Virginia Divorce Laws: Grounds, Support, and Custody

Virginia divorce laws require at least one spouse to have lived in the state for six months before filing, and most cases also require the couple to live apart for six months to a full year before a judge will end the marriage. You can file on no-fault grounds or on fault grounds like adultery, cruelty, desertion, or a felony conviction. The ground you choose matters beyond the paperwork, because Virginia courts weigh fault when dividing property and deciding spousal support.

Who Can File and When

At least one spouse must have been an actual resident of Virginia for at least six months before filing. Military members stationed in the state meet this requirement if they have lived here for the same six months.¹

For a no-fault divorce, you also have to live separate and apart for a continuous period before a judge will enter a final decree. The waiting period is six months if you have no minor children and have signed a written separation agreement. If you have minor children, it is a full year, with or without an agreement.² The separation must be uninterrupted, and at least one spouse must intend it to be permanent. A reconciliation attempt that involves moving back in resets the clock.

Grounds and Why the Choice Matters

Virginia recognizes both no-fault and fault-based grounds for ending a marriage. Most cases proceed on no-fault, because proving misconduct is expensive and the no-fault route reaches the same final decree. But fault still matters, because it feeds into property division and spousal support later in the case.

No-Fault

No-fault divorce simply requires the statutory separation period described above. Either spouse can file, and the other cannot block the divorce by arguing the petitioner was the one at fault.²

Fault Grounds

Fault grounds let a spouse file based on the other’s misconduct:

Adultery, which must be proven by clear and convincing evidence — a higher bar than ordinary civil claims.
Conviction of a felony with a sentence of more than one year, actual confinement, and no resumption of cohabitation after the filing spouse learned of the confinement.²
Cruelty or reasonable fear of bodily harm, with the divorce available to the innocent spouse one year after the act.
Willful desertion or abandonment, also subject to a one-year wait from the date of desertion before the final decree can be entered.

Virginia also offers a partial decree called a divorce from bed and board, which separates the spouses legally without fully dissolving the marriage. It is a narrow tool for situations involving cruelty, fear of harm, or desertion when the full one-year wait has not run yet, and is not the path most people filing for divorce are looking for.

How Property Gets Divided

Virginia is an equitable distribution state. That means the court divides marital property in a way it considers fair, which is not always equal. The judge works through three steps: classify every asset and debt as marital, separate, or partly both; put a value on each item; then divide the marital portion.³

Marital property generally covers what either spouse acquired during the marriage. Separate property covers what you brought in, inherited, or received as a gift from someone other than your spouse. The messy category is “part marital and part separate” — a retirement account you opened before the marriage and kept contributing to afterward is the classic example.

Eleven statutory factors drive the division, including each spouse’s financial and non-financial contributions to the family, the length of the marriage, each spouse’s age and health, tax consequences, and whether a spouse wasted assets in anticipation of divorce. Fault grounds like adultery or desertion are also on the list. Property is valued as of the evidentiary hearing unless either party moves at least 21 days ahead to use a different date.³

Retirement benefits earned during the marriage are marital property. A 401(k) or pension is usually divided through a separate Qualified Domestic Relations Order the plan administrator must approve. Military pensions follow federal rules under the Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act, which freezes the divisible benefit at the service member’s rank and years of service as of the decree, and allow direct payment from the Defense Finance and Accounting Service only if the marriage overlapped at least ten years of service.

Spousal Support

Spousal support is not automatic. The court decides whether to award it, how much, and for how long, using thirteen statutory factors. The most influential tend to be the length of the marriage, the standard of living during it, each spouse’s earning capacity and resources, and the contributions each made as earner or homemaker.⁴ Fault circumstances are part of the mix.

Adultery carries a severe consequence here. If your spouse proves adultery against you, the court cannot award you permanent spousal support unless you show by clear and convincing evidence that denying it would be a “manifest injustice” given the parties’ relative economic circumstances and degrees of fault.⁴ That is a very high bar, and for a financially dependent spouse an adultery finding can wipe out support entirely.

The court can also order a spouse to keep health insurance or life insurance in place as part of the support arrangement.⁵

Child Custody

Custody decisions turn on the best interests of the child, not the preferences of the parents. Virginia law does not favor mothers over fathers and does not presume for or against joint custody.

