Ohio’s Affidavit 1 financial affidavit — formally the Uniform Domestic Relations Form – Affidavit 1, Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses — is a sworn financial disclosure you file in divorce, dissolution, legal separation, and annulment cases. It is approved under Ohio Civil Rule 84 and available as a free PDF from the Supreme Court of Ohio.1Supreme Court of Ohio. Affidavit 1 – Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses Judges and magistrates use the numbers you put on it to set child support, set spousal support, and divide marital property, so what you write here shapes the financial outcome of your case.
What to Pull Together Before You Open the Form
The form’s instructions tell you to leave no category blank: write “NONE” where an item doesn’t apply, and “EST.” next to any figure you’re estimating rather than reporting exactly.1Supreme Court of Ohio. Affidavit 1 – Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses Having the underlying records in front of you makes that much easier than working from memory.
- Three years of income records. The form asks for base yearly income and overtime, commissions, or bonuses for each of the past three years. W-2s or 1099s for each year make this straightforward.
- Recent pay stubs. The number varies by county. Cuyahoga County, for example, requires your last four pay stubs along with the prior year’s federal tax return and all supporting schedules.2Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court. Local Rules of Practice
- Monthly bills and statements. Mortgage or rent, utilities, insurance, car payments, childcare — each has its own line.
- Records of government benefits. Social Security, disability, workers’ compensation, unemployment, and veterans’ benefits all count as income on this form.
Section I: Basic Information
The top of the form collects identifying details for both spouses, labeled Plaintiff/Petitioner 1 and Defendant/Petitioner 2: date of birth, the last four digits of each Social Security number, phone, email, whether an interpreter is needed, and a general health rating of Good, Fair, or Poor.1Supreme Court of Ohio. Affidavit 1 – Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses
Only the last four digits of the Social Security numbers go on the form. Never write the full number. Ohio’s Rule of Superintendence 45 requires parties to omit personal identifiers, including full Social Security numbers and financial account numbers, from any document filed with a court.3Supreme Court of Ohio. Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio
Section II: Income
Income is the part courts scrutinize most closely. It comes in two main parts.
Three-Year Income History
Part A asks for your base yearly income and your yearly overtime, commissions, or bonuses for each of the past three years. The historical view is there so the court can spot trends. A single year of unusually high overtime, or a recent pay cut, stands out against the three-year backdrop. If your income has fluctuated, expect questions at any hearing about why.1Supreme Court of Ohio. Affidavit 1 – Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses
Current Income and Employment
Part B calculates your current income. Enter your base yearly income and the average of your overtime, commissions, and bonuses over the last three years. Below that you report education level, any technical certifications, whether you’re an active member of the U.S. military, and your employment details: employer name, payroll address, date of hire, and pay frequency (monthly, semimonthly, biweekly, or weekly).1Supreme Court of Ohio. Affidavit 1 – Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses
The form then lists additional income sources, each on its own line: unemployment compensation, disability benefits, workers’ compensation, Social Security, retirement benefits, spousal support received, and interest or dividend income. A line for “other income” asks you to identify the type and source. Everything feeds into a total yearly income figure at the bottom of the section.
What Counts as Income
Ohio defines gross income for support calculations broadly. It covers all earned and unearned income from all sources during a calendar year, whether or not that income is taxable.4Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 3119.01 Social Security retirement and disability benefits, workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance, non-means-tested veterans’ disability benefits, and pension income all count. The Ohio Child Support Calculator treats workers’ compensation and Social Security disability or retirement benefits as components of annual gross income.5Ohio Child Support Calculator. Ohio Child Support Calculator – Guidelines Calculator Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and public assistance have their own line and are reported but treated differently because they are means-tested.
If you receive Social Security or veterans’ benefits on behalf of a child, the form has a specific line for that, broken out by whether the benefit is based on the parent’s disability or the child’s disability. Child support received from a prior relationship for children not of this marriage has its own line too.
Section III: Children and Household
List every minor or dependent child of the marriage by name and date of birth, and note which parent the child lives with. The form also asks how many other minor biological or adopted children you have from other relationships and the total number of adults in your household.1Supreme Court of Ohio. Affidavit 1 – Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses These numbers matter because existing support obligations for other children can affect new support calculations.
Section IV: Monthly Expenses
The expense section spans several pages and splits into housing, general living costs, and child-related expenses. Every figure here is monthly, so convert any bills you pay quarterly or annually.
