How to File for Divorce in California

Choose Your Filing Path

California offers three distinct ways to file for divorce, and picking the right one determines your paperwork load, your costs, and how long the process takes.

Traditional Petition (Form FL-100): This is the standard path. One spouse files as Petitioner, the other becomes the Respondent. It works for every situation — children, real estate, complex assets, contested or uncontested. The petitioner pays $435 to file, and the respondent pays another $435 to file their response. You'll need to formally serve the other spouse through a third party.

Joint Petition (Form FL-700): New as of January 1, 2026, under Senate Bill 1427. Both spouses file together as co-petitioners. There's no adversarial structure, no service of process required, and no court appearances. The combined fee is $870. Unlike summary dissolution, there are no limits on marriage length, children, or asset values. This is the best option for cooperative couples with any level of complexity.

Summary Dissolution (Form FL-800): The streamlined option for short, simple marriages. You must have been married under five years, have no minor children and neither spouse may be currently pregnant, own no real estate, and have community assets under $57,000 and debts under $7,000. Both spouses must permanently waive spousal support. The filing fee is $435 total.

Meet the Residency Requirements

Before you file anything, at least one spouse must have lived in California for the preceding six months and in the specific county where you're filing for the preceding three months (Family Code § 2320).

You don't need to bring proof of residency to the courthouse. The petition includes a sworn declaration — you'll state under penalty of perjury that you meet the requirements.

If you don't yet meet the residency timeline, you can file for legal separation instead (which has no residency requirement), then amend it to a dissolution once the clock runs out. Filing for legal separation lets you get temporary court orders for custody, support, and asset preservation while you wait.

File Your Initial Paperwork

For the traditional path, you'll file three core documents with your county's Superior Court clerk:

• Form FL-100 (Petition): States the grounds (irreconcilable differences for nearly all California divorces), your dates of marriage and separation, and what you're requesting regarding property, support, and custody
• Form FL-110 (Summons): Puts Automatic Temporary Restraining Orders (ATROs) into effect for the petitioner upon filing and the respondent after service — once they apply, neither spouse can hide assets, cancel insurance, or take children out of state
• Form FL-105 (UCCJEA Declaration): Required only if you have minor children — it documents where the children have lived for the past five years

For the joint petition path, you'll file Form FL-700 (Joint Petition) and Form FL-710 (Joint Summons), both signed by both spouses. If you have children, add Form FL-105.

Some counties require additional local forms. Los Angeles County, for example, requires Form FAM-020 (Family Law Case Cover Sheet) to route your case to the correct courthouse based on your zip code.

Serve Your Spouse (Traditional Path Only)

If you filed the traditional FL-100, you must have the papers served on your spouse by someone who is at least 18 years old and not a party to the case. You cannot hand them the papers yourself.

Methods include personal delivery, mail with Notice and Acknowledgment (Form FL-117), substituted service through another adult at their residence, or — as a last resort — service by publication in a newspaper.

After service is complete, the server fills out a Proof of Service of Summons (Form FL-115), which you file with the court. This step matters because the mandatory six-month waiting period starts on the date of service or an earlier general appearance, not the filing date.

Joint petition filers skip this entirely — the co-filed petition counts as mutual service, and the waiting period starts on the filing date.

Complete Mandatory Financial Disclosures

The petitioner must serve preliminary financial disclosures within 60 days of filing the Petition; the respondent must serve them within 60 days of filing a Response, and joint petitioners must exchange them within 60 days of filing the Joint Petition (Family Code § 2104). This requirement cannot be waived.

The disclosure package includes Form FL-140 (Declaration of Disclosure), Form FL-150 (Income and Expense Declaration with attached pay stubs and tax returns), and Form FL-142 (Schedule of Assets and Debts).

The FL-150 gets filed with the court. The FL-142 asset schedules are exchanged privately between spouses — they don't go into the public court file. Both parties file Form FL-141 (Proof of Service of Declaration of Disclosure) to confirm the exchange happened.

Reach an Agreement and Submit Your Judgment

For uncontested cases, both spouses negotiate a Marital Settlement Agreement covering property division, support, and custody. Then you assemble a judgment packet that includes Form FL-130 (Appearance, Stipulations, and Waivers), Form FL-170 (Declaration for Default or Uncontested Dissolution), and Form FL-180 (Judgment) with the MSA attached.

Most couples also file Form FL-144 (Stipulation and Waiver of Final Declaration of Disclosure) to skip the second round of financial disclosures.

Submit the packet to the court clerk with two stamped return envelopes. A judge reviews the paperwork and, if everything is in order, signs the judgment. The divorce becomes final six months and one day from the date of service (traditional) or filing (joint petition) — whichever applies.

What Comes Next

The court mails both spouses a Notice of Entry of Judgment (Form FL-190) with the official termination date. Until that date passes, you're still legally married and can't remarry.

If you need a structured walkthrough of each step — from choosing your filing path through assembling the final judgment packet — the California Divorce Filing Process Guide includes chronological checklists, financial disclosure worksheets, and a judgment assembly checklist built around the FL-182 standard.

See more California guides →