There are two kinds of custody. Legal custody is the authority to make major decisions about education, medical care, and religious upbringing. Physical custody is where the child lives day to day. Each can be awarded jointly, solely to one parent, or in some combination.⁶

Ten statutory factors shape the decision: the child’s age, physical condition, and mental condition; each parent’s physical and mental condition; the existing relationship between each parent and the child; important relationships with siblings and extended family; the role each parent has played and will play; each parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent; each parent’s demonstrated ability to stay actively involved and resolve disputes; the child’s reasonable preference if the court finds the child old enough and mature enough; any history of family abuse, sexual abuse, child abuse, or violent threats within the preceding ten years; and any other factor the court finds relevant.⁶

There is no fixed age at which a child’s preference becomes controlling. Judges weigh it case by case, looking at the child’s maturity and the reasoning behind the preference. A parent who unreasonably blocks contact with the other parent loses ground on the cooperation factors. An abuse finding can override those cooperation factors entirely.

Child Support

Virginia uses an income shares model. It estimates what the parents would have spent on the child together and splits that cost in proportion to each parent’s income. The guideline table in Code § 20-108.2 produces a presumptive monthly obligation based on combined gross income and the number of children, and the schedule was updated in 2025.⁷

In a sole custody arrangement, the obligation combines the basic guideline amount with health care coverage and work-related child care expenses, with each parent paying a proportional share. In shared custody, where both parents have significant time with the child, the formula adjusts for the number of days each parent has the child. For combined monthly income above $42,500, an add-on applies to the income above that threshold, ranging from 2.6 percent for one child up to 5.0 percent for six.⁷

The guideline number is presumed correct, but either parent can ask the court to deviate from it if that result would be unjust. The judge must make written findings explaining any deviation, considering factors like support obligations to other family members, the child’s special needs, the standard of living during the marriage, and whether a parent is voluntarily underemployed.⁸

Orders While the Case Is Pending

Divorce cases take months to resolve, and bills don’t wait. Virginia courts can issue temporary (pendente lite) orders at any point to deal with spousal support, child custody, use of the family home, payment of debts, and health insurance coverage.⁹ Temporary spousal support follows a presumptive statutory formula when the couple’s combined monthly gross income does not exceed $10,000, with the specific percentages differing depending on whether minor children are involved.

Filing Process and Costs

You file in the circuit court for the city or county where you or your spouse lives. The main document is a Complaint, sometimes called a Bill of Complaint, which lays out the grounds and what you want the court to order. You also complete a VS-4 form for state vital statistics records. If your spouse will cooperate, they can sign an Acceptance of Service that confirms receipt of the paperwork and avoids formal service.

The total circuit court filing fee is $86, which bundles the clerk’s fee, state writ tax, technology surcharge, legal aid fee, and other statutory add-ons.¹⁰ If your spouse does not sign the acceptance, a sheriff can serve the papers for $12.¹¹ Private process servers charge more and are often faster. If you cannot afford the fees, you can petition for a waiver using a form that documents your income and expenses.¹²

In an uncontested no-fault case where everything has been resolved through a written settlement agreement, evidence can be submitted by written statement rather than live testimony.¹³ Contested cases, or those with lingering issues, usually need a hearing. The case ends when the judge signs the Final Decree of Divorce, which terminates the marriage and incorporates the property, support, and custody arrangements.

Restoring a Former Name

If you changed your name when you married, the court will restore your former name on request. File a motion as part of the divorce, and the court enters a separate order granting the change.¹⁴ Handling it during the divorce avoids filing a separate name-change petition later.

1
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-97 – Domicile and Residential Requirements for Suits for Annulment, Affirmance, or Divorce
2
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-91 – Grounds for Divorce from Bond of Matrimony; Contents of Decree
3
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-107.3 – Court May Decree as to Property and Debts of the Parties
4
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-107.1 – Court May Decree as to Maintenance and Support of Spouses
5
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-107.1:1 – Court May Decree as to Maintenance of Life Insurance Policy
6
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Title 20 Chapter 6.1 – Custody and Visitation Arrangements for Minor Children
7
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-108.2 – Guideline for Determination of Child Support
8
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-108.1 – Determination of Child or Spousal Support
9
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-103 – Court May Make Orders Pending Suit for Divorce, Custody
10
Virginia’s Judicial System. Circuit Court Fee Schedule Appendix C
11
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 17.1-272 – Process and Service Fees Generally
12
Virginia Judicial System Court Self-Help. Filing Fees and Waivers
13
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-106 – Testimony May Be Required to Be Given Orally; Evidence by Affidavit
14
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-121.4 – Restoration of Former Name