numbers, Social Security numbers, and sensitive information about children are often withheld. A judge can seal an entire file, but only by specific court order. Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 76a, which sets the general sealing standard, expressly excludes Family Code cases, so any sealing in a divorce follows a different procedure.

Divorces Before 1968 or Records That Have Been Lost

The DSHS index only goes back to 1968, so the state cannot verify older divorces. For a divorce finalized before that year, the District Clerk in the county of record is your only source.¹ If you don’t know which county handled the case, county genealogy archives, the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, and local historical societies sometimes hold older court indexes.

Courthouses occasionally lose records to fire, flood, or administrative error. Federal law allows any interested person to petition the court to reconstruct a lost record. The process involves filing a verified application, personally serving every other interested party, and attending a hearing at least sixty days later. If the court is satisfied the application is accurate, its order carries the same legal effect as the original.¹⁰ This is uncommon, but the option exists.

Skip the Third-Party Record Sites

A search for Texas divorce records will surface dozens of private websites promising instant access. Be skeptical. These sites pull from incomplete public databases, charge more than the government office does, and deliver documents that are not certified and carry no legal weight. The privacy risk is also real: the FTC has documented third-party data handlers storing sensitive information in plain readable text, failing to delete old records, and taking years to detect unauthorized access.¹¹ For a document this important, order directly from the District Clerk or DSHS.

If You Need the Decree Recognized Abroad

To use a Texas divorce decree in another country, you will usually need an apostille. The Texas Secretary of State is the only office in Texas that can issue one authenticating a Texas public document for overseas use.¹²

Two practical points. The decree must be less than five years old to qualify for authentication, so if yours is older, order a fresh certified copy from the District Clerk first. And for countries that are not members of the Hague Apostille Convention, you will need an additional authentication from the U.S. State Department’s Office of Authentications after receiving the Texas certificate. Some countries also reject documents notarized online, so confirm requirements with the receiving authority before you submit.¹²

1
Texas DSHS. Marriage and Divorce Records
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Texas DSHS. Marriage and Divorce FAQs
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USAGov. How to Get a Copy of a Divorce Decree or Certificate
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Texas State Law Library. Court Records – Guides at Texas State Law Library
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Texas DSHS. Costs and Fees
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Texas DSHS. Processing Times
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State of Texas. Texas Government Code 51-318 – Fees Due When Service Performed or Requested
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Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Request a Universal Apostille
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State of Texas. Texas Government Code Chapter 552 – Public Information
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 U.S. Code 1734 – Court Record Lost or Destroyed, Generally
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Federal Trade Commission. When Third-Party Service Providers Are Party to Sensitive Data
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Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Apostille/Authentication of Documents