Divorce in Nebraska, start to finish
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Nebraska calls it “dissolution of marriage,” not divorce — and it hands you the forms for free. What it doesn’t hand you is the order, the year-long residency rule almost nobody expects, the 60-day clock that starts on a different day than you think, or anyone to tell you which forms are actually yours. 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.
Put in the day you filed and this page works out every date 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.
Which forms do you actually need?
Your route and its conditions, the forms grouped by route, how filing actually works in Nebraska, and the sequence with its costs.
First, which route you are on. Each one opens to the conditions the rule actually sets.
No Children
Available only where all of these are true:
- There are no children born to, adopted by, or expected by either spouse during the marriage who are under 19.
With Children
This is the route wherever any of these is true:
- There are children born to either spouse during the marriage who are under 19.
- There are children adopted by either spouse during the marriage who are under 19.
- A child is expected by either spouse during the marriage.
Grouped exactly as Nebraska labels them, and nothing is added. Every one links to the official PDF.
All 14 documents
- DC 6:5.11 — Confidential Employment and Health Insurance Information
- DC 6:5.11a — Instructions for Completing DC 6:5.11
- DC 6:5.12 — Social Security, Gender, Birth Date(s)
- DC 6:5.12a — Instructions for Completing DC 6:5.12
- DC 6:4.3 — Voluntary Appearance — where the responding spouse signs one instead of being served
- DC 6:4.3a — Instructions for the Voluntary Appearance
- DC 6:4.4 — Praecipe for Summons — where the responding spouse is formally served
- DC 6:4.4A — Instructions for the Praecipe for Summons
- DC 6:4.5 — Notice of Hearing
- DC 6:4.5a — Instructions for the Notice of Hearing
- HHS-73 — Vital Statistics Certificate of Dissolution of Marriage (Dept. of Health & Human Services)
- DC 6:7.1 — Affidavit and Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis (fee waiver), where needed — notarized
- DC 6:7.2 — Order to Proceed In Forma Pauperis, filed with DC 6:7.1
- DC 6:4.20.G1 — Request to Proceed Without Payment of Court Fees — the court’s guide to the fee waiver. Read it; it is not a form you file
No Children 10 forms
- DC 6:4.1 — Complaint for Dissolution of Marriage — No Children
- DC 6:4.1a — Instructions for Completing the Complaint — No Children
- DC 9:1 — Answer and Counterclaim for Dissolution — No Children (the responding spouse files this, if they choose to)
- DC 9:1a — Instructions for the Answer and Counterclaim — No Children
- DC 6:4.6 — Decree of Dissolution of Marriage — No Children
- DC 6:4.6a — Instructions for Completing the Decree — No Children
- DC 6:4 — Instructions for Your Divorce Hearing — No Children
- DC 6:6.6 — Decree of Dissolution — No Children, Service by Publication
- DC 6:6.6a — Instructions for the Decree — No Children, Publication
- DC 6:6A — Instructions for Your Divorce Hearing — No Children, Publication
With Children 17 forms
- DC 6:5.1 — Complaint for Dissolution of Marriage — With Children
- DC 6:5.1a — Instructions for Completing the Complaint — With Children
- DC 6:5.2 — Financial Affidavit for Child Support
- DC 6:5.2a — Instructions for Completing the Financial Affidavit
- DC 6:5.37 — Parenting Plan — Joint Legal & Joint Physical Custody (or 6:5.38 / 6:5.39 if the arrangement is different)
- DC 6:5.37a — Instructions for Completing the Parenting Plan
- DC 6:5.5 — Certificate of Completion of Parenting Education Course
- DC 6:5.5a — Instructions for Completing the Certificate
- PAinfo — Parenting Act Information Brochure
- DC 10:1 — Answer and Counterclaim for Dissolution — With Children (the responding spouse files this, if they choose to)
- DC 10:1a — Instructions for the Answer and Counterclaim — With Children
- DC 6:5.3 — Decree of Dissolution of Marriage — With Children
- DC 6:5.3a — Instructions for Completing the Decree — With Children
- DC 6:5 — Instructions for Your Divorce Hearing — With Children
- DC 6:6.7 — Decree of Dissolution — With Children, Service by Publication
- DC 6:6.7a — Instructions for the Decree — With Children, Publication
- DC 6:6B — Instructions for Your Divorce Hearing — With Children, Publication
Nebraska does not let you e-file this yourself
The checklist is not something you file. It is your worktable — what to do, in what order, and what it costs. The forms are what reaches the court, and this is how they get there in Nebraska.
- Portal
- Nebraska Judicial Branch eFiling
- Paper
- Required of you. File at the clerk of the district court.
- What it costs
- Nothing to you, because you cannot use it for a divorce.
- Account
- Not available to you yet. Rule § 2-216 provides for non-attorney users only “once technology allows and upon approval by the Nebraska Supreme Court,” and that non-attorney option has not been switched on. If it is, the rule requires a registration fee that cannot be waived, and it excludes anyone filing in forma pauperis.
- With a fee waiver
- Not applicable while the non-attorney option is off. If it is switched on, § 2-216 says the registration fee cannot be waived and in forma pauperis filers cannot use it.
