A Florida divorce does not stall just because your spouse will not cooperate. The filing spouse's signature is all that is needed to start a regular dissolution of marriage case; what changes when a spouse is missing, out of state, or unwilling to sign is how that spouse gets formal notice of the case, not whether the case can be filed at all.
Quick Answer: You only need your own signature to file a regular Florida divorce petition. If your spouse cannot be personally served because they are missing or their location is unknown, Florida allows service by publication under Fla. Stat. 49.011(4), after you file a sworn Affidavit of Diligent Search and Inquiry (Form 12.913(b)) and a published Notice of Action (Form 12.913(a)(1)). Publication runs once a week for four consecutive weeks.
What If Your Spouse Is Missing and Can't Be Served?
Florida law provides a specific path for exactly this situation: service of process by publication, also called constructive service. Florida Statute 49.011(4) lists dissolution or annulment of marriage among the case types where publication is allowed when personal service cannot be had.
Before a court allows publication, you must show you made a genuine effort to locate your spouse. Fla. Stat. 49.041 requires a sworn statement showing that diligent search and inquiry were made to discover your spouse's name and residence, and stating whether your spouse's location is unknown, in another state, or that your spouse has been absent from Florida more than 60 days or is otherwise concealing themselves.
Can You Get a One-Signature Divorce in Florida?
In the sense that the regular dissolution petition only requires the filing spouse's signature to be filed, yes. Florida's regular (non-simplified) dissolution process is built around one spouse, the petitioner, filing a petition and then formally serving the other spouse, the respondent, who is not required to sign anything to have the case proceed.
This is different from Florida's simplified dissolution of marriage under Form 12.901(a), which is a joint petition both spouses sign together and only applies to couples who agree on everything, have no minor or dependent children, and have already divided their property. If your spouse will not sign a joint petition, the regular dissolution track, not simplified dissolution, is the applicable process. See our step-by-step guide, How to File for Divorce in Florida, for how the regular process works from start to finish.
What If Your Husband or Wife Won't Sign the Divorce Papers?
A spouse refusing to sign anything does not require their cooperation to move a Florida case forward. Once you file the petition and your spouse is formally served, they have a set window to respond. According to the instructions for Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure forms, if a properly served respondent does not file a response in that window, the petitioner may be entitled to request a default.
There is an important distinction here. A spouse who simply will not sign paperwork, but does not actively dispute the divorce or its terms, is different from a spouse who files a response contesting the petition, the property division, support, or a parenting plan. Once a spouse actively disputes the case, it becomes a contested dissolution, which proceeds under a longer track involving discovery, possible mediation, and potentially a trial rather than a default or simple uncontested resolution. See What Happens If You Don't Respond to Divorce Papers in Florida for how a default plays out from the served spouse's side.
What If Your Spouse Lives Out of State?
An out-of-state spouse does not prevent you from filing in Florida, as long as you, the filing spouse, meet Florida's 6-month residency requirement under Fla. Stat. 61.021. Your spouse can typically be personally served wherever they are located, inside or outside Florida; see How to Serve Divorce Papers in Florida for how that process works. If your spouse's specific location is unknown, or personal service otherwise cannot be completed, service by publication under Fla. Stat. 49.011(4) may be available, following the same diligent search and publication requirements that apply to any missing-spouse situation.
How Service by Publication Works in Florida
Service by publication in a Florida dissolution of marriage follows a specific sequence set out in the instructions for Family Law Rules of Procedure Forms 12.913(a)(1) and 12.913(b):
- File a sworn Affidavit of Diligent Search and Inquiry, Form 12.913(b), documenting the specific places you searched for your spouse
- File the Notice of Action for Dissolution of Marriage, Form 12.913(a)(1), with your spouse's name and last known address
- The clerk of the circuit court signs the notice once the affidavit is filed
- The signed notice is given to a qualified local newspaper in the county where the case is pending
- The notice is published once each week for four consecutive weeks
- If you cannot afford publication, you can ask the clerk to post the notice instead, after filing an Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status
The diligent search checklist in Form 12.913(b) includes specific places to check, among them the U.S. Postal Service, your spouse's last known employer, relatives, internet locator services, Department of Corrections records, utility companies in the last known area, and the Armed Forces. You are not required to check every category, but the court must be satisfied the effort was serious and that you followed up on any leads.
