You can file for divorce online in Florida through the state’s e-filing portal at myflcourtaccess.com, whether your case is a simplified dissolution or a regular one. The filing fee is $409, and Florida offers a free guided document tool called DIY Florida that prepares your forms before you upload them. The portal accepts everything electronically, including payment.
Which Online Path Fits Your Situation
Florida has two dissolution tracks, and both go through the same portal. The difference is what you have to file and how long it takes.
A simplified dissolution is available only if every one of these is true: no minor or dependent children together, no pregnancy, both spouses agree on how to divide property and debts, neither spouse is asking for alimony, both agree the marriage is irretrievably broken, at least one spouse has lived in Florida for six months, and both are willing to appear together at the final hearing.1Florida Courts. Instructions for Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure Form 12.901(a) Joint Petition for Simplified Dissolution of Marriage Miss one requirement and you file a regular dissolution instead.
A regular dissolution covers everyone else: cases with children, disagreements over property, or a request for alimony. One spouse files as petitioner and the other must be formally served. Florida is a no-fault state, so on either track you only need to state that the marriage is irretrievably broken.2Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 61.052 – Dissolution of Marriage
One thing to weigh before choosing simplified: it cannot be appealed. Both spouses give up the right to a trial and to challenge the outcome later. If you’re uncertain about the property split, the regular track is safer.
How to File Through the E-Filing Portal
Florida routes all court filings through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal. First-time users create an account at myflcourtaccess.com and choose “Self-Represented Litigant” as the filer role during registration.3Florida Courts Help. Filing Your Forms Once you’re in, you upload completed, signed, and notarized documents as PDFs and pay the filing fee electronically.
Using the DIY Florida Tool
If you’re not sure which forms you need or how to fill them in, log into the portal and select “I want to complete an interview to generate a DIY Document.” Pick the dissolution interview that matches your situation and answer the questions. The tool builds your documents from your answers, and you can file them electronically, in person, or by mail.4Florida Courts. DIY Florida The interview covers both simplified and regular dissolutions.
Getting Documents Notarized
Several forms have to be notarized before you upload them. You can use an in-person notary, or Florida allows remote online notarization, where a Florida-commissioned notary verifies your identity and watches you sign over live video. The notary must be physically located in Florida during the session. Most circuit courts accept remotely notarized family law documents, but individual judges occasionally have preferences, so it’s worth checking with your local clerk before you rely on it.
What It Costs
The filing fee for a dissolution of marriage is $409.5Broward County Clerk of Courts. Fees and Costs Paying through the portal adds a convenience charge: 3.5% for credit cards, or a flat $5 for electronic check.6Florida Courts E-Filing Authority. Frequently Asked Questions That works out to roughly $423 by card or $414 by ACH.
If the fee is out of reach, apply for a determination of civil indigent status under Florida Statute 57.082. Approval waives the filing fee, but you’ll be placed on a payment plan and charged a one-time administrative processing fee.7Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 57.082 – Determination of Civil Indigent Status Leave some room in your budget for certified copies of the final judgment, which you’ll need to update ID and financial accounts afterward.
Forms to Have Ready
Before you start the upload, collect both spouses’ full legal names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and the date and place of marriage. For a simplified dissolution, the required forms are:
- Joint Petition for Simplified Dissolution of Marriage (Form 12.901(a)), the document that opens the case.
- Marital Settlement Agreement (Form 12.902(f)(3)), which sets out how you’re dividing assets and debts. If you have nothing to divide, you can state that orally at the hearing, but a written agreement is cleaner.
- Financial Affidavit: the short form (12.902(b)) if your gross annual income is under $50,000, or the long form (12.902(c)) at $50,000 or above. Both spouses can instead sign a joint waiver of financial affidavits (Form 12.902(k)).
- Family Court Cover Sheet (Form 12.928), an administrative form the clerk uses to process the case.
- Affidavit of Corroborating Witness (Form 12.902(i)), signed under oath by someone who can confirm the six-month Florida residency.
All of these are free on the Florida Courts website, and each comes with an instruction packet.8Florida Courts. Joint Petition for Simplified Dissolution of Marriage Read the instructions carefully. Form errors are the most common reason filings get rejected or delayed.
A regular dissolution uses the same financial affidavit thresholds but adds mandatory disclosures under Florida Family Law Rule 12.285: three years of tax returns, recent pay stubs, bank and brokerage statements, loan applications, deeds, and retirement account statements.9Florida Courts. Rule 12.285 Mandatory Disclosure Neither side can skip this. Start pulling records together as soon as you decide to file.
After You File a Simplified Dissolution
Once the clerk accepts your petition, the court schedules a final hearing. Both spouses must attend together. The judge confirms you both meet the eligibility requirements, agree the marriage is irretrievably broken, and accept the terms of any settlement. The hearing is usually under 15 minutes.1Florida Courts. Instructions for Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure Form 12.901(a) Joint Petition for Simplified Dissolution of Marriage
Some counties want you to bring a completed Final Judgment of Simplified Dissolution of Marriage (Form 12.990(a)) to the hearing; others prepare it on the spot. Ask your local clerk before the hearing date. Once the judge signs the final judgment, the marriage is dissolved.
After You File a Regular Dissolution
In a regular case, the other spouse has to be formally served. Personal service, done by a sheriff’s deputy or a certified private process server, is the standard method when your spouse is in Florida and you know the address. If your spouse lives out of state but shared a Florida marital home with you, a process server in their current county and state handles it. If you can’t locate your spouse after a diligent search, the court can allow constructive service by publication in a local newspaper, though a judge generally won’t divide property or award alimony on published notice alone.
The DIY Florida interview covers regular dissolution paperwork as well, so the online path stays the same even when the case is contested.10Florida State Courts System. Dissolution of Marriage
What the Portal Doesn’t Do
Filing online closes the court case, but a few pieces sit outside the portal and get missed. A divorce decree alone will not divide a 401(k) or pension: you need a separate Qualified Domestic Relations Order approved by the plan administrator, and without it the plan pays only what its own documents say, whatever your agreement provides.11U.S. Department of Labor. Qualified Domestic Relations Orders Under ERISA – A Practical Guide to Dividing Retirement Benefits If one spouse is on the other’s employer health plan, the plan administrator has to be notified within 60 days of the divorce to preserve COBRA continuation coverage.12U.S. Department of Labor. FAQs on COBRA Continuation Health Coverage for Workers And your marital status on December 31 sets your tax filing status for the whole year, so the timing of your final judgment has tax consequences that the portal doesn’t flag.13Internal Revenue Service. Filing Taxes After Divorce or Separation Handle these alongside the filing, not after it.