- Worth knowing
- Nebraska wrote a rule for non-attorney e-filing and then made it wait on the Supreme Court’s approval. Until that happens, a self-represented divorce filer files paper at the clerk’s counter. Even once it is on, a filer who cannot afford the fee is kept on paper by the rule.
Each step with the forms it names and the money it costs. The full detail of every step is in the section below. Print this part.
| # | Step | Forms it names | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Confirm residency | None named | — |
| 2 | File the Complaint packet | DC 6:7.1DC 6:7.2DC 6:5.11DC 6:5.12DC 6:5.1DC 6:5DC 6:4 | — |
| 3 | Get your spouse served within 6 months of filing | None named | — |
| 4 | Your spouse’s answer window 30 days from service | DC 10:1DC 9:1 | — |
| 5 | If you have children — parenting plan, financial affidavit, parenting class | DC 6:5.2DC 6:5 | — |
| 6 | Wait out the 60 days from service, not filing | None named | — |
| 7 | Request a hearing date | None named | — |
| 8 | Prepare and file your Notice of Hearing, and prepare the Decree | DC 6:4.5DC 6:4 | — |
| 9 | Show up and testify | None named | — |
Every figure here is this page’s own, from the costs section below. A fee waiver application is free to file and is listed with the forms above.
| Dissolution filing fee (statewide fee schedule — docket, retirement, automation and related statutory fees combined) | $200 |
| Sheriff service of process — Lancaster County, in Lincoln | $25 |
| Sheriff service of process — Lancaster County, outside Lincoln | $50 |
| Sheriff service of process — Douglas & Sarpy Counties | confirm with sheriff |
| Parenting education class, per parent (if minor children) — provider-set, not state-set | ~$40–$100 |
| Service by publication, if your spouse can’t be located | confirm with clerk |
| Typical all-in, doing it yourselves, uncontested, no children | $200–~$300 |
| Typical all-in, doing it yourselves, uncontested, with children | ~$300–$500 |
The short version8 points · tap one to jump to it
- The two routes, and what the rule requires — Nebraska publishes one statewide set of “simple divorce” forms, and its own instructions are explicit about the cases they are and are not built for.
- Every form Nebraska publishes for a divorce — Every one is free from the Nebraska Judicial Branch, and these are the same statewide DC-series forms the courts themselves publish.
- Getting the forms and filling them in — Every Nebraska form is free, self-representation (Nebraska's self-help pages call it proceeding "pro se") is common, and the district court clerk cannot help you fill anything in — they can only tell you procedure.
- Your deadlines, calculated — Almost every Nebraska deadline runs off one of two dates: the day you filed, and the day your spouse was served (or signed a Voluntary Appearance).
- The order it actually happens in
- The rejection-and-delay-proofing checklist — Plenty of states let you file after 60 or 90 days.
- If you have children — the Financial Affidavit for Child Support
- What this costs — Nebraska's filing fee is set by statewide statute, not by county — so unlike some states, it's the same total everywhere.
In this subject 8
1 · The two routes, and what the rule requires
The short version8 points · tap one to jump to it
- The two routes, and what the rule requires — Nebraska publishes one statewide set of “simple divorce” forms, and its own instructions are explicit about the cases they are and are not built for.
- Every form Nebraska publishes for a divorce — Every one is free from the Nebraska Judicial Branch, and these are the same statewide DC-series forms the courts themselves publish.
- Getting the forms and filling them in — Every Nebraska form is free, self-representation (Nebraska's self-help pages call it proceeding "pro se") is common, and the district court clerk cannot help you fill anything in — they can only tell you procedure.
- Your deadlines, calculated — Almost every Nebraska deadline runs off one of two dates: the day you filed, and the day your spouse was served (or signed a Voluntary Appearance).
- The order it actually happens in
- The rejection-and-delay-proofing checklist — Plenty of states let you file after 60 or 90 days.
- If you have children — the Financial Affidavit for Child Support
- What this costs — Nebraska's filing fee is set by statewide statute, not by county — so unlike some states, it's the same total everywhere.
In this subject 8
Nebraska publishes one statewide set of “simple divorce” forms, and its own instructions are explicit about the cases they are and are not built for. The forms themselves fork on a different fact: whether there are children under 19. Both forks, and both rules, are set out below.
Residency comes first. Neb. Rev. Stat. §42-349 requires one spouse to have had actual residence in Nebraska, with intent to make it a permanent home, for at least one full year before filing. There is one narrow exception: where the marriage took place in Nebraska and the spouses have lived here continuously since the wedding, the case can be filed even if it has been less than a year.
Nebraska is a pure no-fault state. The only ground is that the marriage is “irretrievably broken.” Nobody has to prove anyone did anything wrong.
What the statewide simple-divorce forms are built for. Nebraska’s own instructions say to use them only where all of the following are true: neither spouse owns real estate, an ongoing business, or a pension or retirement plan with a current or past employer; neither spouse is asking for alimony; and property and debts — and, where there are children, custody, physical care and parenting time — are already agreed. Where any of that is not true, the instructions say plainly not to use the simple-divorce forms, because mistakes with property, pensions or alimony can be difficult or impossible to fix later. Filing without a lawyer is still possible: the base forms below (Complaint, Vital Statistics, confidential filings) are the same ones everyone uses, but the property and alimony language has to be added, and a Marital or Property Settlement Agreement is not a standard statewide form — it is drafted case by case.
