The Texas Divorce Process: Every Step From Filing to Final Decree

What Is the Texas Divorce Process?

The Texas divorce process is the court procedure that legally ends a marriage: one spouse files an Original Petition for Divorce, the other spouse receives formal notice, the court resolves property and children's issues, and a judge signs a Final Decree of Divorce.

Texas allows no-fault divorce. Most cases plead "insupportability" under Texas Family Code §6.001, which simply means the marriage has become insupportable because of conflict and there is no reasonable expectation of reconciliation. Nobody has to prove wrongdoing to get divorced here.

One point surprises many of our clients: Texas does not recognize legal separation. You are married until a judge signs the decree, and community property keeps accumulating the entire time. We compare the alternatives in our guide to legal separation vs. divorce in Texas.

• Minimum time to divorce in Texas: 61 days from filing (Tex. Fam. Code §6.702).
• Residency: 6 months in Texas and 90 days in the county before filing (§6.301).
• Dallas County filing fee: $350 without children, $401 with children, plus $8 citation issuance (SB 1612).
• No separation period is required before you file, because legal separation does not exist in Texas.

Step 1: Meet the Residency Requirements

You can file for divorce in Texas when either spouse has lived in the state for the previous six months and in the county of filing for the previous 90 days. Texas Family Code §6.301 sets both clocks, and the court will check them before granting anything.

Only one spouse needs to satisfy the rule. If your spouse just moved to Colorado but you still live in Oak Cliff, you can file in Dallas County. Time a Texas resident spends serving outside the state in the armed forces still counts as Texas residence under §6.303.

Step 2: File the Original Petition for Divorce

The case begins when one spouse, called the petitioner, files an Original Petition for Divorce with the District Clerk and pays the filing fee. The petition identifies the parties, the children if any, the grounds, and what the petitioner asks the court to order.

Besides no-fault insupportability, Texas keeps seven fault grounds in Family Code §§6.002 through 6.007, including cruelty, adultery, felony conviction, and abandonment. Pleading fault matters because a court dividing community property "in a manner that the court deems just and right" may award the wronged spouse a larger share. Our overview of Texas divorce laws explains when a fault pleading is worth it, and our guide on whether adultery affects divorce in Texas covers the most commonly pleaded fault ground.

In Dallas County the filing fee is set by Senate Bill 1612 (88th Legislature), in effect since January 1, 2024: $350 for a divorce without children or $401 with children, plus $8 to issue the citation. Attorneys file electronically through eFileTexas, and self-represented parties can use the same system. The filing fee is only the start; for real fee ranges by case type, see how much a divorce costs in Texas.

Step 3: Serve Your Spouse or File a Waiver

Your spouse must receive formal legal notice of the divorce in one of two ways: official service of citation, or a signed waiver of service. Nothing else starts the respondent's deadlines.

Service by a Dallas County constable costs about $80; a private process server runs about $150 and usually moves faster. Once served, the respondent's answer is due by 10:00 a.m. on the first Monday after 20 days have passed, under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 99(b). Miss that deadline and the court can grant a default divorce on the petitioner's terms.

In agreed cases, the respondent often signs a waiver of service under Family Code §6.4035 instead. The waiver must be signed after the petition is on file and must be notarized. A waiver signed even one day early is void, and we see that mistake regularly in do-it-yourself filings.

Step 4: Temporary Orders While the Case Is Pending

Temporary orders decide who stays in the house, who pays which bills, and where the children live while the divorce is pending. Texas Family Code §6.502 lets the court order temporary spousal support, interim attorney's fees, and exclusive use of the home.

A temporary restraining order can freeze assets and bar harassment for the first 14 days. If family violence is part of your situation, a protective order under Family Code Chapters 82 through 85 offers stronger, longer protection, and a Dallas domestic violence attorney can often coordinate it inside the divorce case. The distinction confuses almost everyone, so we wrote a plain-language comparison of a protective order vs. a restraining order.

Step 5: The 60-Day Waiting Period

Texas law requires at least 60 days between the day you file and the day a judge can sign your decree. Family Code §6.702 gives courts no discretion to shorten it for convenience, scheduling, or agreement of the parties.

Two narrow exceptions exist, both tied to family violence: the waiting period does not apply when the respondent has a final conviction or deferred adjudication for family violence against the petitioner or a household member, or when the petitioner holds an active protective order or emergency protection order against the respondent, per §6.702(c).

Count carefully: the day of filing does not count, so the earliest possible prove-up is day 61. In practice the waiting period rarely drives the schedule, because gathering signatures, drafting the decree, and getting a court setting usually takes longer.

