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Divorce with no money in Georgia: getting court fees waived
Summary
If you can't afford the court's fees, you can ask to file for divorce without paying them. You sign a sworn statement about your income and bills, usually called a pauper's affidavit or poverty affidavit, and the judge decides. If it's approved, you have the same rights in the case as someone who paid.1
The statewide order covers the filing fee and the sheriff's fee for serving your spouse. Several other costs can be avoided too, and free legal help is available in every part of Georgia, though it's limited.
What the fee waiver covers
Georgia law lets a person who can't pay a court deposit, fee or other cost file a sworn statement saying so instead. The statewide order that judges sign when they approve it covers the filing fee and the sheriff's fee for serving the papers.1, 2
Newspaper notice, used when your spouse can't be found, isn't on the statewide order. Some counties include it: Gwinnett's self-help packet says there's no charge for publishing the notice once your fee waiver is approved. In other counties, ask the clerk before you rely on it.3
Who qualifies
The test is whether you're unable to pay because you don't have the money.1
The law doesn't set a dollar cutoff. The statewide order form judges use refers to the federal poverty guidelines at 125% or less, adjusted for family size. The statewide affidavit asks about your household and the people you support, any public benefits, your income, what you own and what you owe, and the judge decides from those answers.2, 4
How to apply, step by step
- Get the form. The Georgia courts' self-help site has a statewide Affidavit of Eligibility to Proceed In Forma Pauperis, and many counties have their own version in their divorce packets.4
- Fill it in completely: your household, any public benefits such as SNAP, TANF or SSI, your wages and other income, bank accounts, vehicles, property and monthly bills.
- Attach proof of income if your county's form asks for it.
- Sign it in front of a notary. You're swearing the answers are true under penalty of perjury.4
- File it with your divorce complaint. When someone without a lawyer files, the clerk sends the papers to a judge first.1
- Wait for the judge's order. If it's approved, a copy is served on your spouse with the complaint.2
If the judge says no, or your spouse objects
Your spouse can challenge the affidavit by swearing that it isn't true. The judge then holds a hearing and decides whether you can pay, and that decision is final. The judge can also look into it without a challenge, order you to pay by a set date, and stop the case if you don't.1
A ruling on the fee waiver doesn't decide anything about the divorce itself.1
Assume your spouse can see what you wrote. The affidavit goes into the court file, so be accurate and complete.
Other costs you can often avoid
- Serving the papers: if your spouse agrees to the divorce, they can sign an acknowledgment of service in front of a notary, so no sheriff's fee is needed.
- Forms: the Georgia courts' self-help site has free divorce forms with instructions, and many counties post free packets.5
- Parenting class: where a court requires a parenting seminar, it must have a way to waive the fee for people who can't afford it.6
- A lawyer: the judge can order one spouse to pay part of the other's lawyer's fees, based on both spouses' finances. This matters most when one spouse earns much more than the other.7
Free and low-cost legal help
In Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, Gwinnett and Clayton, contact Atlanta Legal Aid Society, which handles some divorce and custody cases. The Georgia Legal Services Program serves the other 154 counties but generally takes divorce cases only for survivors of family violence. It runs a hotline for family violence survivors who need advice about divorce: 833-457-7529.8, 9
Your county's page on this site lists free and low-cost help near you, such as courthouse self-help centers and law library clinics.
If you're the spouse who was served
The fee waiver isn't only for the person filing. The statewide affidavit lets either the plaintiff or the defendant ask, so if a filing fee or cost stands between you and answering, ask the clerk which form to use. Don't let a fee keep you from answering by the deadline.4
Questions you might ask a lawyer
- Do I qualify for a fee waiver, and does it cover publication in this county?
- Can I ask the court to make my spouse pay part of my lawyer's fees?
- Do you offer limited help, such as reviewing my forms, for a lower fee?
- What will my case cost if my spouse doesn't agree?
Common questions
Can I get a divorce in Georgia if I can't afford the filing fee?
Yes. You can ask the court to let you file without paying by signing a sworn statement that you can't afford the fees, often called a pauper's affidavit. A judge decides whether to approve it.1
Does the fee waiver cost anything?
The form must be signed in front of a notary, which usually costs a few dollars at most.
What if my income changes during the case?
The judge can look again at whether you can pay and order costs paid by a deadline.1
Will the fee waiver make the judge think less of my case?
No. The law says a ruling on whether you can pay doesn't affect the decision on the divorce itself.1
Sources
- ^ O.C.G.A. § 9-15-2, filing without paying fees (FindLaw)
- ^ Georgia courts, Order on Pauper's Affidavit (georgiacourts.gov, PDF)
- ^ Atlanta Legal Aid Society, Gwinnett divorce by publication packet (PDF)
- ^ Georgia courts, Affidavit of Eligibility to Proceed In Forma Pauperis (georgiacourts.gov, PDF)
- ^ Georgia courts, divorce without minor children: forms and instructions (georgiacourts.gov)
- ^ Uniform Superior Court Rule 24.8, parenting seminars (Supreme Court of Georgia, PDF)
- ^ O.C.G.A. § 19-6-2, attorney's fees in divorce (Justia)
- ^ Atlanta Legal Aid Society, issues we address (PDF)
- ^ Georgia Legal Services Program, family law
Laws and court rules change. If something here looks out of date, email help@divorce.city.