The New Hampshire Divorce Kit
See a different stateNew Hampshire
New Hampshire gives you the forms for free. What it doesn’t give you is the order, the Child Impact Program deadline that sneaks up on people with kids, the traps that get a case delayed before it starts, or anyone to tell you which path you’re actually on. That’s this.
Put in the day you filed and this page works out every deadline in your case, then hands you a calendar file that reminds you a week before each one and again the day before. It opens in the calendar you already use. Free, no account, nothing stored.
1 · The two routes, and what the rule requires
New Hampshire does not have a named “fast track” the way some states do — but a joint, fully agreed filing moves very differently from one where a spouse has to be tracked down and notified. Which petition gets filed decides which of the two form sets applies, so getting it straight first saves a wasted filing fee and a confused clerk.
Residency comes first. RSA 458:5 requires that, on the day of filing, either both spouses live in New Hampshire, or the petitioner lives here and the other spouse can be personally served here, or the petitioner has been domiciled here for a full year before filing.
Joint Petition for Divorce
Family Division Rule 2.29(A)
Both spouses sign one petition, NHJB-2058-F. There is no formal service and no one to default.
Available only where all of these are true:
- Both spouses sign a Joint Petition together.
- Property and debts are already agreed — and, where there are minor children, a parenting plan and support are agreed too.
- Neither spouse is asking for alimony.
Under Family Division Rule 2.29(A), once a judge signs the decree with the permanent agreement attached, it is effective that same day — no extra waiting period. Where there are minor children, the Child Impact Program, the First Appearance, and a Parenting Plan still apply, joint filing or not.
Petition for Divorce
Family Division Rules 2.5 and 2.6
One spouse files NHJB-2057-F and the other must be formally notified. Being on this route does not mean contested — most standard-path New Hampshire divorces are still entirely uncontested and self-represented. It means the notice, Appearance and disclosure machinery in Section 5 applies.
This is the route wherever any of these is true:
- A spouse will need to be formally notified rather than signing on jointly.
- Property and debts are not yet agreed.
- Either spouse is asking for alimony.
A cooperative spouse can accept the papers at the clerk’s office or by certified mail instead of a sheriff being paid — but the 15-day Appearance clock (Rule 2.5) starts the moment they are notified. Where a spouse does not respond at all, the default process (Rule 2.6) allows a hearing to be requested no sooner than 30 days after the written request — and only once the military affidavit, vital statistics form, non-cohabitation affidavit, proposed decree, parenting plan where applicable, and a current financial affidavit have all been filed.
2 · Every form New Hampshire publishes for a divorce
The complete list for both routes, not a shortlist — because which forms a case needs depends on facts only you and, if you need one, your lawyer can weigh. Each row says which route it belongs to. Every one is free from the New Hampshire Judicial Branch, pulled straight from the current NHJB form library.
The Cusp is not a law firm and cannot tell you which forms are right for your case. Everything here is general information about how New Hampshire handles divorce, and every form below is published free by New Hampshire itself — you do not have to buy anything from anyone to get them. If your situation is not straightforward, a consultation with a New Hampshire family lawyer costs far less than fixing a filing that went wrong.
| Form | What it is | Route | |
|---|---|---|---|
| NHJB-2058-F | Joint Petition for Divorce | Joint Petition | Download |
| NHJB-2057-F | Petition for Divorce — the other spouse must be formally notified | Petition | Download |
| NHJB-2077-F | Personal Data Sheet — filed with every initial petition | All | Download |
| NHJB-3248-F | Checklist for Rule 1.25-A Mandatory Disclosure — not filed; it keeps you organized | All | Download |
| NHJB-2068-F | Child Impact Program Notice to Parents — where there are minor children | All | Download |
| NHJB-2660-DFP | UCCJEA Affidavit — where there are minor children and the petition does not already collect this custody-jurisdiction information | All | Download |
| NHJB-2064-F | Parenting Plan — where there are minor children | All | Download |
| NHJB-2101-FP | Child Support Guidelines Worksheet — where there are minor children | All | Download |
| NHJB-2066-FP | Uniform Support Order — where there are minor children | All | Download |
| NHJB-2065-F | Financial Affidavit — one from each spouse | All | Download |
| NHJB-3058-F | Uniform Alimony Order — where alimony is requested | Petition | Download |
| NHJB-2072-F | Temporary Decree on Divorce or Legal Separation — only where orders are needed before the case is final | Petition | Download |
| NHJB-2200-DFPS | Affidavit as to Military Service — required before a default hearing can be set | Petition | Download |
| NHJB-2198-F | Affidavit of Non-Cohabitation — required before a default hearing can be set | Petition | Download |
| VS-14A | Vital Statistics Form — required for any divorce, legal separation, civil union dissolution or annulment to be final | All | Download |
| NHJB-2071-F | Final Decree on Divorce or Legal Separation | All | Download |
| NHJB-2205-F | Request for Certified Copy of Divorce Decree or Vital Statistics — after the case is final | All | Download |
| NHJB-3234-DFP-B | Motion to Reduce or Eliminate Filing Fees and/or Costs — only where a fee waiver is requested | All | Download |
Every one of these is free. Download fresh each time — a superseded revision can get you sent back to redo it. Full catalog: courts.nh.gov.
