By Neta, founder of SortMyDivorce · Published · Updated
New York has more than one residency route rather than a single period — check which one fits you before filing. No-fault requires 6 months of breakdown. New York does grant legal separation.
New York divorces run on equitable distribution rather than a fixed split, and on a paperwork requirement most other states don't have — the Statement of Net Worth. Knowing both before you start changes how you prepare.
| Residency requirement | You or your spouse must meet one of NY's residency tests: (1) either of you has lived in NY continuously for 2 years before filing, or (2) either of you has lived in NY continuously for 1 year before filing AND you were married in NY, lived in NY as a married couple, or the grounds for divorce occurred in NY, or (3) you were both NY residents on the day you file and the grounds occurred in NY. |
|---|---|
| Grounds | 7 grounds under Domestic Relations Law §170. Over 90% of filings use the no-fault ground (§170(7)): the marriage has been irretrievably broken for at least 6 months. Fault grounds (cruelty, abandonment, imprisonment, adultery, living apart under a separation judgment/agreement) are also available. |
| Waiting period | For no-fault divorce, the irretrievable breakdown must have existed for at least 6 months before filing — you do not need to have physically separated during that time. |
| Legal separation | New York does grant legal separation. It settles the same questions a divorce settles — support, parenting and, depending on the case, property — but leaves the marriage in place, so neither spouse can remarry without a divorce. |
| If you were never married | New York does not create common-law marriage, and living together gives neither partner property or support rights. Claims rest on agreements between you. A common-law marriage validly formed in a state that does create them is generally still recognised. |
| Where you file | Only NY Supreme Court handles divorces (not Family Court). File in the Supreme Court of the county where you or your spouse currently live. |
| Filing fee | Payable when you file your opening divorce document. Set locally by the county, not as one statewide rate. A fee waiver is available if you cannot afford it. Filing fees are set by the court and change without notice: check the current schedule on the court's own website before you file, and ask about a fee waiver if the cost is a barrier. |
| Starting forms | Summons with Notice (Form UD-1) or Summons with Verified Complaint (Forms UD-1a and UD-2), served with a Notice of Automatic Orders, Notice of Guideline Maintenance, and notice about continuing health care coverage. |
| Simplified option | Uncontested Joint Divorce packet (with or without children under 21) and the court's DIY Uncontested Divorce Program, for couples who agree on all issues and where the marriage has been over for 6+ months. |
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New York is an equitable distribution state, not a community property state: marital property is divided by what courts consider fair under the circumstances, not automatically split 50/50. Courts weigh factors laid out in Domestic Relations Law §236(B), including each spouse's income and property at the time of marriage, the length of the marriage, and each spouse's contributions — including non-financial contributions like homemaking or supporting the other spouse's career. Separate property (generally what you owned before the marriage, or inheritances and gifts kept separate) is usually not divided, but only if you can trace it clearly.
New York has allowed no-fault divorce since 2010, on the ground that the marriage has broken down irretrievably for at least six months. In practice this means neither spouse has to prove wrongdoing to get divorced, though fault grounds (like cruelty or abandonment) still technically exist and are rarely used. Divorces are filed in the Supreme Court in the county where either spouse resides — New York doesn't have a separate family court for divorce itself, though Family Court may handle related custody or support matters. Residency rules generally require that one spouse has lived in New York for one to two years before filing, or less if the marriage occurred in New York or both spouses are New York residents; a local attorney can confirm which threshold applies. Once a divorce is filed, New York's automatic orders take effect immediately for both spouses, freezing most transfers of marital assets, restricting changes to insurance coverage, and setting other limits designed to preserve the status quo while the case is pending.
New York requires most divorcing spouses to complete and exchange a Statement of Net Worth: a detailed, sworn financial disclosure covering income, expenses, assets, and debts, typically filed early in the case alongside tax returns. It is more exhaustive than a simple asset list, and putting it together well before it's due is one of the most useful things you can do early on. Start collecting: at least the last three years of tax returns, recent pay stubs, statements for every bank, brokerage, retirement, and pension account, mortgage and property tax records, and statements for any debts, credit cards, or business interests.
If you're claiming separate property — something you owned before the marriage, an inheritance, or a gift kept apart from marital funds — gather the paper trail now: the original account statement, deposit records, and anything showing the money or asset was kept separate rather than commingled. Under New York law, commingling separate funds with marital funds can turn them into marital property, so the documentation you can produce matters as much as the original source.
Keep copies of every letter exchanged with lawyers from the outset, including anything about temporary support, parenting time, or proposed settlement terms. In a state where the Statement of Net Worth and full financial disclosure carry real weight, a clear record of who said what and when is what turns scattered correspondence into a coherent case.
Child support in New York follows the Child Support Standards Act (CSSA), which applies a percentage of combined parental income based on the number of children, with adjustments for add-on expenses like health insurance and childcare. Spousal maintenance (New York's term for alimony) is guided by statutory formulas adopted in recent years, though courts retain discretion to adjust based on the specific circumstances of the marriage. Custody and parenting time are decided under a best-interests-of-the-child standard, and proposals that lay out concrete schedules, holidays, and decision-making arrangements generally fare better than vague requests for 'joint custody.'