Housing
Enter your rent or first mortgage payment, any second mortgage or home equity line of credit payment, the monthly share of property taxes, renter’s or homeowner’s insurance, and HOA or condo fees. Utilities get their own sub-list: electric, gas or fuel oil, water and sewer, phone and cell phone, trash, cable or satellite, and internet. Cleaning services, lawn care, snow removal, and any other housing-related costs round out the section.1Supreme Court of Ohio. Affidavit 1 – Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses
Other Living Expenses
This part covers groceries and dining out, vehicle loan or lease payments, maintenance, gas, parking or public transportation, non-children’s clothing, dry cleaning, and personal grooming. For variable categories like groceries and gas, average your actual spending over the past several months rather than guessing. Bank and credit card statements are the easiest source.
Child-Related Expenses
If you have minor children, the form asks for work- or education-related childcare costs, other childcare, extraordinary travel costs for parenting time, school tuition, lunches and supplies, extracurricular activities and lessons, children’s clothing, allowances, and any special or extraordinary needs. These line items feed directly into the child support worksheet. Underreporting them means the court may set support without accounting for what you actually spend.
Property and Debt Live on a Separate Form
Affidavit 1 does not cover assets or liabilities. Most domestic relations cases also require Uniform Domestic Relations Form – Affidavit 2, which asks you to list every asset and debt — yours, your spouse’s, and anything held jointly.6Supreme Court of Ohio. Uniform Domestic Relations Form Affidavit 2 Check your local court rules to confirm whether both affidavits must be filed at the same time.
Signing in Front of a Notary
Because this is an affidavit, you sign it under oath before a notary public. Under Ohio law, a jurat requires two things: the signer gives an oath or affirmation that the contents are true, and the signer signs the document in the notary’s presence.7Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code Chapter 147 – Notaries Public Do not sign the form beforehand and then bring it to a notary. The notary needs to witness your signature. A pre-signed affidavit will be rejected. Most banks, UPS stores, and law offices offer notary services, often for a small fee or free for account holders.
Filing and Serving the Affidavit
After notarization, file the completed affidavit and any required supporting documents with the Clerk of Courts in the county where your case is pending. The form’s instructions note that local court rules determine when it must be filed.1Supreme Court of Ohio. Affidavit 1 – Affidavit of Basic Information, Income, and Expenses In some counties it must accompany the initial petition. In others it’s due before the pretrial conference. For temporary support motions, some local rules require filing a sworn affidavit showing both parties’ gross and net income along with the motion itself.2Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court. Local Rules of Practice
Many Ohio counties now accept electronic filings for domestic relations cases through their clerk portals.8Hamilton County Clerk of Courts. E-Filing Counties that don’t support e-filing require hand delivery or mailing of physical copies. Check your county clerk’s website for the accepted method.
You must also serve a copy of your completed affidavit and supporting documents on the other party or their attorney. Many counties require this exchange in advance of pretrial conferences or hearings. Cuyahoga County, for instance, requires copies of all documents submitted to the court to be exchanged with the opposing side.2Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court. Local Rules of Practice Service is typically done through certified mail, or through counsel if the other party has an attorney.
Redacting Personal Identifiers in Attachments
Rule of Superintendence 45 places the responsibility for protecting personal identifiers on the filing party, not the court or the clerk.3Supreme Court of Ohio. Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio Before you file, confirm the document shows only the last four digits of Social Security numbers and omits full financial account numbers, credit card numbers, and employer identification numbers. The form itself is designed to collect only the last four digits, but supporting documents you attach — tax returns, pay stubs, bank statements — often contain full numbers you need to redact first.
If you need to give the court the unredacted information, submit it on a separate confidential disclosure form. The court or clerk can supply the standard form. Blacking out text with a highlighter, placing a dark box over numbers, or changing font color to white does not actually protect the data in electronic documents. Use proper redaction tools, or photocopy a paper copy after physically covering the text, so hidden information stays hidden.
Penalties for False or Incomplete Disclosure
This is a sworn statement, and the consequences of lying on it are real. Providing false information constitutes perjury under Ohio law, a third-degree felony.9Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 2921.11 Hiding assets carries a separate financial penalty: if a spouse substantially and willfully fails to disclose marital property, separate property, or other assets, debts, income, or expenses, the court may award the other spouse up to three times the value of whatever was concealed.10Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 3105.171 An honest affidavit with estimated figures marked “EST.” is far safer than one that omits inconvenient assets or understates income.