3 · Getting the forms and filling them in
Nobody explains this part, so here it is. Every New Hampshire family form is free, and self-represented filing is completely normal here — the Circuit Court’s Family Division sees it every day.
You may e-file, but you do not have to Your choice
- Portal
- Odyssey File & Serve (Superior Court and some Circuit Court case types); TurboCourt (Circuit Court self-represented / non-attorney filers)
- Paper
- Still accepted — you can file over the counter.
- What it costs
- No portal fee published.
- Account
- For the case types that are e-filed, yes — a TurboCourt or Odyssey account. Not applicable to a divorce petition, which is filed on paper with the Circuit Court Family Division.
- Worth knowing
- As of this research, divorce/parenting petitions in the NH Circuit Court Family Division are not listed among the case types that are e-filed. The Family Division divorce pages describe filing a Petition for Divorce or Joint Petition for Divorce together with a Personal Data Sheet, and describe serving the other spouse by courthouse pickup, certified mail, or sheriff — i.e., a paper-forms process. The judiciary'
Step one — download them free
All Circuit Court – Family Division divorce and parenting forms live here, at no cost:
courts.nh.gov — Divorce/Parenting Forms
Don’t reuse a saved copy or one a friend sent you. NHJB forms get revised on their own schedule — several of the ones below were last updated in 2024 and 2025 — and a stale copy can get you sent back to redo it. The revision date is printed in the form’s file name and footer.
Step two — fill them in on screen
New Hampshire’s family forms are standard fillable PDFs. Open them in Adobe Acrobat Reader (free), Preview on a Mac, or any browser, type directly into the fields, and print. Type everything — write “N/A” where something doesn’t apply rather than leaving a field blank.
Step three — sign and swear to what needs it
Your Petition (or Joint Petition) for Divorce is a sworn document — it must be signed and notarized before you file it, not signed in advance and brought in already dated. Several of the forms that go with it are sworn statements too: the Financial Affidavit, and — if you end up needing them for a default — the Affidavit as to Military Service and the Affidavit of Non-Cohabitation. A notary public, and in many family division clerk’s offices a deputy clerk, can witness these signatures. Call ahead to confirm your clerk’s office offers this.
You sign a sworn document in front of the person witnessing it, with valid photo ID in hand. A petition signed the night before and simply dated at the counter isn’t a valid oath — and family division clerks do check.
Step four — file it
Most self-represented filers bring paper copies — the original plus at least one copy — to the Circuit Court – Family Division clerk’s office for the county where you or your spouse lives. There are 28 Family Division locations across New Hampshire’s ten counties, so check courts.nh.gov’s Find a Court tool for the right one. Electronic filing is also available for family division cases and adds a $30 e-filing surcharge (Rule 1.3(R)) on top of the entry fee — paper filing does not.
If your spouse will sign a Joint Petition with you, you avoid formal service entirely — no sheriff, no certified mail, no waiting on an Appearance deadline. If you’re filing as an individual, your spouse still has to be notified: by picking up the papers at the clerk’s office, by certified mail, or through the sheriff. Only the Joint Petition route skips that step.
4 · Your deadlines, calculated
Most of New Hampshire’s clocks run from the date your spouse was served — not the date you filed. Put in your dates and we’ll turn every rule into an actual date on your calendar — then add the whole thing to Google Calendar, Apple Calendar or Outlook in one click.
5 · The order it actually happens in
The state tells you the Child Impact Program is due “no later than 45 days after service.” What it doesn’t make obvious is that First Appearance — the hearing where a judge lays out the rest of your case — happens within 30 days of service if you have minor children, and the court expects you to have already registered for, or completed, the Child Impact Program by then (Rule 2.10 and Rule 2.11 together). Wait until day 40 to register for a four-hour class with limited scheduling and you’ll walk into First Appearance without a certificate — which can delay your case or expose you to sanctions, including contempt. Register the week you file, not the week of the deadline.
