Reviewed July 2026
Filing for Divorce in Washington
A plain-language look at how divorce works under Washington law: who can file, how long it takes, what it costs, and where Washington's own court forms and self-help resources are.
Virdix's document-preparation product currently prepares divorce paperwork for California cases only. This page explains how the process works under Washington law, using Washington's own court forms and self-help resources, for people researching before they file. It is not legal advice, and Virdix does not prepare or file Washington divorce paperwork. See how Virdix works for California divorces.
Washington combines two facts that are unusual together and heavily searched: it has NO durational residency requirement at all (a party only needs to be a current resident, or a servicemember stationed in the state, at the moment of filing, someone can in theory move to Washington and file immediately), yet it still imposes a mandatory 90-day wait between filing/service and the earliest a court can finalize the decree. On top of that, Washington is a community-property state, which is uncommon outside a handful of states and changes how the court starts its property analysis compared to the equitable-distribution majority. There is no simplified/summary dissolution track in Washington law the way some states offer for short, low-asset marriages, every dissolution goes through the same 90-day-minimum process regardless of case simplicity.
Grounds for divorce in Washington
No-fault grounds
- The marriage or domestic partnership 'is irretrievably broken' (RCW 26.09.030), the sole ground
Washington law does not recognize traditional fault-based grounds (adultery, cruelty, desertion, etc.).
Source: app.leg.wa.gov
Who can file: residency rules
Washington has NO durational residency requirement. RCW 26.09.030 only requires that at the time of filing, one party is a current Washington resident, is a member of the armed forces stationed in Washington, or is married/in a domestic partnership with someone who is a Washington resident or armed-forces member stationed in Washington. There is no minimum number of months a party must have already lived in the state before filing.
RCW 26.09.030
Source: app.leg.wa.gov
How long it takes
90 days. Under RCW 26.09.030, a court may not enter a dissolution decree until ninety days have elapsed from whichever is later: the date the petition was filed, or the date of service of the summons on the respondent (or first publication of the summons). This is a minimum wait before the decree can be finalized, not a wait before filing.
RCW 26.09.030
Source: app.leg.wa.gov
That figure is the statutory floor, not a promise. Service, exchanging financial disclosures, and the court's own hearing calendar routinely add time on top of it, and a contested case takes longer than an uncontested one regardless of the minimum. California, by comparison, requires a mandatory six month waiting period from the date of service.
Cost and filing fees
$254 total to initiate a dissolution case in superior court: a $200 general civil filing fee for the first/initial document in any civil action (RCW 36.18.020(2)(a)) plus a $54 dissolution-specific fee charged to the party filing the first petition for dissolution, legal separation, or declaration concerning validity of marriage (RCW 36.18.016). Both fees are set by state statute, not set individually by county, though some sources describe a broader range (e.g., roughly $200 to $364) for various superior court case types generally, confirm the exact total with the specific county clerk before filing.
Source: app.leg.wa.gov
California's own statewide filing fee is generally $435 to $450 statewide, with a fee waiver available for those who qualify.
Divorce forms and papers
The petition
FL Divorce 201, "Petition for Divorce (Dissolution)", a standardized, statewide Washington court form. It is typically filed together with FL Divorce 200 ("Summons: Notice About a Marriage or Domestic Partnership"), FL All Family 001 ("Confidential Information"), and FL All Family 101 ("Proof of Personal Service"). Additional documents may be required under local county superior court rules.
Source: courts.wa.gov
Fee waiver
Form WPF GR 34.0100, "Motion and Declaration for Waiver/Deferral of Filing Fees and Surcharges," filed under General Rule (GR) 34, which allows any individual who is indigent to seek a waiver of filing fees and surcharges in Washington courts.
Source: courts.wa.gov
Washington publishes fillable forms for this process.
California uses standardized Judicial Council forms, starting with the Petition (Form FL-100), across every county. See California's own divorce forms.
Filing online
County-by-county patchwork, not a single unified statewide e-filing system. Each Washington county superior court/clerk manages its own e-filing access and requirements (e.g., King, Snohomish, Lewis, and Thurston counties each publish separate county-specific e-filing pages), and access to some portals (like the Odyssey Portal) requires county clerk authorization. A state-supported eFileWA rollout (Tyler Technologies-hosted) was, as of this review, live in only a limited number of counties rather than statewide. Confirm current e-filing status and requirements with the specific county superior court clerk before filing.
Source: courts.wa.gov
Uncontested and simplified divorce
Washington does not have a separate statutory simplified or summary divorce track. An uncontested case still uses the standard process, it just moves faster because there is nothing to litigate.
No dedicated statutory simplified or summary dissolution track (comparable to California's summary dissolution) was found in Washington law or on the state's official self-help site. Washington's standard dissolution procedure (petition, 90-day minimum wait, final decree) applies regardless of marriage length, income, or asset level; uncontested cases proceed faster in practice mainly because there are no disputed issues to litigate, not because of a separate simplified statutory track.
California's equivalent is uncontested divorce in California, which uses the same statewide forms as any other case but moves faster once both spouses agree on every term.
Filing without a lawyer
Washington allows self-represented filers, and most divorces filed in the state proceed this way. Because Virdix prepares paperwork for California cases only, a Washington filer handling their own case works directly from Washington's own forms and self-help materials rather than a Virdix-prepared packet. Washington's official self-help resources are the direct source for the current forms and instructions.
For how self-representation works in the state Virdix does serve, see divorce without a lawyer in California and DIY divorce vs. hiring a lawyer.
More about divorce in Washington
How property is divided
Community property. Under RCW 26.16.030, property acquired by either spouse or domestic partner after marriage (other than property that qualifies as separate property under RCW 26.16.010 and 26.16.020) is community property. Washington is one of a small number of community-property states.
Source: app.leg.wa.gov
Child support guideline
Not independently confirmedIncome Shares-style model using a statewide Economic Table under RCW 26.19.020. The economic table is presumptive for combined monthly net incomes up to a statutory cap (recently increased from $12,000 to $50,000 per reporting reviewed alongside the primary statute), confirm the current cap directly against the live text of RCW 26.19.020 given how recently it changed.
Source: app.leg.wa.gov
Parenting class requirement
Not confirmed either way from a primary source.
Washington law (RCW 26.12.172) directs the courts to establish parenting seminar requirements by local court rule for parents in dissolution and other family law matters involving minor children; opposing parties cannot be required to attend together, and courts may waive the requirement for domestic violence cases or other good cause. Because implementation is via local superior court rule rather than a single uniform statewide program, specifics (length, cost, format) vary by county.
Source: app.leg.wa.gov
California is the only state on this site with a full county-by-county breakdown. See how California's divorce process compares across its 58 counties.
This page is general information about Washington divorce procedure, not legal advice for your situation. Laws, fees, and forms change over time; confirm current details with Washington's own courts before relying on anything here. Virdix is not a law firm, is not licensed to practice law in Washington, and does not prepare or file Washington divorce paperwork. It is not a substitute for an attorney licensed in Washington.