Divorce in Texas

1. Waiting period

   60 days

   A Texas court generally cannot grant a divorce until the 60th day after the suit was filed; the statute waives this in certain family-violence situations.^[1]

   Tex. Fam. Code § 6.702 · checked October 26, 2026

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   “Except as provided by Subsection (c), the court may not grant a divorce before the 60th day after the date the suit was filed.”

2. Residency requirement

   6 months

   At filing, one spouse must have been domiciled in Texas for the preceding six months and a resident of the filing county for the preceding 90 days.^[1]

   Tex. Fam. Code § 6.301 · checked October 26, 2026

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   “a domiciliary of this state for the preceding six-month period; and (2) a resident of the county in which the suit is filed for the preceding 90-day period.”

3. No-fault divorce

   Yes, fault grounds also exist

   Texas allows a divorce without regard to fault when the marriage has become insupportable; fault grounds such as cruelty and adultery also exist.^[1]

   Tex. Fam. Code § 6.001 · checked October 26, 2026

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   “the court may grant a divorce without regard to fault if the marriage has become insupportable because of discord or conflict of personalities that destroys the legitimate ends of the marital relationship”

   “The court may grant a divorce in favor of one spouse if the other spouse has committed adultery.”

4. Property division

   Community property

   Texas is a community property state; on divorce the court divides the estate in a manner it deems just and right.^[2]

   Community property in Texas: the statute quoted →

   Tex. Fam. Code § 7.001; § 3.002 · checked October 26, 2026

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   “the court shall order a division of the estate of the parties in a manner that the court deems just and right, having due regard for the rights of each party and any children of the marriage.”

5. Court mediation for custody

   Court may order

   In a custody case (suit affecting the parent-child relationship) the court may refer the case to mediation on the parties' written agreement or on its own motion; a party may object on the basis of family violence.^[3]

   Tex. Fam. Code § 153.0071(c), (f) · checked October 26, 2026

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   “On the written agreement of the parties or on the court's own motion, the court may refer a suit affecting the parent-child relationship to mediation.”

   “After an objection is filed, the suit may not be referred to mediation unless, on the request of a party, a hearing is held and the court finds that a preponderance of the evidence does not support the objection.”

6. Court mediation fees

   Not yet verified

   Start with this official source.

7. Alimony

   Court decides, within limits

   Texas allows court-ordered spousal maintenance only when the requesting spouse will lack enough property to meet minimum reasonable needs and meets a statutory eligibility test (such as a marriage of 10 years or more, a disability, or family violence). The statute caps the monthly amount and limits how long maintenance can last based on the length of the marriage.

   Alimony in Texas, with the statute quoted →

8. Divorce rate

   1.9 per 1,000 residents (2024)

   Texas’s courts granted 1.9 divorces per 1,000 residents in 2024, down from 4.0 in 2000; the U.S. rate was 2.3. In the Census Bureau’s 2024 survey, 7.8 of every 1,000 women 15 and older in Texas divorced in the past year (±0.6; U.S. 6.9), a different measure.^[5][6]

   Divorce rates by state, with sources → · CDC/NCHS NVSS; Census ACS · checked October 27, 2026

Estimate your divorce cost in Texas: mediation vs. court →

Texas child support calculator →

Mediators per 100,000: MediationList listings from official court and government rosters in Texas (816) ÷ population (31,290,831, U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2024 county population estimates (July 1, 2024)) × 100,000, the same figure as mediator statistics.^[4]