Filing for Divorce in Florida: Step-by-Step (Forms, Fees, and Timeline)

Florida is, on paper, one of the easiest large states in which to get divorced. The waiting period is 20 days, every form you need is published by the Florida Supreme Court with plain-English instructions, the clerk's office in most counties runs a self-help program, and a couple with no children and an agreed split can finish a simplified dissolution in about a month. In practice the process has more moving parts than the brochure suggests: a statewide mandatory-disclosure rule with a 45-day clock and a non-waivable financial affidavit, a four-hour parenting course that both parents must finish before the judge will sign, circuit-by-circuit standing orders that bind you from the day you file, and mediation that is court-ordered in nearly every contested case before you can get a hearing.

This guide walks the Florida process in the order it happens — from proving you can file here to the day the Final Judgment is signed and the weeks after it — with the statutes, the Family Law Rules of Procedure, the form numbers, the fees, and the places where self-represented filers get stuck. It covers both the spouse who files (the petitioner) and the spouse who is served (the respondent).

For Florida's substantive rules — equitable distribution, the 2023 alimony reform, the equal time-sharing presumption, child support guidelines — see the Florida divorce guide. This article is about procedure.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. The statutes, rules, and form numbers cited are current as of the publication date, but Florida's twenty judicial circuits each have their own administrative orders, and clerks' practices differ by county. Confirm current procedure with your county clerk's self-help center, the circuit's administrative orders page, or a Florida family law attorney.

Before You File: Three Threshold Questions

1. Can you file in Florida, and in which county?

Under Florida Statutes § 61.021, at least one spouse must have resided in Florida for the six months immediately before filing. Residency means physical presence plus the intent to make Florida home; citizenship and immigration status are irrelevant. Only one of you has to qualify, and it can be either one — a spouse who moved to Florida six months ago can file against a spouse who never lived here.

Florida is unusual in requiring corroboration of residency (§ 61.052(2)). Testimony alone is not enough. You prove the six months with one of:

• A Florida driver's license, Florida ID card, or voter registration card issued at least six months before the petition was filed (the issue date is what matters, not when you actually arrived), or
• An Affidavit of Corroborating Witness (Form 12.902(i)) signed by a third party who knows you have lived here six months, or that witness's live testimony at the final hearing.

Filers who moved to Florida and did not change their license promptly are the ones caught by this; a license issued five months ago does not prove six months of residency, and you will need the witness affidavit.

Venue — which county — is governed by case law rather than a dissolution-specific statute. The petition is filed in the county where the spouses last lived together as a married couple with the intent to remain married, or in the county where the respondent currently lives. If the respondent has left Florida, the petitioner's own county is proper. Filing in the wrong county does not void the case, but the respondent can move to transfer it, which costs weeks.

Service members stationed in Florida who intend to remain here can satisfy the residency requirement; a service member from Florida stationed elsewhere generally keeps Florida residency. The military divorce guide covers the overlay of federal protections.

2. Simplified dissolution or regular dissolution?

Florida offers a genuine express lane. Under Family Law Rule of Procedure 12.105, a couple may file a Petition for Simplified Dissolution of Marriage (Form 12.901(a)) if both can swear that:

• You have no minor or dependent children together, no children were born during the marriage, and neither spouse is pregnant (the rule and form still say "the wife");
• You have reached a satisfactory division of your property and agreed on payment of your joint debts, and have written it down;
• Neither of you is seeking alimony;
• At least one of you meets the six-month residency requirement;
• You both agree to use the simplified procedure, and you are each willing to give up your right to a trial and an appeal; and
• You will both sign the petition in front of the clerk or a notary and both appear together at the final hearing.

The simplified packet is the petition, a Marital Settlement Agreement for Simplified Dissolution (Form 12.902(f)(3)), the Final Judgment (Form 12.990(a)), and — depending on your circuit — financial affidavits (Form 12.902(b) or 12.902(c)), which the form instructions allow both spouses to waive in a simplified case and which some clerks still ask for. Rule 12.285's mandatory disclosure does not apply. The trade is that you give up the discovery that would catch an account you didn't know about; if there is any asset either of you has not seen a statement for, use the regular procedure instead. The uncontested vs. contested guide explains how the simplified track compares with an ordinary agreed divorce.

