Below is a timeline for the divorce process in Texas: 

Filing the divorce petition is the first part of the process of divorce in Texas. Your petition is a formal request to dissolve your marriage and needs to have your requests for the separation of your marital assets, child support, custody, and alimony. There is no specified time that you need to be together with your spouse before you can file for divorce, but you must be a Texas resident for at least six months and a resident of the county in which you’re filing your petition in for the previous 90 days. You, the petitioner, will need to work with a divorce lawyer to compile a proper petition during this time. 

There is a filing fee that ranges between $150-$300, depending on your county. In addition, there will be associated court fees for your divorce case. If you cannot pay these fees, you may apply for a fee waiver. 

After your petition has been filed, there is a mandatory waiting period of 60 days which starts the day after the petition has been filed. Almost all divorce cases have to wait for 60 days, but there are exceptions to this waiting period to accommodate family violence cases. While 60 days in the mandatory waiting time, a divorce case can take upwards of six months to reach court, if not longer. 

During the mandatory waiting period, your spouse, referred to as the respondent, must be notified of the petition and has to respond to it accordingly. Once the petition is received by the respondent, they have 20-28 days to respond to the petition. This response includes accepting your demands, stating to contest the demands, or requesting an extension to achieve an agreement in another way. 

If the respondent decides to contest the demands outlined in your divorce petition, there is a period in which you and your spouse will collect evidence to provide reasoning for your claims in court. This can take months to years to complete before a court appearance. If the divorce looks like it may take longer than expected, the judge may apply temporary orders to your spouse. These orders consist of temporary child custody, visitation, child support , and spousal maintenance, temporary exclusive use of property, payments of debt upon other orders that may be necessary for the protection of the parties or preservation of property. 

The last step of the divorce process is the hearing. In the divorce hearing, a judge will look over the requests, evidence, and other factors for your divorce. Once the judge has completed their review, they will make a final decision regarding the specifics of your divorce, such as spousal maintenance, child support and custody, visitation, and the separation of assets.