How the other spouse is notified. A Voluntary Appearance (DC 6:4.3) is the fastest, cheapest route and skips the sheriff entirely. Where a spouse will cooperate but still needs formal service, a sheriff’s Praecipe for Summons (DC 6:4.4) is the right tool; it costs a small fee. Where a case may be contested, sheriff service is the standard route, and the responding spouse has a 30-day window to respond. Where a spouse cannot be found, Service by Publication is Nebraska’s tool — but the court’s power to award anything beyond the divorce itself is limited when it is used, and the decree comes from a different form.
Nebraska does not let you e-file this yourself You file on paper
- Who may e-file
- Attorneys. Neb. Ct. R. § 2-216 contemplates optional non-attorney users, but it opens ‘Once technology allows and upon approval by the Nebraska Supreme Court’ — and that approval has not been given. The Judicial Branch’s own self-help center lists the ways an unrepresented person may file: in person, by mail, or by fax.
- Portal
- Nebraska Judicial Branch eFiling
- Paper
- Required of you — in person, by mail, or by fax transmission to the Clerk of the District Court.
- What it costs
- No portal fee published.
- Account
- Not available. The rule providing for non-attorney registration is conditional and has not been activated; the eFiling login is described as being for attorneys, judges and case reporting personnel.
- With a fee waiver
- This is the sharp one. § 2-216(A)(1) conditions non-attorney registration on the user not claiming in forma pauperis status, and adds that registration fees ‘shall not be waived.’ If non-attorney e-filing ever switches on in Nebraska, asking for a fee waiver will cost you access to it.
- Worth knowing
- Nebraska has written down, in a rule, that a fee waiver and an e-filing account are mutually exclusive for a non-attorney. Only Connecticut and Colorado do anything comparable, and Nebraska’s is the bluntest of the three. It is currently moot, because the account does not exist to be lost.
No Children
The DC 6:4-series packet. Nebraska’s statewide forms are titled “— No Children,” and the complaint, answer, decree and hearing instructions all differ from the with-children versions.
Available only where all of these are true:
- There are no children born to, adopted by, or expected by either spouse during the marriage who are under 19.
The decree form depends on how the other spouse was notified: DC 6:4.6 in the ordinary case, DC 6:6.6 where service was by publication.
With Children
The DC 6:5-series packet. It adds the Financial Affidavit for Child Support, a Parenting Plan, and the Certificate of Completion of the Parenting Education Course.
This is the route wherever any of these is true:
- There are children born to either spouse during the marriage who are under 19.
- There are children adopted by either spouse during the marriage who are under 19.
- A child is expected by either spouse during the marriage.
The decree form depends on how the other spouse was notified: DC 6:5.3 in the ordinary case, DC 6:6.7 where service was by publication. DC 6:5.37 is the Parenting Plan for joint legal and joint physical custody; DC 6:5.38 and DC 6:5.39 cover different arrangements.
2 · Every form Nebraska 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 Nebraska Judicial Branch, and these are the same statewide DC-series forms the courts themselves publish.
| Form | What it is | Revised | Route | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DC 6:4.1 | Complaint for Dissolution of Marriage — No Children | Rev. 05/2026 | No Children | Download |
| DC 6:4.1a | Instructions for Completing the Complaint — No Children | Rev. 05/2026 | No Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.1 | Complaint for Dissolution of Marriage — With Children | Rev. 03/2022 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.1a | Instructions for Completing the Complaint — With Children | Rev. 11/2024 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.11 | Confidential Employment and Health Insurance Information | Rev. 06/2019 | All | Download |
| DC 6:5.11a | Instructions for Completing DC 6:5.11 | Rev. 11/2024 | All | Download |
| DC 6:5.12 | Social Security, Gender, Birth Date(s) | Rev. 09/2025 | All | Download |
| DC 6:5.12a | Instructions for Completing DC 6:5.12 | Rev. 09/2025 | All | Download |
| DC 6:5.2 | Financial Affidavit for Child Support | Rev. 06/2019 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.2a | Instructions for Completing the Financial Affidavit | Rev. 06/2024 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.37 | Parenting Plan — Joint Legal & Joint Physical Custody (or 6:5.38 / 6:5.39 if the arrangement is different) | Rev. 11/2019 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.37a | Instructions for Completing the Parenting Plan | Rev. 06/2024 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.5 | Certificate of Completion of Parenting Education Course | Rev. 01/2020 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.5a | Instructions for Completing the Certificate | Rev. 06/2024 | With Children | Download |
| PAinfo | Parenting Act Information Brochure | Revised 11/2023 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:4.3 | Voluntary Appearance — where the responding spouse signs one instead of being served | Rev. 05/2026 | All | Download |
| DC 6:4.3a | Instructions for the Voluntary Appearance | Rev. 05/2026 | All | Download |