Everyone else — any minor child, any alimony claim, a spouse who will not cooperate, or an unknown whereabouts — files a regular dissolution, which is the rest of this guide.

3. Irretrievably broken — and what happens if your spouse says it isn't

Florida is purely no-fault. The only grounds are that the marriage is irretrievably broken or that a spouse has been adjudicated mentally incapacitated for at least three years (§ 61.052(1)). Adultery, abandonment, and cruelty are not pleaded as grounds. They are not entirely irrelevant: adultery may be considered in setting alimony (§ 61.08(1)), and spending marital money on an affair can be charged against the spending spouse as dissipation in equitable distribution (§ 61.075(1)(i)).

If the respondent denies that the marriage is irretrievably broken, or if there is a minor child, the court may order the parties to counseling or continue the case for up to three months to allow reconciliation (§ 61.052(2)(b)). In practice judges rarely use this, and one spouse's testimony that the marriage is over is sufficient. A spouse cannot stop a Florida divorce by refusing to agree to it.

One date-driven consequence of filing deserves attention before you do it. Under § 61.075(7), the cut-off date for identifying marital assets and liabilities is the earlier of the date you sign a valid separation agreement or the date the petition is filed. Income earned, debt incurred, and contributions made after that date are generally the earning spouse's own. If one spouse is about to receive a bonus, vest in stock, or take on a large debt, the filing date moves money from one column to the other. The marital vs. separate property guide covers classification generally.

Step 1: Prepare the Petition and the Opening Forms

Unlike Texas, Florida does not leave you to draft from scratch. Every form is a Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form, numbered 12.9xx, with instructions attached, downloadable free from the Florida Courts website and available in most clerks' self-help offices. Choose the petition that fits your situation:

Form	Use when
12.901(b)(1) Petition for Dissolution of Marriage with Dependent or Minor Children	Any minor or dependent child of the marriage
12.901(b)(2) Petition for Dissolution of Marriage with Property but No Dependent or Minor Children	No children, but assets or debts to divide or alimony to request
12.901(b)(3) Petition for Dissolution of Marriage with No Dependent or Minor Children or Property	Nothing to divide, no alimony, but you do not qualify for or want the simplified procedure (for example, your spouse will not cooperate)

The forms that travel with the petition:

Form	Purpose
12.928 Cover Sheet for Family Court Cases	Required with every new family case
12.902(j) Notice of Social Security Number	Required by § 61.052(7); filed as confidential
12.900(h) Notice of Related Cases	Required under Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.545(d); lists any injunction, paternity, or support case involving the same family
12.915 Designation of Current Mailing and E-Mail Address	How the court and your spouse will serve you with everything after the petition
12.910(a) Summons: Personal Service on an Individual	The clerk issues it; the process server delivers it with the petition
12.902(d) UCCJEA Affidavit	Required with children; lists where each child has lived for five years and any other custody cases
12.902(i) Affidavit of Corroborating Witness	Only if you lack a six-month-old Florida license, ID, or voter card
12.902(b) or 12.902(c) Family Law Financial Affidavit	Short form if your gross annual income is under $50,000, long form if $50,000 or more; required in every regular case
12.902(e) Child Support Guidelines Worksheet	Required in every case with children, even by agreement
12.995(a) Parenting Plan	Required in every case with children (§ 61.13(2)(b)); 12.995(b) for a safety-focused plan, 12.995(c) for long-distance
12.902(f)(1) or 12.902(f)(2) Marital Settlement Agreement	If you already have an agreement (with or without children)

Plead everything you might want. A Florida court can grant only relief that was requested in the pleadings. If the petition does not ask for alimony, the court cannot award it at the final hearing even if the evidence supports it; if it does not ask for exclusive use of the home, attorney's fees under § 61.16, or restoration of a former name, those have to be added by amendment. The petition forms have checkboxes for each. Check the ones you might conceivably need; you can always decline later. The respondent's counterpetition works the same way in reverse.

The petition also asks you to classify your property as marital or nonmarital and to state whether you are requesting an equal or unequal distribution under § 61.075. Do not guess. The divorce asset inventory template is the working document that fills in both the petition and, later, the financial affidavit.