Legal separation is available in New York. It is a court proceeding, and in most respects it runs like a divorce: the court can settle support, parenting arrangements and, depending on the case, the division of property, and the resulting order binds both spouses.
What it does not do is end the marriage. People choose it for a range of reasons — health coverage, religious conviction, immigration status, or simply not being ready — and it leaves the door open to reconciling without starting over.
Two consequences follow. Neither spouse can remarry unless they later obtain a divorce, and modifying the order generally takes the court's approval rather than a private agreement between you. If you expect to divorce eventually, ask what converting the separation into a divorce involves here before you start.
New York does not create common-law marriage. There is no number of years of living together that turns into a marriage here, and none of the divorce machinery on this page applies to a couple who never married — no property division, no spousal support, no residency requirement to satisfy, because there is nothing to dissolve.
What unmarried partners have instead are ordinary civil claims: whatever you agreed between yourselves, in writing or by clear conduct, and claims over property you actually hold jointly. These are argued like any other contract or property dispute rather than as family-law entitlements, and they turn on what can be proved.
One qualification runs the other way and matters. A common-law marriage validly formed in a state that does create them — Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas or Utah — is generally recognised elsewhere. A couple who met that state's test while living there, and later moved here, are married, and separating means divorcing. Children are unaffected either way: custody and child support are decided on the same basis whether or not the parents married.
1) Start your Statement of Net Worth early — it's long, and rushing it under a filing deadline is a common source of stress. 2) Get at least one consultation with a New York matrimonial attorney, even if you plan to handle much of the process yourself; New York's procedural rules (automatic orders, mandatory disclosure) are specific enough that local advice pays off early. 3) List marital and separate property separately, and pull tracing documents for anything you believe is separate before positions harden. 4) Understand that the automatic orders apply the moment a case is filed, so avoid moving assets, changing beneficiaries, or altering insurance without checking first. 5) Track every date any letter sets — response deadlines, conference dates, disclosure due dates — since New York's disclosure process moves on paper and dates are easy to lose track of when letters arrive from multiple directions at once.
Check that you or your spouse satisfy one of NY's residency tests under DRL §230, and decide your ground for divorce — most people use the no-fault ground (marriage irretrievably broken for 6+ months) under DRL §170(7).
If you and your spouse agree on property, debt, custody, and support, you can use the Uncontested Joint Divorce forms packet (with a separate version for couples with children under 21) or the court's DIY Uncontested Divorce Program to generate your paperwork.
Complete a Summons with Notice (Form UD-1) or a Summons with Verified Complaint (Forms UD-1a/UD-2), along with required notices (Notice of Automatic Orders, Notice of Guideline Maintenance, health care coverage notice).
Bring your papers to the Supreme Court County Clerk in the county where you or your spouse live — this is the only court that grants divorces in New York. You'll receive an index number for your case.
Budget for the total mandatory fees (index number, Request for Judicial Intervention, and Note of Issue fees). If you can't afford them, ask the clerk for a fee waiver (Poor Person's Relief) application under CPLR §1101.
In a one-sided (non-joint) case, formally serve your spouse with the filed papers according to NY service rules, then file proof of service with the court.
Both spouses typically exchange a Statement of Net Worth and complete an Annual Income Worksheet, Maintenance Guidelines Worksheet, and Child Support Worksheet (if applicable) as part of the uncontested packet.
Once all forms, affirmations (UD-6/UD-7), the Note of Issue (UD-9), and Findings of Fact and Judgment of Divorce (UD-10/UD-11) are complete, submit the full packet to the court's matrimonial clerk for judicial review and signature.
Once a judge signs the Judgment of Divorce, your marriage is legally ended. Obtain certified copies from the county clerk for your records, name changes, and benefits paperwork.
Not automatically. New York is an equitable distribution state, so courts divide marital property based on fairness factors set out in state law, not a fixed formula. Confirm with a local attorney how this applies to your specific assets.
It's a detailed, sworn financial disclosure document required in most New York divorce cases, covering income, expenses, assets, and debts. Courts generally expect it early in the case, so starting it well before any deadline is worthwhile.
No. Since 2010, New York has allowed no-fault divorce on the ground of an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage for at least six months, though fault-based grounds still technically exist.
A legal separation in New York settles much of what a divorce settles — support, parenting and, depending on the case, property — and the order binds both spouses. The difference is that it does not end the marriage, so neither spouse can remarry without later obtaining a divorce. People use it for health coverage, religious reasons, immigration status, or because they are not ready to divorce. Changing the order generally requires the court's approval.
No. New York does not create common-law marriage, and living together for any length of time gives neither partner property division nor spousal support. Unmarried partners rely instead on agreements between themselves and on claims over jointly held property, argued as ordinary civil matters. One important exception: a common-law marriage validly formed in a state that does create them — such as Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas or Utah — is generally recognised here, so that couple would need a divorce. Custody and child support apply regardless of marriage.
If you are in immediate danger, call 911. For support with domestic violence, contact the NYS Domestic and Sexual Violence Hotline at 1-800-942-6906 — or text 844-997-2121. Both answer 24/7. Nationally you can also reach the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or text START to 88788 if a call is not safe. For a mental health crisis, call or text 988.
Last reviewed August 2026. Researched and written by Neta, founder of SortMyDivorce. I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice — laws, fees and forms change, so please confirm current details with the official sources above or a local family lawyer.
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