| DC 6:4.4 | Praecipe for Summons — where the responding spouse is formally served | Rev. 05/2026 | All | Download |
| DC 6:4.4A | Instructions for the Praecipe for Summons | Rev. 05/2026 | All | Download |
| DC 9:1 | Answer and Counterclaim for Dissolution — No Children (the responding spouse files this, if they choose to) | Rev. 03/2022 | No Children | Download |
| DC 9:1a | Instructions for the Answer and Counterclaim — No Children | Rev. 07/2024 | No Children | Download |
| DC 10:1 | Answer and Counterclaim for Dissolution — With Children (the responding spouse files this, if they choose to) | Rev. 03/2022 | With Children | Download |
| DC 10:1a | Instructions for the Answer and Counterclaim — With Children | Rev. 07/2024 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:4.5 | Notice of Hearing | Rev. 05/2026 | All | Download |
| DC 6:4.5a | Instructions for the Notice of Hearing | Rev. 05/2026 | All | Download |
| DC 6:4.6 | Decree of Dissolution of Marriage — No Children | Rev. 05/2026 | No Children | Download |
| DC 6:4.6a | Instructions for Completing the Decree — No Children | Rev. 05/2026 | No Children | Download |
| DC 6:4 | Instructions for Your Divorce Hearing — No Children | Rev. 05/2026 | No Children | Download |
| DC 6:6.6 | Decree of Dissolution — No Children, Service by Publication | Rev. 06/2019 | No Children | Download |
| DC 6:6.6a | Instructions for the Decree — No Children, Publication | Rev. 06/2024 | No Children | Download |
| DC 6:6A | Instructions for Your Divorce Hearing — No Children, Publication | Rev. 01/2008 | No Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.3 | Decree of Dissolution of Marriage — With Children | Rev. 05/2020 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5.3a | Instructions for Completing the Decree — With Children | Rev. 06/2024 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:5 | Instructions for Your Divorce Hearing — With Children | Rev. 06/2018 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:6.7 | Decree of Dissolution — With Children, Service by Publication | Rev. 06/2019 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:6.7a | Instructions for the Decree — With Children, Publication | Rev. 06/2024 | With Children | Download |
| DC 6:6B | Instructions for Your Divorce Hearing — With Children, Publication | Rev. 01/2008 | With Children | Download |
| HHS-73 | Vital Statistics Certificate of Dissolution of Marriage (Dept. of Health & Human Services) | 6/06 | All | Download |
| DC 6:7.1 | Affidavit and Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis — the fee waiver application, where needed. Rev. 03/2025. Must be notarized. Instructions: DC 6:7.1a | Rev. 03/2025 | All | Download |
| DC 6:7.2 | Order to Proceed In Forma Pauperis — filed together with DC 6:7.1. Rev. 03/2025. Instructions: DC 6:7.2a | Rev. 03/2025 | All | Download |
| DC 6:4.20.G1 | Request to Proceed Without Payment of Court Fees — the court’s guide to the fee waiver, not a form. It is the document that names DC 6:7.1 and DC 6:7.2 as the forms you file | NEW 5/2026 | Guide | Download |
Every one of these is free. Full catalog if your county needs something else: nebraskajudicial.gov/forms.
3 · Getting the forms and filling them in
Nobody explains this part, so here it is. Every Nebraska form is free, self-representation (Nebraska’s self-help pages call it proceeding “pro se”) is common, and the district court clerk cannot help you fill anything in — they can only tell you procedure.
Step one — download them free
All Nebraska statewide divorce self-help forms live here, at no cost:
nebraskajudicial.gov — Simple Divorce, No Children
nebraskajudicial.gov — Simple Divorce, With Children
Nebraska’s own instructions are explicit: these forms are for cases with no real estate, no ongoing business, no pension or retirement account, and no alimony request. Use them on a case that has any of those and a clerk can still take your filing — but you’re on your own drafting the extra language a lawyer would normally add.
Step two — fill them in on screen
Several of the current DC-series forms are fillable PDFs — open them in Adobe Acrobat Reader (free), Preview on a Mac, or your browser, type directly into the fields, and print. Type everything; write “N/A” where something doesn’t apply rather than leaving a field blank. A Spanish-language worksheet is available for both the no-children and with-children tracks if that’s useful for gathering your information first.
Legal Aid of Nebraska publishes a free automated question-and-answer tool that walks you through the same forms — search “Legal Aid of Nebraska Family Law Self-Help Forms.” It doesn’t replace this guide’s deadline math or rejection checklist, but it’s a legitimate free alternative for filling the forms out.
Step three — the Confidential and Vital Statistics paperwork
Two things trip people up here because they aren’t obviously “court forms.” Nebraska law requires a fully completed Vital Statistics Certificate of Dissolution of Marriage filed alongside your Complaint — if you can’t find a piece of the requested information, Nebraska law lets you write “unknown,” but you have to actually try to locate it first. Separately, you must hand the clerk a Confidential Employment and Health Insurance Information form (DC 6:5.11) and a Social Security, Gender, Birth Date(s) form (DC 6:5.12) at the same time you file — these stay out of the public case file.
