Indiana family law lives in Title 31 of the Indiana Code, and it governs who can marry, how a marriage ends, how property and parenting responsibilities are split, how child support is calculated, when grandparents can seek visitation, how adoptions proceed, and what protection a domestic violence victim can ask a court for. Several Indiana rules are stricter or narrower than what people expect from watching cases unfold in other states, so the details matter whether you are planning a wedding, filing a divorce petition, or responding to one.
Getting Married in Indiana
Marriage in Indiana requires a license from a county clerk. The license is good for 60 days, and the ceremony can happen the same day it is issued. If 60 days pass without a ceremony, the couple has to apply again.
Both applicants must be at least 18. A 16- or 17-year-old cannot simply bring a parent’s signature; the minor has to petition a juvenile court for an order approving the marriage and fully emancipating them. The other person in the couple cannot be more than four years older than the minor, the court independently decides whether the marriage is in the minor’s best interests, and there is a rebuttable presumption against approval if both parents oppose it.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-11-1-7 – Petition for Marriage of Individual 16 or 17 Years of Age; Evidentiary Hearing; Emancipation
One boundary surprises couples who have lived together for years: Indiana does not recognize common-law marriages entered into after January 1, 1958. Living together and calling yourselves married does not make you married in Indiana. The state does generally recognize marriages validly formed in other states.
Filing for Divorce
Indiana is a no-fault state. The usual path is to assert that the marriage has suffered an “irretrievable breakdown,” which requires no proof of wrongdoing. The statute recognizes only four grounds total:
- Irretrievable breakdown.
- Conviction of either spouse of a felony after the marriage.
- Impotence existing at the time of the marriage.
- Incurable insanity lasting at least two years.
A court cannot grant a divorce on any other basis.2Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-2-3 – Grounds for Decree
Once a petition is filed, the court cannot hold a final hearing until at least 60 days have passed. That window exists for settlement talks or reconciliation. Contested cases typically take longer than 60 days to finish.
Spousal Maintenance Is Narrow
Indiana courts have far less discretion to order ongoing spousal support than courts in many other states. Maintenance is available in only three situations:3Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-7-2 – Findings Concerning Maintenance
- A spouse is physically or mentally incapacitated to the point where their ability to support themselves is materially affected. Maintenance can last for the duration of the incapacity.
- A spouse must forgo employment because they are the custodian of a child whose incapacity requires full-time care. Maintenance can run for an appropriate period.
- Rehabilitative maintenance for a spouse who needs time and education to re-enter the workforce. This form cannot exceed three years from the final decree.
For rehabilitative awards, the court weighs each spouse’s education level at marriage and at filing, whether the requesting spouse interrupted a career for homemaking or child care, each spouse’s earning capacity, and how long training for appropriate employment would take.
The three-year cap catches people off guard. Staying home for 20 years to raise children does not extend it. That makes property division especially important when there is a long-term income gap between the spouses.
How Marital Property Gets Divided
Indiana uses a “one pot” approach. Everything either spouse owns goes on the table, whether acquired before the marriage, during the marriage, or by gift or inheritance.4Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-7-4 – Division of Property Real estate, vehicles, bank accounts, retirement funds, and business interests all count.
The starting presumption is an equal 50/50 split. Either spouse can argue for a different division using these factors:5Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-15-7-5 – Presumption for Equal Division of Marital Property; Rebuttal
- Each spouse’s contribution to acquiring property, including non-income contributions like homemaking.
- Property one spouse brought in or received by gift or inheritance.
- Each spouse’s economic circumstances, including whether the custodial parent should keep the family home.
- Whether either spouse wasted or hid marital assets.
- Each spouse’s earning ability going forward.