Step 2: Standing Orders and Injunctions

Florida has no statewide automatic restraining order. What it has instead is a standing temporary order adopted by administrative order in many — not all — of the twenty circuits. The Ninth Circuit (Orange and Osceola), the Thirteenth (Hillsborough), the Eighteenth (Brevard and Seminole), the Sixteenth (Monroe), and others issue one that takes effect on the petitioner at filing and on the respondent at service. The typical terms:

• Neither party may remove a minor child from Florida without the other's written consent or a court order;
• Neither party may sell, encumber, give away, or hide marital or nonmarital property except for ordinary living expenses and reasonable attorney's fees;
• Insurance — health, life, auto, property — must be maintained with the same beneficiaries;
• Neither party may harass the other or disparage the other to the children;
• Both parents must complete the parenting course and, in some circuits, attend mediation before any contested hearing.

Read your circuit's order before you file; the clerk will give it to you with your receipt, and violating it is contempt even if you did not know it existed. In circuits without a standing order, nothing stops either spouse from draining an account between filing and the first hearing except the general law of dissipation, which is a remedy after the fact. If you are in such a circuit and have a specific fear, file a Motion for Temporary Injunction with the petition.

Domestic violence is handled on a separate track. A Petition for Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence (Form 12.980(a)) under § 741.30 is filed with the clerk, costs nothing, and can produce a temporary injunction the same day without notice to the other party, with a full hearing within 15 days. The injunction can include exclusive use of the home, temporary time-sharing, and temporary support. In the dissolution itself, a conviction for a first-degree misdemeanor or higher involving domestic violence creates a rebuttable presumption of detriment to the child in the time-sharing decision (§ 61.13(2)(c)2). The domestic violence and divorce guide covers the interaction between the two cases.

Step 3: File and Pay — or Apply for Indigent Status

The filing fee for a dissolution of marriage is $408 under § 28.241, plus $10 for each summons the clerk issues. Some counties add a few dollars in local surcharges. Expect a total of roughly $420 for a case with one respondent. Filing an answer costs the respondent nothing; a counterpetition carries its own fee in most counties, so ask the clerk before you file one.

You can file in person at the clerk's office, by mail, or electronically through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal, which self-represented litigants may register for and use. E-filing is required for attorneys and optional for everyone else; its advantage for a pro se filer is that you receive every order and filing by e-mail at the address on your Form 12.915.

If you cannot afford the fee, file an Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status under § 57.082. The clerk, not a judge, makes the determination, based on household income at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines and limited assets. If approved, the filing fee and summons fee are deferred and the sheriff serves process without charge. The determination also waives the court-program mediation fee discussed below.

Nearly every county clerk runs a Family Law Self-Help Program under Rule 12.750, where staff will tell you which forms you need, check them for completeness, and explain the process — but may not tell you what to ask for or how a judge is likely to rule. Many charge a modest per-visit fee.

Step 4: Service — Personal, Accepted, or by Publication

Florida does not have the Texas-style pre-service waiver. The respondent must be served with the summons and petition unless they voluntarily file something that moots service. Four paths:

Personal service (§ 48.031) by the sheriff of the county where the respondent is found ($40 per service under § 30.231) or a certified process server (§§ 48.25–48.31, typically $50–$125). The server may hand the papers to the respondent or leave them at the respondent's usual place of abode with any person 15 or older who lives there. The server files a Return of Service; the respondent's 20-day clock starts on the date of service.

A cooperative respondent can skip formal service by signing Form 12.903(a), Answer, Waiver, and Request for Copy of Final Judgment, before a notary and filing it. This form is appropriate only if the respondent agrees with everything in the petition — it admits the allegations, waives further notice of hearings (unless the box to receive notice is checked), and asks for a copy of the judgment. A respondent who agrees to the divorce but not to every term should instead sign a short acceptance of service acknowledging receipt of the petition, then file a regular answer within 20 days. Do not sign a 12.903(a) to be polite; it is an answer, and it concedes the pleadings.

A respondent outside Florida may be served under § 48.194 by any person authorized to serve process where they are found; a return sworn before a notary is sufficient. A respondent in another country is served under the Hague Service Convention where it applies — see the international divorce guide.