Unlike some states, Nebraska’s Complaint, Answer, and Voluntary Appearance don’t require notarization to file — you sign them yourself. Where Nebraska does require a sworn statement, the form’s own signature block says so; don’t add a notary step nobody asked for and don’t skip one the form does require.
Step four — file them, and understand the two clocks
You file the Complaint for Dissolution with the clerk of the district court in the county where you or your spouse lives, along with the Vital Statistics Certificate, the two confidential forms, and the filing fee (or a fee waiver request). The clerk opens a case number — write it on every document you file after that.
You have six months from filing to serve your spouse or get a signed Voluntary Appearance on file, or the case is automatically dismissed. Separately, you cannot even ask for a hearing until 60 days after your spouse was served — not 60 days from when you filed. File on day one, serve on day 150, and your earliest possible hearing just moved to roughly day 210. See Section 4.
Step five — notifying your spouse
Nebraska gives you three ways, and the self-help site’s own advice is to try them in this order:
| Method | How it works |
|---|---|
| Voluntary Appearance | Your spouse signs Form DC 6:4.3 agreeing they’ve received the Complaint. No sheriff, no fee. Their 30-day answer window and your 60-day wait both start the day it’s filed. |
| Praecipe for Summons | The clerk issues a Summons and the county sheriff personally serves your spouse. The base is statutory, not local: § 33-117(1) opens “the several sheriffs shall charge and collect fees at the rates specified in this section” and then fixes $12 for each person served (subsection (1)(d)) and $6 for making the return whether served or not (subsection (1)(e)) — $18 for serving one spouse, the same in all 93 counties. What varies is mileage, charged under subsection (1)(h) per trip actually traveled. So still call the sheriff’s office before you go, and bring a money order — but you are asking what the mileage comes to, not what their fee is. |
| Service by Publication | Used only when you genuinely don’t know where your spouse is. A notice runs in a newspaper; the court can grant the divorce but generally can’t award much beyond that. |
4 · Your deadlines, calculated
Almost every Nebraska deadline runs off one of two dates: the day you filed, and the day your spouse was served (or signed a Voluntary Appearance). Put them in and we’ll turn every rule into an actual date — then add the whole thing to Google Calendar, Apple Calendar or Outlook in one click.
5 · The order it actually happens in
6 · The rejection-and-delay-proofing checklist
These are the specific things that get Nebraska filings bounced, dismissed, or pushed back weeks — and they’re not obvious from the forms themselves.
Nebraska’s trap: the one-year residency rule
Plenty of states let you file after 60 or 90 days. Nebraska requires that one of you have actual residence in the state with a bona fide intention of making it your permanent home for at least one full year before filing (§42-349) — and there is essentially no way to shortcut it. The only exception: if you were married in Nebraska and have lived here continuously since the wedding, you can file even if it’s been less than a year. Everyone else waits out the full twelve months, no matter how ready the rest of the case is.
Signing and serving
Forms people forget
Timing
The six-month deadline to serve runs from the day you filed. The 60-day waiting period before you can even ask for a hearing runs from the day your spouse was served (or signed a Voluntary Appearance) — a completely different date. Nebraska case law treats the 60-day rule as jurisdictional: a decree based on a hearing held even one day before the 60 days run can be void, not just voidable.
7 · If you have children — the Financial Affidavit for Child Support
Filed with the court, not just exchanged. DC 6:5.2 feeds directly into the child support calculation attached to your Decree.
Nebraska’s Child Support Guidelines (Neb. Ct. R. §4-201 et seq.) run off both parents’ gross monthly income and how parenting time is actually split — joint physical custody changes the math. If your arrangement is close to a 50/50 split, don’t estimate; run the numbers through the guidelines worksheet before you file, since the court checks the calculation against the affidavit.
8 · What this costs
Nebraska’s filing fee is set by statewide statute, not by county — so unlike some states, it’s the same total everywhere. So is sheriff service: § 33-117(1) fixes $12 per person served plus $6 for the return, in every county. What actually varies is the mileage added to that under § 33-117(1)(h), which is why the county figures below differ and why the sheriff’s office is the only place that can quote you a total. (Private attorney rates below are illustrative.)
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Dissolution filing fee (statewide fee schedule — docket, retirement, automation and related statutory fees combined) | $200 |
| Sheriff service of process — Lancaster County, in Lincoln | $25 |
| Sheriff service of process — Lancaster County, outside Lincoln | $50 |
| Sheriff service of process — Douglas & Sarpy Counties | confirm with sheriff |
| Parenting education class, per parent (if minor children) — provider-set, not state-set | ~$40–$100 |
| Service by publication, if your spouse can’t be located | confirm with clerk |
| Typical all-in, doing it yourselves, uncontested, no children | $200–~$300 |
| Typical all-in, doing it yourselves, uncontested, with children | ~$300–$500 |
Two forms do it, and the first has to be notarized: DC 6:7.1, Affidavit and Application to Proceed In Forma Pauperis, and DC 6:7.2, Order to Proceed In Forma Pauperis. DC 6:4.20.G1 is the court’s guide to the waiver, not the application — it is worth reading, and it is the document that names these two as the forms you actually file. Nebraska doesn’t publish a fixed income cutoff the way some states do: § 25-2301.02(1) says the application shall be granted unless someone objects that you have sufficient funds or that your legal positions are frivolous or malicious. Allow for the timing — the court’s guide says your case is not treated as filed, and you get no case number, until you either pay or the judge grants the waiver.