Retirement Accounts and QDROs
Retirement accounts are often the largest asset after the house, and splitting them takes a specific document. ERISA-covered employer plans can only pay a share to a former spouse if the plan administrator receives a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO). Without one, the plan has no authority to pay out, no matter what the divorce decree says.6U.S. Department of Labor. Qualified Domestic Relations Orders under ERISA – A Practical Guide to Dividing Retirement Benefits
The QDRO should be drafted during or immediately after the divorce and submitted to the plan administrator for approval. Delaying it, or forgetting to address retirement benefits in the decree, can make a share difficult or impossible to recover later. Government pensions and church plans generally fall outside ERISA and follow different rules.
Tax Basis Carries Over
Under federal tax law, property transfers between spouses as part of a divorce are not taxable events if the transfer happens within one year of the divorce or is otherwise related to it. The receiving spouse takes the transferor’s original cost basis, so any built-in gain or loss carries over and gets recognized when that spouse sells.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 1041 – Transfers of Property Between Spouses or Incident to Divorce A $300,000 house with a $100,000 basis is not the same as $300,000 in cash, because selling the house will trigger a taxable gain.
Child Custody and the Best Interests Standard
Indiana courts decide custody based on the child’s best interests, with no presumption favoring either parent. The statutory factors include:8Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-17-2-8 – Custody Order
- The child’s age and sex.
- Each parent’s wishes.
- The child’s wishes, with greater weight given when the child is at least 14.
- The child’s relationship with parents, siblings, and other significant people.
- The child’s adjustment to home, school, and community.
- The mental and physical health of everyone involved.
- Any history of domestic or family violence by either parent.
- Whether the child has been cared for by a de facto custodian.
Custody splits into two parts. Legal custody is decision-making authority over education, healthcare, and religious upbringing. Physical custody determines where the child lives. Courts can award either jointly or solely. Joint custody is common when both parents are fit and able to cooperate; sole custody fits where one parent poses a risk or joint arrangements would harm the child.
Modifying Custody Later
A parent asking to change an existing order has to show two things: the change is in the child’s best interests, and there has been a substantial change in one or more of the custody factors.9Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-17-2-21 – Modification of Child Custody Order Courts will not revisit events from before the last custody proceeding unless they tie to a changed factor, which keeps parents from relitigating old disputes.
Moving With a Child
A parent who plans to relocate must file a notice of intent with the court that issued the custody or parenting time order. The other parent can object, and the court then decides whether the move is in the child’s best interests.10Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-17-2.2-1 – Notice of Intent to Move Residence
Not every move triggers the notice. You do not need to file one if the move actually brings you closer to the other parent, or if it increases the distance by no more than 20 miles and the child can stay in the same school. A prior court order can also waive the requirement. Moving without proper notice when it is required can seriously damage your credibility with the court.
Child Support
Indiana follows the Indiana Child Support Guidelines, built on an Income Shares Model. The goal is that the child receives roughly the share of parental income they would have received if the household were intact. The calculation uses both parents’ gross income, the number of children, healthcare costs, and each parent’s parenting time.11Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Child Support Rules and Guidelines The state offers an online calculator for estimating an obligation.12Indiana Judicial Branch. Child Support Calculator
Adjustments above the basic amount can be made for extraordinary expenses, including unusual healthcare costs and special educational needs. A parent with significantly more overnights gets a parenting time credit that reduces the obligation.
Enforcement is strong. Federal law requires every state to maintain procedures for automatic income withholding, interception of state tax refunds for overdue support, and suspension of driver’s, professional, and recreational licenses when a parent falls behind.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S. Code 666 – Requirement of Statutorily Prescribed Procedures to Improve Effectiveness of Child Support Enforcement The federal Office of Child Support Enforcement coordinates cases that cross state or national lines.14Administration for Children and Families. Office of Child Support Enforcement
When Grandparents Can Seek Visitation
Indiana permits a grandparent to petition for visitation only in limited circumstances: the child’s parent has died, the child’s parents divorced in Indiana, or the child was born outside of marriage. A paternal grandparent cannot petition on the out-of-wedlock ground unless the father has legally established paternity.15Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-17-5-1 – Right to Seek Visitation
Qualifying on one of those grounds is only the entry ticket. The court still has to find that visitation is in the child’s best interests, and it may consider whether the grandparent has had or has tried to have meaningful contact with the child.