Constructive service by publication (Chapter 49) is available when you genuinely cannot find your spouse. You file an Affidavit of Diligent Search and Inquiry (Form 12.913(b)) listing the specific steps you took — last known address, relatives, employers, DMV, social media, military records — and the clerk issues a Notice of Action (Form 12.913(a)(1)), which must be published once a week for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper approved for legal notices in the county (§ 49.10). If you are indigent, the clerk posts it instead at no cost. The respondent then has until the date in the notice to answer. Constructive service has hard limits: the court can dissolve the marriage and divide property located in Florida, but it cannot order alimony, child support, or attorney's fees against a spouse who was never personally served, and it cannot reach property outside the state. If you later locate your spouse, they can be personally served and those claims revived.

Military respondents. Before any default, you must file a Memorandum for Certificate of Military Service (Form 12.912(a)) or a Nonmilitary Affidavit (Form 12.912(b)). A respondent on active duty is entitled to a stay under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, and a default entered without the affidavit is voidable.

Step 5: The Response — Answer, Counterpetition, or Default

The respondent has 20 days from service to file a written response (Rule 12.140(a)). The choices:

• Answer (Form 12.903(b)) — admits or denies each paragraph and states what the respondent wants.
• Answer and Counterpetition (Form 12.903(c)(1) with children, 12.903(c)(2) without) — the respondent's own petition, requesting relief the petition did not. File one if you want alimony, an unequal distribution, a specific parenting plan, or fees and the petition did not ask for them. The petitioner then has 20 days to answer the counterpetition.
• Answer, Waiver, and Request for Copy (Form 12.903(a)) — the agreed-case path described above.

If nothing is filed within 20 days, the petitioner files a Motion for Default (Form 12.922(a)) and the clerk enters a Default (Form 12.922(b)) under Rule 12.500. A default does not end the case. The petitioner still has to prove residency, serve the military affidavit, file a financial affidavit and (with children) a child support worksheet and parenting plan, finish the parenting course, and attend a final hearing — and the judgment cannot grant more than the petition asked for. A defaulted respondent who moves promptly can usually get the default set aside under Rule 12.540 on a showing of excusable neglect and a meritorious defense, which is why a petitioner facing a default is well advised to file the petition that asks for exactly what they want and not a word more than they can prove.

If you were served and the 20 days are nearly up, file something — a one-page answer admitting the marriage, denying the rest, and reserving the right to amend. You can refine it later. An answer on day 19 preserves every right; a motion on day 40 may not.

Step 6: Mandatory Disclosure — The 45-Day Clock

This is the step that most distinguishes Florida from Texas and California. Family Law Rule 12.285 imposes automatic, mandatory financial disclosure on both spouses in every regular dissolution, without anyone having to request it. The deadline for both parties is 45 days after the petition is served on the respondent.

The financial affidavit cannot be waived. Every party files Form 12.902(b) (gross income under $50,000) or 12.902(c) ($50,000 or more) under oath, with the court — it is one of only two disclosure documents that go in the court file. The affidavit lists monthly income from every source, deductions, monthly expenses, every asset with a value and a marital/nonmarital designation, and every liability. It drives alimony, child support, and the equitable distribution schedule, and it is the document opposing counsel will read line by line. The financial affidavit walkthrough covers what each section is really asking.

The documents are served on the other side, not filed. The current rule's list, with its lookback periods:

• Federal and state income tax returns, with all schedules and attachments, for the past 3 years; business, partnership, and trust returns for the same period if you have an ownership interest;
• W-2s, 1099s, and K-1s for the current year and the prior two years if the returns are not yet filed;
• Pay stubs or other evidence of earned income for the past 6 months, plus a statement of all other income received in that period;
• Loan applications, personal financial statements, and credit reports prepared in the past 24 months;
• Deeds to any real property owned in the past 3 years, promissory notes from the past 24 months, and all current leases;
• Bank, credit union, and brokerage statements for the past 12 months;
• Retirement account statements (IRA, 401(k), pension, deferred compensation) for the past 12 months, plus the most recent summary plan description;
• Virtual currency transaction statements for the past 12 months and a list of current holdings;
• Life insurance declarations pages and the most recent statement, and current health and dental insurance cards;
• Credit card statements for the past 24 months and any other debt documentation;
• Any premarital or marital agreement, and any court order for spousal or child support in any other case;
• Documents supporting any claim that an asset is nonmarital, or that a nonmarital asset appreciated through marital effort.