Attorney costs by county Illustrative demo data
The figures below are placeholder, illustrative numbers for this prototype — not real member-reported data. When The Cusp launches in Nebraska, this table populates with actual costs members in each county report paying.
| County | Uncontested, attorney-assisted | Contested |
|---|---|---|
| Douglas (Omaha) | $2,500–$6,000 | $8,000+ |
| Lancaster (Lincoln) | $2,000–$5,000 | $7,000+ |
| Sarpy | $2,200–$5,500 | $7,500+ |
Does cheating change the money in Nebraska?
The statute says nothing either way, which is not the same as permission. What we read: § 42-365 is silent; the familiar “without regard to misconduct” line is in the case annotations, not the statute. How all fifty states answer this.
Reconciled, and it did not work? No fault ground survives in Nebraska, so forgiving an affair cannot cost you the divorce — which is an answer rather than a gap: condonation, state by state. If the decision itself is what you are sitting with rather than the law, start here.
What this is. A guide to Nebraska’s own process, built from the Nebraska Revised Statutes Chapter 42, §§42-347 through 42-381 (including §42-349 on residency, §42-361 on irretrievable breakdown, and §42-363 on the 60-day waiting period), Neb. Rev. Stat. §25-217, the Nebraska Supreme Court’s statewide filing fee schedule, and the official statewide self-represented-litigant forms and instructions published by the Nebraska Judicial Branch at nebraskajudicial.gov. The forms themselves are free and this guide 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 Nebraska requires of each path. Nebraska’s own self-help forms are explicitly not designed for cases involving real estate, a business, a pension or retirement account, or alimony; if your case involves any of those, contested custody, hidden assets, or domestic violence, talk to an attorney. Court clerks are not permitted to give legal advice, even about which form applies to you.
Confirm current numbers with the clerk. Filing fees, sheriff service costs, and parenting-class pricing are set or adjusted outside statute and can change by county or by provider. Where this guide could not verify an exact figure with an official source, it says so and points you to the clerk’s office or provider rather than guessing.
Four things can happen to the house in a Nebraska divorce
Nebraska is not one of the twenty states where filing freezes both spouses automatically. That is not permission to sell: either of you can still ask a court for an order, and one may already exist in your case. But the automatic-order trap is not one you fall into here.
One of you buys the other out, you sell later, you sell now, or the court decides. For a great many people the right answer is not to sell at all – and three of the four routes earn us nothing.
The four routes, compared · Keeping it: the buyout and the carrying cost · Selling: capital gains, basis and timing · Finding an agent who has done a divorce sale · What two households cost
Need a vetted attorney, mediator, or financial analyst in Nebraska?
Browse The Cusp’s professional directory — rated only by verified clients, never ranked by who paid the most.
Browse the directory →The Cusp · All 50 state kits · Find a professional · About
Ask for an introduction to an agent → — who we would introduce you to, what the referral fee is and who pays it, and why the answer is sometimes that you should not sell at all.
Everything we have written about Nebraska specifically. Every figure on these pages is quoted from Nebraska’s own statute or its courts’ own published schedule, and carries the date we last checked it.
- Modifying support after divorce
- Modifying custody and parenting time after divorce
- Check your state’s rules in one place (modification checker)
- What it costs to file
- Child custody
- Child support
- Guardians ad litem and child representation
- Travel, custody and relocation
- Alimony
- Property, support and legal fees
- Protective orders
- Changing your name back
- Legal help you can afford
- Verified professionals
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.
Filing is one household becoming two, and the second one starts empty. The two-household list is what to send the people who keep asking how they can help — the second of everything, and the half of it that costs nothing. Some people call it a divorce registry.
All 41 Nebraska divorce documents, listed by the number the clerk will ask for — 41 with an official number, 41 linked straight to the state’s own file, and every one of the 41 with the revision date printed in its own PDF footer. Eleven of the 41 are stamped Rev. 05/2026 and the fee-waiver guide is stamped NEW 5/2026, so a copy saved before May 2026 may already be superseded. Open the Nebraska form list →
Common questions about filing for divorce in Nebraska
Short answers to what people ask most before they start. Each one points at the part of this page that covers it in full.
How do I file for divorce in Nebraska?
This page sets out the order it happens in for Nebraska: which form opens the case, what has to be served on the other person and when, and what the court needs before it will finish. It is written to be followed in sequence rather than read through.
What forms do I need to file for divorce in Nebraska?
The form list on this page gives the official Nebraska form numbers, each one’s revision date, and a link to the copy on the court’s own site rather than a copy hosted here. Using a superseded revision is one of the most common reasons a filing comes back, which is why the dates are shown.
How much does it cost to file for divorce in Nebraska?
$200 to open the case, and that is only the filing fee — it does not cover service, copies, any required class, or a lawyer. The full breakdown for Nebraska, with every figure traced to the court’s own published schedule and dated, is at what it costs to file in Nebraska.
What gets a Nebraska divorce filing rejected?