Adoption
An adoption petition is filed in a court with probate jurisdiction, in the county where the petitioner lives, where the child lives, where a child-placing agency with custody of the child is located, or where the attorney maintains an office.16Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-19-2-2 – Adoption of Minor Child; Petition A pre-adoption home study assesses the prospective parents’ home, finances, and readiness.
Who Must Consent
Written consent is required from each parent of a child born in wedlock, from the mother and the established father of a child born outside of wedlock, from any agency or office with lawful custody, and from the child if the child is over 14.17Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-19-9-1 – Consents Required
Consent is not required in several situations, including a parent who has abandoned the child for at least six months before the petition, a parent who has failed without good cause to communicate with or support the child for at least a year, a parent whose rights have already been terminated by court order, or a parent whom a court finds by clear and convincing evidence to be unfit where dispensing with consent serves the child’s best interests.18Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 31-19-9-8 – Consent to Adoption Not Required; Written Denial of Paternity Precludes Challenge to Adoption
Background Checks and the Federal Tax Credit
Federal law requires fingerprint-based criminal background checks through a national database before final approval for any prospective foster or adoptive parent. States must also check child abuse and neglect registries in every state where the applicant and any other adult in the household have lived during the preceding five years. Certain felony convictions permanently disqualify an applicant, including convictions for child abuse or neglect, crimes against children, and violent crimes such as rape or homicide. A felony conviction for physical assault, battery, or a drug offense within the past five years also blocks approval.
Adoptive parents may claim a federal tax credit for qualified adoption expenses. For the 2026 tax year the credit is worth up to $17,670 per child, with phase-out beginning at modified adjusted gross income of $265,080 and complete elimination at $305,080.
Civil Protection Orders for Domestic Violence
Indiana’s Civil Protection Order Act lets a victim of domestic violence seek a civil protection order without filing criminal charges.19Justia. Indiana Code 34-26-5 – Indiana Civil Protection Order Act A protection order can prohibit the respondent from contacting or approaching the victim, and it may address temporary custody and financial support. The court must hold a hearing no later than 30 days after the petition is filed.20Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 34-26-5-9 – Ex Parte Orders; Relief After Notice and Hearing In domestic violence cases, as opposed to harassment cases, the court can issue an emergency ex parte order before the full hearing.
Federal Firearm Consequences
A protection order or a domestic violence conviction brings federal firearm consequences on top of anything Indiana does. Federal law makes it a crime for anyone subject to a qualifying protection order to possess firearms or ammunition. The order must have followed a hearing where the respondent had notice and an opportunity to participate, and it must either include a finding that the person is a credible threat to the physical safety of an intimate partner or child or explicitly prohibit the use or threatened use of force. Separately, anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence is permanently barred from possessing firearms or ammunition.21Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts Violations are felonies.
Two Overlays Many People Miss
Active-Duty Service Members
If military service materially affects a service member’s ability to take part in a custody or family law proceeding, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act lets them request a stay of at least 90 days. Any extension beyond that is at the judge’s discretion.22Military OneSource. Child Custody Considerations for Military Families This matters most during deployments: a deployed parent facing a custody change can invoke the SCRA to postpone the hearing until they can appear. The SCRA does not apply to criminal proceedings.
Social Security After a Long Marriage
If your marriage lasted at least 10 years, you may be able to claim Social Security benefits on your former spouse’s record. You must be at least 62, currently unmarried, and not entitled to a higher benefit on your own work record. The divorce must have been final for at least two years. The maximum is up to half of your former spouse’s full benefit amount. Your claim does not reduce what your ex-spouse receives, and your ex-spouse’s remarriage does not affect your eligibility.