Each party then files a Certificate of Compliance with Mandatory Disclosure (Form 12.932) swearing that the listed documents were served on a specific date and that the disclosure is complete and accurate. The duty to disclose is continuing: anything that changes materially must be supplemented.

Two practical points. First, the parties may file a joint verified waiver of the document exchange if they have exchanged sworn financial affidavits, acknowledging that the documents may later be needed; the affidavits themselves can never be waived. Agreed cases often use this. Second, mandatory disclosure is the floor. Either side can also serve the Standard Family Law Interrogatories (Form 12.930(b)), requests for production, and requests for admission, and can take depositions, under the discovery rules — the discovery process guide explains when that is worth the cost.

The sanction for a false financial affidavit is severe and has no time limit: Rule 12.540(b) allows a final judgment to be set aside at any time — years later — for a fraudulent financial affidavit. A party who "forgets" an account on the affidavit is handing the other spouse a permanent reopening right.

Step 7: Temporary Relief, the Parenting Course, and Case Management

Temporary relief. While the case is pending, either spouse can ask for temporary alimony and suit money under § 61.071 and temporary child support, time-sharing, and exclusive use of the home under § 61.13, using Form 12.947(a) (with children) or 12.947(c) (without). The disclosure rule applies here too, on a shorter fuse: the moving party serves a financial affidavit, three years of returns, and six months of pay stubs at least 10 days before the hearing, and the responding party at least 5 days before. Most circuits require mediation before a temporary hearing will be set, so build in a month or two. The temporary orders guide explains how interim orders shape the final ones.

General magistrates and hearing officers. Many circuits route temporary relief, child support, and even final hearings to a general magistrate under Rule 12.490. You will receive an Order of Referral (Form 12.920(b)) and have 10 days to object; if you do not, you have consented. The magistrate hears evidence and files a report and recommended order; exceptions must be filed within 10 days, after which the judge adopts it. Child support hearing officers (Rule 12.491) handle support-only matters and do not require consent.

The parenting course. Under § 61.21, every parent in a dissolution with a minor child must complete a four-hour Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course from a provider approved by the Department of Children and Families. The petitioner must complete it within 45 days of filing; the respondent within 45 days of service. Online providers charge about $20 to $60 and issue a certificate you file with the court. The judge cannot enter a final judgment until both parents have filed certificates, and a parent who refuses can be held in contempt — but the other parent's divorce is not held hostage indefinitely; courts routinely proceed when the refusing parent has been given notice. Do it the week you file.

Case management. Rule 12.200 lets the court set a case management conference on its own, and either party may request one 30 days after service. In the larger circuits a case management order issues automatically with deadlines for disclosure, mediation, and a pretrial conference. Missing a conference can result in dismissal or stricken pleadings.

Children's issues. Where parents cannot agree on a plan, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem (§ 61.401), order a social investigation (§ 61.20), or appoint a parenting coordinator (§ 61.125). The parenting plan checklist covers what the plan must contain; note that since July 2023 Florida applies a rebuttable presumption that equal time-sharing is in the child's best interest (§ 61.13(2)(c)1), rebuttable by a preponderance of the evidence, and that any plan must address the relocation rule of § 61.13001 (a move of 50 miles or more for 60 days or more requires consent or court approval). The divorce with children guide covers the best-interest factors generally.

Step 8: Mediation and Settlement

Florida courts may refer any contested dissolution to mediation under § 61.183, and in practice nearly every circuit's administrative order requires mediation before a contested temporary or final hearing. Mediation is confidential under the Mediation Confidentiality and Privilege Act (§§ 44.401–44.406); nothing said there is admissible, and the mediator cannot be called as a witness.

Cost depends on income. If the court refers you to the circuit's family mediation program, the clerk collects $60 per person per scheduled session when the parties' combined income is under $50,000, and $120 per person per session when it is between $50,000 and $100,000 (§ 44.108). Above $100,000 you are sent to a private certified family mediator, who typically charges $150 to $400 an hour, split between you; a half-day session runs $500 to $2,000 per side. Indigent parties pay nothing. The mediation preparation checklist covers how to arrive ready.

