If there are no children from the marriage you must be separated for a minimum of six months and have a written property settlement agreement before you may file for divorce.
Separation papers va.
There is no filing of paperwork no procedures to follow basically nothing needs to happen legally to become separated in virginia.
Virginia also has a procedure called a divorce from bed and board which means the parties remain legally married but all their other rights including spousal support custody and child support and equitable distribution of property are settled.
How to file for divorce in virginia.
If you want the agreement to be in force while you attempt a reconciliation be sure to include language that says the agreement will remain in effect after reconciliation.
The grounds for this type of divorce are.
Virginia law allows for no fault divorce on the grounds of a living separate and apart for one year or b living separate and apart for six months with a separation agreement in place and no minor children.
Divorce from bed and board a mensa et thoro and a divorce from the bond of matrimony a vinculo matrimonii.
Step 2 the spouse who decides to file for divorce must complete the forms and then file them with the circuit court clerk s office in the county where he or she resides in addition to paying the proper filing fee.
To obtain a divorce in virginia either you or your spouse must be a resident of virginia for at least six months prior to filing for divorce.
By virginia law if you and your spouse resume living together as a couple the separation agreement becomes void.
These forms are available as adobe acrobat pdf documents.
Forms format of forms.
Unlike many states virginia does not have a procedure for obtaining a status of legal separation in these no fault cases.
In virginia there is no such thing as a legal separation.
That you ve been separated for at least a year or if you and your spouse don t have any minor children together and you ve both signed a separation agreement that you ve been separated for at least 6 months.
The adobe reader free from adobe allows you to view complete and print pdf documents these forms are designed and tested to work with internet explorer and may not display or function correctly in other browsers chrome edge firefox safari etc.
One person in the marriage simply decides they want to be separated and in the court s eyes you are separated.
Step 1 download divorce papers for virginia using one of the buttons above.
A divorce from bed and board is a partial or qualified divorce under which the parties are legally separated from each other but are not permitted to remarry.
Virginia law recognizes two types of divorce.