This page has a section on exactly that — the specific mistakes that get a filing returned in Nebraska rather than a general list. Most of them are procedural and cost weeks rather than money: the wrong form revision, a missing signature or notarization, service done in a way the state does not accept, or filing before a residency requirement is met.
How long does a divorce take in Nebraska?
There is a timeline on this page built from Nebraska’s own statutory day-counts, not from averages. The honest short answer is that the waiting period is a floor and not a prediction: an uncontested case can finish close to it, and a contested one is governed by the court’s calendar rather than the statute.
Where does the information on this page come from?
Nebraska’s own courts and statutes. Every form links to the court’s site, every fee is quoted from the published schedule with the date it was last checked, and where something could not be confirmed from an official source this site says so instead of estimating. It is free, with no account and no paywall.
Does cheating change the money in Nebraska?
Probably not, but for a different reason than you might think: Nebraska’s support statute contains no misconduct factor at all. Silence is not permission and it is not a prohibition — seventeen states are in this position, and in them the written rule simply does not address it. The fifty-state table sets out the section this comes from, and the card higher up this page quotes your state’s own words.
Choosing an agent for a divorce sale is a different problem from choosing one for an ordinary sale: who the agent is allowed to talk to, who has to sign, what happens when one of you will not, and the three separate conflicts of interest that come up when one spouse found the agent first. How to choose a real estate agent for a divorce sale sets out what to ask, and how to check a credential yourself — no divorce credential is official with the National Association of Realtors.
The Cusp receives a referral fee from agents it vets and trains to handle divorce clients.
Key deadlines at a glance
These are the same deadlines the calculator above works out, shown as days counted from the day you file or the day your spouse is served. Use the calculator for your exact dates.
No minor children
| Step | When | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Complaint filed | The day you file | The case officially begins. Your six-month clock to get your spouse served starts today. |
| Spouse served / Voluntary Appearance filed | The day your spouse is served (or signs a waiver) | Their clock starts now — a different date than filing. |
| Spouse’s Answer and Counterclaim window closes | 30 days after service | 30 days from service. They don’t have to file one, but this is their deadline if they choose to. |
| Earliest day you can request a hearing | 60 days after service | Neb. Rev. Stat. §42-363. Courts treat this as jurisdictional — asking even a day early risks the decree being void. |
| Deadline to have your spouse served (or file their Voluntary Appearance) | 180 days after filing | Neb. Rev. Stat. §25-217 — six months (180 days) from filing. |
With minor children
| Step | When | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Complaint filed | The day you file | The case officially begins. Your six-month clock to get your spouse served starts today. |
| Spouse served / Voluntary Appearance filed | The day your spouse is served (or signs a waiver) | Their clock starts now — a different date than filing. |
| Spouse’s Answer and Counterclaim window closes | 30 days after service | 30 days from service. They don’t have to file one, but this is their deadline if they choose to. |
| Suggested target: finish your parenting class | 45 days after service | No fixed statutory deadline — Nebraska only requires it be done before the final hearing. This target just keeps you from scrambling right before your hearing date. |
| Earliest day you can request a hearing | 60 days after service | Neb. Rev. Stat. §42-363. Courts treat this as jurisdictional — asking even a day early risks the decree being void. |
| Deadline to have your spouse served (or file their Voluntary Appearance) | 180 days after filing | Neb. Rev. Stat. §25-217 — six months (180 days) from filing. |
Your county
Divorce rules are set by the state, but each county or court has its own forms, deadlines, classes and filing habits. Choose yours.
Or go straight to your county or court:
Buffalo County District Court (call to confirm)Dodge County District CourtDouglas County District CourtHall County District Court (call to confirm)Lancaster County District Court (call to confirm)Sarpy County District CourtBuffalo County District Court Call or check the court website to confirm
Buffalo County is listed in District 9 and the clerk is in Kearney. County-specific rules, forms and procedures were not confirmed, so ask the clerk what applies.
Who to contact: Clerk of District Court, P.O. Box 520, Kearney, NE 68848; 308-236-1246
Where this comes from
Last checked 2026-11-10. Tell us if this is out of date
Dodge County District Court
Dodge County is in District 6. District 6’s Rule 6-2 calls for an approved parent education program within 60 days in cases with parenting issues, and no trial date is set until mediation of custody or parenting-time issues has been attempted. The plaintiff prepares a property and liability statement that is served rather than filed, and affidavits for temporary relief must be served at least 24 hours before the hearing.
Who to contact: Clerk of District Court, 428 N. Broad Street, Fremont, NE 68025; 402-727-2780
Where this comes from
Last checked 2026-11-10. Tell us if this is out of date
Douglas County District Court
Douglas County (District 4) rules require both sides in a case with children to register for a parenting class within 10 days of filing or service, and the class must be finished within 30 days of registering with Conciliation. No trial date is set until parent education and mediation (or an alternative) are completed or attempted. For temporary relief, the moving party’s affidavits are due 48 hours before the hearing and responses 24 hours before, with a 10-page cap on digital affidavits. The clerk’s site says it keeps no divorce forms and points to the state self-help site.