The agreement. If you settle, the terms go into a Marital Settlement Agreement (Form 12.902(f)(1) with children or (f)(2) without, or a lawyer-drafted agreement) and, with children, a Parenting Plan (Form 12.995(a)) with a completed Child Support Guidelines Worksheet (Form 12.902(e)). A mediated agreement signed by both parties is a binding contract once reduced to writing and signed (Rule 12.740(f)); unlike a Texas MSA it is not statutorily irrevocable, but Florida courts enforce settlement agreements unless the challenging spouse proves fraud, duress, coercion, or misrepresentation, or that the agreement is unfair and was made without full disclosure (the Casto v. Casto standard). Signing on the strength of your spouse's verbal account of the retirement balance, without the statements, is exactly the situation that standard does not protect you from.

Three numbers the agreement has to respect:

• Child support must be calculated under the § 61.30 guidelines; a deviation of more than 5 percent from the guideline amount requires written findings, and a court will reject an agreed figure that departs from the guidelines without an explanation it can adopt.
• Alimony, if any, operates under the 2023 statute: bridge-the-gap capped at 2 years, rehabilitative at 5 years, and durational alimony unavailable for marriages under 3 years and otherwise capped at 50 percent of the length of a short-term marriage (under 10 years), 60 percent of a moderate-term marriage (10 to 20), and 75 percent of a long-term marriage (20 or more), with the amount limited to the recipient's reasonable need or 35 percent of the difference in the spouses' net incomes, whichever is less (§ 61.08). Permanent alimony no longer exists for cases filed after July 1, 2023. The alimony guide and the alimony calculator guide walk through how these caps interact with a step-down schedule.
• Equitable distribution starts from the premise of an equal split (§ 61.075(1)) and departs from it only for the statutory factors, with written findings. An agreement can be unequal — but understand what you are giving up in after-tax terms before you sign. A 50/50 split of a pre-tax 401(k) against a paid-off house is not 50/50.

Florida also has a Collaborative Law Process Act (§§ 61.55–61.58, Rule 12.745) under which both spouses retain collaborative attorneys who are disqualified from litigating if the process fails; the collaborative divorce checklist explains when that structure is worth it.

Step 9: The 20-Day Waiting Period

Under § 61.19, no final judgment of dissolution may be entered until 20 days have passed from the filing of the petition, unless the court finds that injustice would result from the delay. Three things to know:

• It runs from filing, not service. In an agreed case where the respondent signs a 12.903(a) the day after filing, you can set the final hearing for day 21.
• It is almost never the real constraint. Service plus the 20-day answer period, the 45-day disclosure window, the parenting course, mediation scheduling, and the judge's calendar mean most regular dissolutions take two to four months even when fully agreed, and simplified dissolutions about four to six weeks.
• There is no separate waiting period before remarriage. Once the Final Judgment is signed, you are divorced.

Step 10: The Final Hearing and the Final Judgment

Uncontested cases. Once the waiting period has run and every required document is on file, the petitioner sets a short final hearing — typically five to fifteen minutes — by filing a Notice of Hearing (Form 12.923) or by requesting a date from the judicial assistant, depending on the circuit. Many circuits now hold these by video. At the hearing the petitioner testifies to residency (with the corroborating document or witness), that the marriage is irretrievably broken, that the agreement was signed voluntarily with full disclosure, and, with children, that the parenting plan is in their best interest. The respondent need not appear if they signed the agreement and a 12.903(a). In a simplified dissolution both spouses must appear. Several circuits also offer a Special Affidavit for Uncontested Dissolution Without Final Hearing that lets the petitioner submit testimony in writing after the 20 days — the Ninth Circuit and several Panhandle counties publish one — but the judge may still require a hearing.

Bring, or have already filed:

• The proposed Final Judgment (Form 12.990(b)(1) with children, (b)(2) with property and no children, (b)(3) with neither), with the agreement and parenting plan attached or incorporated;
• Both financial affidavits and, with children, the child support worksheet and both parenting course certificates;
• The Notice of Social Security Number, the Certificate of Compliance with mandatory disclosure (or the joint waiver), and the military affidavit if there was a default;
• An Income Deduction Order (Form 12.996(a)) — § 61.1301 makes income deduction mandatory for any support award, payable through the State Disbursement Unit, though the parties can agree to delay it so long as the agreement provides for it on default;
• A Final Disposition Form (Form 12.998), which the clerk needs to close the case;
• Any QDRO for a retirement plan being divided, and any deed transferring real estate, so the judge can sign everything at once.

