If you cannot afford the court filing fee, the fee waiver process is built for exactly that. Every state lets someone who cannot afford the fee ask the court to waive it, based on income or certain public benefits, and the process does not require hiring a lawyer. This guide covers how the waiver works, what California and Florida each require, and how a waiver fits together with an online filing service if you use one.
Key Takeaway: A fee waiver, not an uncontested filing, is the tool for when the filing fee itself is the barrier. California uses Form FW-001. Florida uses an Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status. Both are free to file and are decided on your income, household size, or public benefits, separate from any document preparation fee you may also pay.
What if You Can't Afford to Get Divorced?
Not being able to afford the court filing fee does not mean you cannot file. Every state runs a fee waiver, sometimes called an in forma pauperis or indigent status application, that lets a qualifying petitioner file, serve, and finish a divorce case without paying the fee upfront. The application asks about your income, household size, and, in some states, your assets, and a clerk or judge decides whether you qualify.
How a Court Fee Waiver Works
Generally, you complete the fee waiver form at the same time as your petition and file both together. The clerk reviews your income and household information against the state's current qualifying limits, or checks the public benefit you listed, and either grants the waiver, denies it, or asks for more information. A granted waiver typically covers your filing fee and other court costs tied directly to your case, not any separate service you choose to pay for.
California Fee Waiver: Form FW-001
California's fee waiver application is Form FW-001, Request to Waive Court Fees, effective for mandatory use by all courts as of March 1, 2026. You generally qualify one of three ways: your household income falls at or below the limit listed on the form for your household size, you receive certain public benefits (such as Medi-Cal, CalFresh, or SSI), or you can show the court that paying both your basic living expenses and the filing fee at the same time would be a hardship.
A companion form, FW-001-INFO, explains the qualifying rules in more detail. If your fees later exceed what your first waiver covered, a second form, FW-002, lets you request an additional waiver. Our guide, How to Fill Out Form FW-001, walks through the form section by section.
Florida Fee Waiver: Civil Indigent Status
Florida's equivalent is the Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status, developed by the Florida Clerks of Court Operations Corporation and approved by the Florida Supreme Court. You are considered indigent if your income is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines for your household size. There is a presumption against indigent status if you own, or have equity in, personal or real property worth $2,500 or more, not counting your homestead and one vehicle valued at $5,000 or less.
If granted, the filing fee and summons issuance fee are waived, though some other costs in your case may not be. The application is available from your county clerk of court or directly through Florida's court forms library.
What Other Low-Cost and Free Options Exist?
Beyond a fee waiver, a few other paths keep total cost down:
- Your county's self-help center, staffed by the court itself, offers free guidance on which forms you need, though staff cannot give legal advice or complete forms for you
- Nonprofit legal aid organizations, which offer free or reduced-cost help for qualifying households in many counties
- Waiver of service, when your spouse is cooperative, which avoids the added cost of a process server
Our broader guide to cheap divorce options covers all of these paths together, including what a genuinely low-cost, uncontested case costs from start to finish in California and Florida.
How a Fee Waiver Works Alongside an Online Filing Service
A fee waiver and a document preparation service solve two different problems. The waiver addresses what you owe the court. A service like Virdix addresses whether your forms are filled out correctly and consistently. You can use both together: request a fee waiver for your court costs, and separately choose whether a paid service is worth it for help completing the paperwork itself. Neither one disqualifies you from the other, since the court only evaluates your income and assets when deciding the fee waiver, not how you prepared your documents.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get divorced when I can't afford it?
You ask the court to waive the filing fee, using a fee waiver application filed alongside your petition. California uses Form FW-001. Florida uses an Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status. Both are free to file, decided by the clerk or a judge based on your income or public benefits, and do not require a lawyer to complete.
What income qualifies for a fee waiver?
In Florida, you generally qualify if your income is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines for your household size, with a presumption against indigent status if you hold more than $2,500 in non-exempt personal or real property. California's Form FW-001 lists its own current income limits by household size directly on the form, along with alternate ways to qualify through public benefits.
Do I automatically qualify for a fee waiver if I receive public benefits?
In California, receiving certain public benefits, such as Medi-Cal, CalFresh, SSI, or unemployment, is one accepted path to qualifying for a fee waiver, separate from the income-limit path. You still complete and file Form FW-001 listing the benefit you receive; the clerk or judge reviews it the same way as an income-based request.
What does a fee waiver actually cover?
A granted fee waiver generally covers your initial filing fee and, in many cases, other court costs tied to your case, such as fees for serving your spouse. It does not cover a private attorney, private mediation, or an online document preparation service, if you choose to use one. Those remain separate costs, if any, outside the waiver.
Can my fee waiver be denied?
Yes. A court can deny a fee waiver if your income and assets do not meet the qualifying criteria, and in Florida, owning non-exempt property worth more than $2,500 creates a presumption against indigent status. If denied, you can typically pay the fee, ask the court to reconsider with more documentation, or ask to pay in installments instead.
Does using a document preparation service disqualify me from a fee waiver?
No. A fee waiver applies to what you pay the court, not to any separate document preparation fee. You can qualify for a full fee waiver on your court costs and still choose to pay a document preparation service like Virdix, at its own separate price, to help you complete your forms correctly.
How Virdix Helps
Virdix fills out your California or Florida court forms from your answers and flags contradictions across your paperwork, for a one time $79 launch price through October 31, 2026. Virdix does not decide or process your court fee waiver; that application goes directly to your county clerk, separate from anything you pay Virdix.
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. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed family law attorney.
Sources: California Courts Self-Help Center (selfhelp.courts.ca.gov), Form FW-001 (courts.ca.gov); Florida Statute 57.082 (flsenate.gov), Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status (flcourts-media.flcourts.gov).