6 · The rejection-proofing checklist
This is the part that’s genuinely worth paying attention to. These are the specific things that get New Hampshire filings delayed, sent back, or defaulted.
Signing and swearing to documents
Forms people forget
Timing
Your mandatory disclosure documents under Rule 1.25-A go directly to your spouse — nothing on that list gets filed with the court unless a dispute forces it into the record. And requesting alimony happens on your original petition, where New Hampshire’s form asks you to check specific boxes for what you’re requesting — leaving it unchecked at filing can make it harder to raise later, so decide before you file, not during the hearing.
7 · Mandatory disclosure — what Rule 1.25-A requires
Due within 45 days of service, or 10 days before your first hearing, whichever comes first. These documents go to your spouse, not the court file — only the Financial Affidavit itself gets filed. If your case is a parenting petition rather than a divorce, some of these categories don’t apply.
Under RSA 458:15-b, financial affidavits are generally restricted to the parties, their attorneys, a guardian ad litem, and certain government officials — not the general public. Knowingly disclosing one to someone outside that circle is a misdemeanor, and a knowingly false statement in one can expose you to treble damages and attorney’s fees.
8 · What this costs
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Entry fee — Original Entry of Marital Matters (Rule 1.3(C)(1), statewide flat fee) | $280.00 |
| Additional fee if minor children are involved (Rule 1.3(M)) | $2.00 |
| Electronic filing surcharge, only if you e-file (Rule 1.3(R)) | $30.00 |
| Child Impact Program, per parent, if you have minor children (RSA 458-D) | $85.00 |
| Service of process, if filing individually — sheriff or process server | check with the sheriff’s office in your county |
| Certified copy of your final decree, after your case is final (Rule 1.3(D)(2)) | $40.00 |
| Typical all-in, doing it yourselves, uncontested | $320–$492 |
File NHJB-3234-DFP-B, Motion to Reduce or Eliminate Filing Fees and/or Costs, along with a Financial Affidavit. The family division may waive any fee for good cause shown (Rule 1.3(P)). If the Child Impact Program fee is the problem, contact the provider directly — they can offer a fee reduction, and if they deny it you can file a motion asking the court to waive or reduce it.
What attorney-assisted cases tend to run
The figures below are member-reported and illustrative — they’re placeholder demo data showing the kind of cost-sharing information The Cusp collects from members by court location, not the result of independent market research. Use them as a rough sense of range, not a quote.
| Court location | Uncontested, attorney-assisted | Contested, full representation |
|---|---|---|
| 9th Circuit – Manchester (Hillsborough County) | ~$1,800 | ~$9,500 |
| 10th Circuit – Portsmouth (Rockingham County) | ~$2,100 | ~$11,000 |
| 6th Circuit – Concord (Merrimack County) | ~$1,650 | ~$8,200 |
Member-reported, illustrative demo data only — not verified market research.
What this is. A guide to New Hampshire’s own process, built from the New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated (RSA 458 — including 458:5, 458:7, 458:7-a, and 458:15-b — and RSA 458-D), the Rules of the Circuit Court of the State of New Hampshire – Family Division (including Rules 1.3, 1.25-A, 2.5, 2.6, 2.10, 2.11, 2.13, 2.22, and 2.29), and the official NHJB forms and program pages published by the New Hampshire Judicial Branch at courts.nh.gov. The forms themselves are free and this kit links you to them rather than reselling them.
What this is not. The Cusp is not a law firm and does not practice law. Nothing here is legal advice, and nothing here tells you which choice is right for your particular situation — only what New Hampshire requires of each path. If your case involves contested custody, a business, hidden assets, domestic violence, or a spouse with a lawyer, talk to an attorney; many offer free consultations, and one hour of advice is cheaper than a case that gets delayed. 603 Legal Aid is a free, independent resource for New Hampshire residents who qualify for legal aid.
Confirm current numbers with the clerk. Filing fees, program fees, court locations, and form revisions are periodically adjusted by the legislature or the Judicial Branch. Where this kit could not verify an exact figure, link, or deadline interpretation with confidence, it says so or points you to courts.nh.gov rather than guessing — call the Trial Court Information Center at 1-855-212-1234 for anything time-sensitive.
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The most expensive mistakes in a divorce are made in the year after it, by people who thought the case was over. After the divorce is the checklist for that year — the health-coverage clock, the retirement order a decree cannot replace, and the beneficiary form that outranks your will.
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