Contested cases. When the pleadings are closed and mediation has failed, either party files a Notice for Trial (Form 12.924) under Rule 12.440. The court sets a pretrial conference and a trial date, typically six to twelve months out in the large circuits, longer with a custody evaluation. Florida dissolutions are tried to a judge only; there is no jury in a Florida divorce. The judgment must contain written findings on the equitable distribution factors (§ 61.075(3)), on the alimony factors including the type and duration awarded (§ 61.08), and on the time-sharing factors (§ 61.13(3)); a judgment without them is reversible. The mediation vs. litigation guide covers the off-ramps that remain open until the trial begins.

After the signature. The clerk mails or e-mails a conformed copy; certified copies are about $1 a page plus a $2 certification fee and are what you need for the DMV, the Social Security Administration, banks, and retirement plans. A motion for rehearing must be filed within 15 days (Rule 12.530) and an appeal within 30 days of the judgment (Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.110). The court retains jurisdiction to enforce the judgment and, for alimony, child support, and time-sharing, to modify it on a substantial change in circumstances (§ 61.14). Equitable distribution, by contrast, is final and cannot be modified — only enforced or set aside for fraud. A restored former name takes effect on the judgment's signature if the petition requested it. The post-divorce checklist covers the deeds, QDROs, beneficiary changes, and account retitling that follow; the QDRO guide covers why the plan will not act on the judgment alone.

What It Costs and How Long It Takes

	Simplified dissolution	Agreed regular dissolution	Contested
Filing and summons	$408 (no summons needed; both sign)	$418	$418, plus counterpetition fee if any
Service	$0	$0 (12.903(a)) to $40–$125	Same; publication adds $100–$300 in newspaper charges
Parenting course	Not applicable	About $20–$60 per parent	Same
Mediation	Not required	Usually not required if agreed before filing	$60–$120 per person per session (court program) or $500–$2,000 per side (private)
Professional help	Self-help center and the Supreme Court forms, free to modest; notary fees	Limited-scope attorney review of the agreement, a few hundred dollars to about $1,500	Retainers of $3,500–$10,000 per side; contested totals commonly $10,000–$30,000 per side, more with a forensic accountant, a social investigation, or a business valuation
Earliest judgment	Day 21; typically 4–6 weeks	Day 21; typically 2–4 months	Typically 6–12 months; 12–18 with a custody evaluation

The Florida Bar's lawyer referral service and the circuits' legal aid organizations handle qualifying cases, and the Department of Revenue Child Support Program will establish and enforce child support at no charge in any case — including one that is not a divorce. None of these will tell you whether a proposed division is a good one. The first consultation checklist covers how to get that advice efficiently with a limited-scope engagement.

The Pitfall List

The errors that send Florida filers back to the clerk or back to court:

• A Florida license issued less than six months before filing and no corroborating witness. The hearing is continued until you produce one.
• Missing the 45-day mandatory disclosure deadline, or filing the documents with the court instead of serving them. Only the affidavit and the child support worksheet are filed.
• A financial affidavit that omits an account. Rule 12.540(b) means your spouse can reopen the judgment for it with no time limit.
• Treating the simplified procedure as a shortcut when one spouse has not seen the other's statements. You are waiving discovery and appeal.
• Signing Form 12.903(a) when you don't agree with everything in the petition. It admits the pleadings.
• Removing a child from Florida or moving money after filing in a circuit with a standing order you did not read.
• Waiting to take the parenting course. The judge cannot sign until both certificates are filed.
• Serving by publication and expecting alimony or child support. Constructive service supports a divorce and Florida property only.
• A child support figure that departs from the guidelines by more than 5 percent without findings. The judge will send the agreement back.
• No Income Deduction Order at signing, or no QDRO, or no deed — each is a motion later, when the other spouse has stopped cooperating.
• A petition that asks for less than you want. The judgment cannot exceed the pleadings, and a default locks the petition in.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Florida have legal separation? Not as a status. Florida offers separate maintenance under § 61.09 — a court action for alimony and child support while the spouses remain married — but no decree changing marital status and no property division. Spouses who want to live apart with enforceable terms typically sign a separation agreement or file for dissolution and seek temporary orders. The legal separation guide explains the options in states without the status.

Do we both have to go to the final hearing? In a simplified dissolution, yes — both must appear. In a regular agreed case, only the petitioner, provided the respondent signed the agreement and an answer or waiver. In a default, only the petitioner. In a contested case, both.