What Service by Publication Does and Does Not Let You Get
Constructive service has real limits. According to the official form instructions, constructive notice allows the court to dissolve the marriage itself, but personal service is required before a court can order payment of financial support, such as alimony, or certain other relief, because the court's jurisdiction over an unserved respondent is limited. If you are asking the court to divide specific real or personal property, the published notice must include a specific description of that property.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Assuming a spouse's refusal to sign means the divorce cannot proceed
- Filing an Affidavit of Diligent Search that only states you "cannot find" your spouse, without documenting specific search steps taken
- Confusing simplified dissolution, which requires both signatures, with regular dissolution, which does not
- Expecting service by publication to support an alimony award without personal service
- Missing the four-week publication requirement or the newspaper's qualification rules in the filing county
Frequently Asked Questions
What if your spouse is missing and can't be served in a Florida divorce?
Florida law allows service by publication, also called constructive service, in a dissolution of marriage case under Fla. Stat. 49.011(4), when personal service cannot be accomplished. You must first complete a sworn Affidavit of Diligent Search and Inquiry, Form 12.913(b), documenting the specific steps you took to try to locate your spouse, then file a Notice of Action, Form 12.913(a)(1), that gets published in a qualified newspaper.
Can you get a one-signature divorce in Florida?
Florida's regular dissolution of marriage petition only requires the filing spouse's signature to start the case; it does not require your spouse to sign anything to begin. Your spouse must still be formally served with the petition unless the court allows constructive service. If your spouse never files a response, you may be able to move the case forward by default, but that is different from Florida's simplified dissolution, which does require both spouses to sign a joint petition.
What if your husband or wife won't sign the divorce papers?
You do not need your spouse's signature to file. Florida's regular dissolution process lets one spouse (the petitioner) file and formally serve the other (the respondent). If your spouse still refuses to sign or respond after being served, the case can potentially proceed by default under the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure. If your spouse actively disputes the petition instead of simply refusing to sign, the case becomes contested, which follows a different, longer track.
What if your spouse lives out of state?
Living out of state does not stop a Florida divorce as long as the filing spouse meets Florida's 6-month residency requirement under Fla. Stat. 61.021. An out-of-state spouse can typically be personally served in their own state under Florida's long-arm rules, or, if they cannot be located or personal service otherwise cannot be completed, through service by publication under Fla. Stat. 49.011(4).
How does service by publication work in Florida?
After filing the sworn Affidavit of Diligent Search and Inquiry (Form 12.913(b)) and the Notice of Action (Form 12.913(a)(1)) with the clerk of the circuit court, the clerk signs the notice and it must be published once a week for four consecutive weeks in a qualified local newspaper in the county where the case is pending. If you cannot afford publication costs, you can ask the clerk to post the notice instead after filing an Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status.
What is the Affidavit of Diligent Search and Inquiry?
It is Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure Form 12.913(b), a sworn statement listing the specific places you searched to try to find your spouse before asking the court to allow service by publication. The form includes a checklist covering things like the U.S. Postal Service, last known employer, relatives, internet locator services, Department of Corrections records, utility companies, and military records. A court must be satisfied you made a serious, documented effort, not just a general claim you could not find your spouse.
Can a Florida divorce be finalized if the other spouse never responds?
Yes, Florida procedure allows a petitioner to move for default when a properly served respondent fails to answer within the time stated in the summons or published notice. What a court can actually order at that point depends on how the respondent was served. Constructive service (service by publication) generally supports dissolving the marriage itself, but Florida limits what other relief, such as alimony, a court can grant without personal service.
Where Virdix Fits
Virdix currently prepares the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure forms used in an uncontested dissolution of marriage case. Whether a missing-spouse or won't-sign situation stays on an uncontested track, or becomes contested once a spouse formally disputes the case, depends on the facts of your situation. See what Virdix covers in Florida →
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Virdix is a document preparation service, not a law firm, and does not provide legal advice. Statutes and procedures can change; always confirm current information with the Florida Courts, the Florida Statutes, or your circuit court clerk. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed Florida attorney.
Sources: Florida Statutes 49.011, 49.041, and 61.021 (Florida Senate, flsenate.gov); Instructions for Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure Forms 12.913(a)(1) and 12.913(b) (Florida Courts, flcourts-media.flcourts.gov)