Who to contact: Clerk of District Court, 1701 Farnam Street, Hall of Justice, Omaha, NE 68183; 402-444-7018
Local rules · Local forms · Court website
Where this comes from
Last checked 2026-11-10. Tell us if this is out of date
Hall County District Court Call or check the court website to confirm
Hall County is in District 9. District 9’s Rule 9-13 requires the filing party to file a property statement within 60 days of the complaint and the other party within 90 days. In custody or parenting-time cases, before getting a final hearing date a party must take one of several steps, such as sending the parenting plan to the Office of Dispute Resolution for review or using the model plan. Parenting class and mediation timing were not confirmed, so check with the clerk.
Who to contact: Clerk of District Court, 111 West 1st Street, Suite 4, Grand Island, NE 68801; 308-385-5144
Where this comes from
Last checked 2026-11-10. Tell us if this is out of date
Lancaster County District Court Call or check the court website to confirm
Lancaster County is in District 3 and the clerk is in Lincoln. A domestic relations local rule (Rule 3-9) on the state judiciary site says a motion to set a custody or parenting-time case for trial must state the parenting class was taken (with a certificate) and that mediation was completed unsuccessfully or waived. It also says temporary-order motions are usually heard in chambers. The rule page does not itself name its district, so confirm applicability with the clerk.
Who to contact: Clerk of District Court, 575 S. 10th Street, Lincoln, NE 68508; 402-441-7328
Where this comes from
Last checked 2026-11-10. Tell us if this is out of date
Sarpy County District Court
Sarpy County’s local rule (Rule 2-9, also covering Cass and Otoe counties) requires mediation in all domestic cases, attempted within 60 days of the court’s progression order, with Sarpy cases going to the Concord Mediation Center. Both parties must register for the ‘What About the Children’ class within 15 days after the progression order. Unless there is an emergency, a temporary-orders hearing is not scheduled until the moving party submits proof of completing the class.
Who to contact: Clerk of District Court, 1210 Golden Gate Drive, Papillion, NE 68046; 402-593-2267
Where this comes from
Last checked 2026-11-10. Tell us if this is out of date
Not listed? Your county clerk of court can tell you the local rules. These are general information from court and clerk pages, last checked 2026-11-10, not legal advice.
Serving the papers in Nebraska? Sheriff, a court-appointed server, or a bonded server 21 or older; you may send certified mail yourself. Deadline: 180 days. (As we read the rules on 29 October 2026.) See who can serve a divorce summons and whether you can do it yourself, and find Nebraska in our state-by-state serving table.
Stay current
We re-check the law. We will tell you when your state’s changes.
One email, and only when something we have published about your state stops being true — a filing fee that moved, a statute that was amended, a form the court replaced. No newsletter, no sales, unsubscribe in one click.
We use your address for that one purpose. We do not sell it, and we do not add you to anything else. Privacy
How we can help
Understand the house first. Then talk to someone who gets it.
The house is usually the largest decision in a divorce, and the one people are least ready for. Here is what we do, in the order that makes sense.
1. Start with the facts, free
22 states have automatic orders that freeze both spouses the moment a divorce is filed, barring either one from selling or borrowing against the property. Is yours one of them?
Plain-English guides on what can happen to the house, what an automatic order stops you doing, and how the tax rules decide what a sale is worth. No account and nothing to buy.
- The four things that can happen to the house
- Selling the house: who signs, and the tax rules
- Keeping the house: the buyout and the carrying cost
2. Know when not to call an agent
Often the right answer is to wait, or to talk to your lawyer or an accountant first. We say so plainly. An agent is the wrong first call if nothing is filed, or if an order restricts what either of you can do with the property.
3. Talk to someone who gets it
When you do need an agent, we introduce you to a local agent who has completed our divorce real estate training and passed its 20-question exam. Before any introduction we check the license with the state regulator (any unresolved disciplinary action is a no), the agent’s closed sales, and a review rating of 4.7 or better. The introduction is free, and you are free to say no.
Ask for an introductionHow we are paid
You pay us nothing. Agents are not charged for the training, the exam or the free resources. If an introduction leads to a closed sale, the agent’s brokerage pays a referral fee out of its own commission, not out of your proceeds. A place on the panel cannot be bought.
General information, not legal or tax advice. The Cusp is not a law firm.
Selling a home in a divorce: what to ask a local listing agent
Selling the house is often the largest single decision in a divorce. These questions help you judge whether an agent has done it before. They do not replace your lawyer, who should approve the plan before anything is listed.
- Have you sold homes where both spouses had to sign, or where a court had to approve the sale? How many, and how recently?
- Does filing already restrain a sale in my state? Check the 50-state table and ask my lawyer before we sign anything.
- Who decides on price changes and which offers to accept when we disagree, and how will that be written down?
- Who pays the mortgage, taxes and insurance until closing, and what does the listing agreement say about it?
- Where will the sale proceeds be held until the decree says who gets what?
- How will you handle showings, access and lockboxes if we are not speaking?
- Will you give both spouses and both lawyers the same information at the same time?
- What happens to the listing agreement if we settle, reconcile or the case is delayed? What are the cancellation terms?
- Can I have your fee terms in writing and the names of past clients who sold during a divorce?