Can the court divorce us but decide the money later? Rarely. Florida disfavors bifurcation — dissolving the marriage before resolving property, support, and children — and permits it only in extraordinary circumstances (Claughton v. Claughton, Fla. 1980), because the tax, insurance, and inheritance consequences of being divorced-but-undivided fall unevenly. Expect everything to be decided at once.

What if my spouse won't sign anything? You do not need a signature. Serve the summons; if there is no answer in 20 days, move for default and set a final hearing. If there is an answer, the case proceeds through disclosure, mediation, and if necessary trial. A spouse can slow a Florida divorce but cannot prevent it.

I don't know where my spouse is. Can I still get divorced? Yes, by publication after a documented diligent search. The judgment will end the marriage and can divide Florida property, but it cannot award alimony or child support until your spouse is personally served.

How soon can I remarry? Immediately after the Final Judgment is signed. Florida has no post-judgment waiting period.

Can I get my former name back? Yes. Check the box in the petition (or counterpetition) requesting restoration of your former name, and the Final Judgment will include it. A name change to anything other than a former name requires a separate petition under § 68.07.

We agree on everything and have no children. What is the fastest route? If neither of you wants alimony and you can both appear together, file a simplified dissolution: both sign Form 12.901(a) before the clerk, attach the simplified settlement agreement, and set the final hearing for the first available date after day 20. Many couples finish in four to six weeks. If one of you wants alimony or cannot appear, file a regular petition with Form 12.902(f)(2) attached and have your spouse sign a 12.903(a); you will also exchange financial affidavits and the result takes a few weeks longer.

How Divorce Navigator Helps

Florida's process is built around two documents you produce yourself — the financial affidavit, under oath, with no time limit on the consequences of getting it wrong, and the settlement agreement, which a court will enforce once signed if the disclosure behind it was complete. The weak point in most self-prepared Florida divorces is not the forms. It is an affidavit assembled from memory and an equal-looking division that is not equal once the house's real equity, the tax inside a retirement account, and the 2023 alimony caps are counted.

Divorce Navigator builds the inventory that becomes your Form 12.902(c), keeps statements, deeds, and tax returns in a secure data room so the 45-day disclosure is a download rather than a scramble, and models the division with after-tax values and alimony scenarios that respect Florida's duration and 35-percent caps — so you walk into mediation already knowing what each proposal is worth.

Start by organizing your finances and modeling your scenarios before the mediation date, not after the agreement is signed.

Related Resources

• Divorce in Florida: Laws, Process, and What You Need to Know — equitable distribution, the 2023 alimony reform, time-sharing, and child support rules
• Filing for Divorce in California: Step-by-Step — how a six-month-waiting-period state's procedure differs
• Filing for Divorce in Texas: Step-by-Step — the other large Sun Belt state, with no mandatory disclosure rule and a 60-day wait
• Uncontested vs. Contested Divorce — which path fits your case and what each costs
• Divorce Financial Affidavit Walkthrough — what Form 12.902(b)/(c) is really asking
• The Divorce Discovery Process — when to go beyond mandatory disclosure
• Temporary Orders in Divorce — the interim orders that shape the final ones
• Divorce Asset Inventory Template — the inventory that becomes your financial affidavit
• Marital vs. Separate Property — classification and the cut-off date
• Mediation Preparation Checklist — what to bring to court-ordered mediation
• Alimony and Spousal Support Guide — how duration and amount caps work
• Divorce with Children — the best-interest factors and the equal time-sharing presumption
• Parenting Plan Checklist — building Form 12.995(a)
• Divorce and Domestic Violence — injunctions and their effect on the case
• Military Divorce — residency for service members and the SCRA
• QDRO Guide — dividing retirement accounts with the judgment
• Post-Divorce Checklist — everything after the judgment is signed
• State-Specific Divorce Guides — rules in other states

Browse all of our divorce guides and checklists for more resources.

Take the Next Step

A Florida divorce rewards the spouse who proves residency cleanly, meets the 45-day disclosure deadline with a complete affidavit, and arrives at mediation with the numbers already worked out. Divorce Navigator gives you the organized inventory and the modeled scenarios to do exactly that, so the judgment you ask the court to sign is one you understand.

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