Step 6: Discovery, Negotiation, and Mediation

Contested divorces move through required disclosures, discovery, settlement negotiation, and usually mediation before any trial. Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 194 requires both sides to exchange initial disclosures, including basic financial information, early in the case.

Texas is a community property state: property acquired during the marriage is presumed to belong to both spouses, while separate property stays with its owner if it can be traced. How that presumption plays out in real cases is covered in our breakdown of community vs. separate property in a Dallas divorce.

Most Dallas County family courts order mediation before they will give you a final trial date. Dallas mediators typically charge $400 to $750 per party for a half-day session, and the majority of cases that reach mediation settle there rather than in a courtroom.

Step 7: Final Decree, Prove-Up, or Trial

An agreed divorce ends with a short prove-up hearing where one spouse answers a few minutes of scripted questions and the judge signs the Final Decree of Divorce. A contested divorce ends with a bench trial, or occasionally a jury trial, on the disputed issues. Some spouses with no children and little property handle an agreed case themselves; before trying, read our honest assessment of divorce in Texas without a lawyer.

The decree is the permanent rulebook. It divides property and debt, appoints conservators for the children, sets the possession schedule, and orders child support under the Texas child support guidelines. Parents fighting over conservatorship should read our step-by-step guide on how to file for child custody in Texas before their first hearing.

When the other side refuses reasonable terms, trial preparation changes the economics and the timeline of the whole case. That is the moment to involve a contested divorce lawyer in Dallas rather than pushing a settlement that gives away too much.

How Long Does a Divorce Take in Texas?

The legal minimum is 61 days. In our Dallas County practice, agreed divorces commonly conclude in two to four months, and contested cases often run six months to well over a year, driven by the court's docket, discovery disputes, and custody evaluations.

Filing in Dallas County: Courts, Fees, and Local Practice

Dallas County divorces are heard by seven family district courts: the 254th, 255th, 256th, 301st, 302nd, 303rd, and 330th, sitting at the George L. Allen Sr. Courts Building, 600 Commerce Street in downtown Dallas. Your case is randomly assigned to one of them when the petition is filed.

If the divorce involves children, Dallas County courts require each parent to complete a parent education course under Family Code §105.009, which costs about $30 to $60 and can be taken online. Spanish-language sessions are available, and every family court provides interpreters on request.

Our office sits in the Bishop Arts District at 1015 N Bishop Ave, ten minutes from the courthouse. As a bilingual Dallas divorce lawyer team, we handle every filing, hearing, and mediation in English or Spanish, whichever the client prefers.

Divorce for Mexican Nationals and Immigrant Families

Immigration status is not a barrier to divorce in Texas. The residency test in §6.301 looks at where you live, not your immigration paperwork, and Dallas County courts hear cases for undocumented spouses every week.

Attorney Isabela Garcia serves as the exclusive consulting attorney for the Mexican Consulate General of Dallas through the PALE program, which funds family law representation for Mexican nationals in Dallas who meet the program's requirements. For families who qualify, that can mean a divorce, custody, or protective order case handled at reduced or no cost.

One practical wrinkle we handle often: serving a spouse who lives in Mexico. Mexico is a party to the Hague Service Convention, so service goes through Mexico's Central Authority and commonly adds several months to the timeline. Planning for that delay at filing, rather than discovering it at month four, keeps the case on track.

What We See With Dallas Clients

Three mistakes come through our door more than any others. First, waivers of service signed before the petition was filed, which makes them void and forces a restart. Second, spouses who believe they are divorced on day 60 and make plans around it; the divorce is final only when the judge signs, and neither spouse may remarry until the 31st day after the decree under §6.801 unless the court waives the wait for good cause under §6.802.

Third, do-it-yourself decrees that divide the house and the cars but never mention retirement accounts. Splitting a 401(k) requires a separate Qualified Domestic Relations Order, and fixing a decree that forgot one costs far more than doing it right the first time.

Every situation has its own facts, and the right first step is a conversation, not a form. Our guide on how to choose a divorce lawyer in Dallas lists the questions worth asking any firm, including ours. Request a free bilingual consultation and we will map the process to your specific case, in English or Spanish, within one business day.

Sources

Every statute and figure cited in this article:

1. Texas Family Code, Chapter 6: Suit for Dissolution of Marriage
2. Texas Family Code §6.702: Waiting Period
3. Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 99 (Texas Judicial Branch)
4. Senate Bill 1612, 88th Texas Legislature: district clerk filing fees
5. Texas Family Code §105.009: Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course
6. Dallas County District Clerk
7. TexasLawHelp.org: Divorce guides and forms