North Dakota Divorce Laws: Residency, Waiting Period, Custody and Support
North Dakota divorce rules: residency requirement, grounds, waiting period, filing fee, property division, alimony, custody, child support and uncontested divorce.
Quick answers for North Dakota
- Residency requirement
- The filing spouse must have been a North Dakota resident in good faith for the six months before filing. N.D. Cent. Code § 14-05-17
- Waiting period
- The courts' self-help page lists no waiting period other than the six-month residency requirement. After being served, the other spouse has 21 days to respond. North Dakota Legal Self Help Center, Divorce
- Dividing property
- The court makes an equitable distribution of the spouses' property and debts. Unless the spouses agree on a valuation date, marital property and debt are valued as of sixty days before the first scheduled trial date. N.D. Cent. Code § 14-05-24
- Filing fee
- The fee to file a petition for divorce, annulment or separation is $160 (court fee schedule effective July 1, 2025). A filing fee waiver request form is available. North Dakota Court Fee Schedule (N.D.C.C. § 27-05.2-03); North Dakota Legal Self Help Center
- When child support ends
- Child support ordered until a child reaches majority (18) continues until the end of the month the child graduates from high school or turns 19, whichever comes first, if the child is 18, still enrolled in and attending high school, and living with the parent who receives support. N.D.C.C. § 14-09-08.2
Last verified: 2026-10-27
Filing for divorce
| Residency requirement | The filing spouse must have been a North Dakota resident in good faith for the six months before filing. If not, a divorce or separation may still be granted if the filing spouse has been a resident for the six months immediately before the decree is entered. Source: N.D. Cent. Code § 14-05-17 |
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| Grounds for divorce | Divorce may be granted for irreconcilable differences (no-fault), defined as substantial reasons for not continuing the marriage that make it appear the marriage should be dissolved. Fault grounds are adultery, extreme cruelty, willful desertion, willful neglect, abuse of alcohol or controlled substances, and conviction of a felony. |
| Waiting period | The courts' self-help page lists no waiting period other than the six-month residency requirement. After being served, the other spouse has 21 days to respond. |
| Filing fee | The fee to file a petition for divorce, annulment or separation is $160 (court fee schedule effective July 1, 2025). A filing fee waiver request form is available. Fee waiver form: https://www.ndcourts.gov/legal-self-help/fee-waiver |
| Uncontested or simplified divorce | Spouses who agree on all issues in writing can use the courts' simple divorce (no children) or uncontested divorce with children packets. If every required document is filed correctly, the divorce is generally granted quickly and without a hearing. With children, the spouses must calculate child support, and both must sign the agreement forms. No-children packet: https://www.ndcourts.gov/legal-self-help/divorce/simple-divorce |
| Divorce forms | The North Dakota Supreme Court's Legal Self Help Center offers free divorce form packets: uncontested divorce with no children; uncontested divorce with children (including child support calculations), for spouses who agree on all issues in writing before filing; starting a contested divorce (Plaintiff); answering a divorce complaint (Defendant), with an answer and counterclaim due 21 days after service; default divorce motions; and case management, trial preparation and final judgment guides. The page also links to service instructions, a fee waiver request and the court's E-File Portal. |
Property and alimony
| Dividing property | The court makes an equitable distribution of the spouses' property and debts. Unless the spouses agree on a valuation date, marital property and debt are valued as of sixty days before the first scheduled trial date. The statute does not define separate property; how premarital, gifted or inherited property is treated is set by North Dakota case law. Source: N.D. Cent. Code § 14-05-24 |
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| Alimony (spousal support) | The court may not award permanent spousal support. It may order support for a limited period if it finds the recipient lacks enough property or income for reasonable needs (considering the marital standard of living) and the payor can pay without undue hardship. Factors include age, earning ability, length of the marriage, conduct during the marriage, station in life, circumstances and needs, health, and financial circumstances including property owned at the divorce. Source: N.D. Cent. Code § 14-05-24.1 |
Children: custody and support
| Child custody | Parental rights and responsibilities are decided by the child's best interests and welfare, using listed factors such as emotional ties, each parent's ability to provide for the child, developmental needs, home stability, willingness to encourage the child's relationship with the other parent, moral fitness, mental and physical health, and the child's school and community records. If the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the child is mature enough to make a sound judgment, it may give substantial weight to the child's preference. Credible evidence of serious domestic violence or a pattern of it creates a rebuttable presumption against giving that parent residential responsibility. No statutory age is set for the child's preference. Source: N.D. Cent. Code § 14-09-06.2 |
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| Emergency and temporary custody | In a divorce or other family case, a party can ask the court for an interim (temporary) order. An interim order normally requires notice and a hearing, but the court may issue an ex parte (emergency) interim order without a hearing if it specifically finds exceptional circumstances, such as a threat of imminent danger to a party or a minor child. The person asking must sign a declaration stating the specific facts. The order must set a hearing within 30 days, and the person who got it must personally serve the order and hearing notice on the other party. After a final judgment, an ex parte order may change parenting time but may not change primary residential responsibility. The North Dakota Legal Self Help Center publishes guides and forms for interim orders on ndcourts.gov. |
| Grandparents' rights | North Dakota's former grandparent visitation statute was repealed in 2019. Grandparents and other nonparents may seek custody or visitation under the Uniform Nonparent Custody and Visitation Act by proving they are a consistent caretaker (lived with and cared for the child for at least 12 months without pay) or have a substantial relationship with the child and denial would harm the child, and that the order is in the child's best interest. A parent's decision is presumed to be in the child's best interest, and the nonparent must rebut it by clear and convincing evidence. |
Child support
| Child support | Child support guidelines are set by the Department of Health and Human Services. The basic calculation assumes one parent is the primary caregiver and applies the paying parent's (obligor's) net income and the number of children to a support schedule; separate rules cover equal or shared residential responsibility. The department publishes an official guidelines calculator. Calculator: https://www.hhs.nd.gov/sites/www/files/documents/child-support/documents/guidelinescalculator.xlsm ; rules: https://ndlegis.gov/information/acdata/pdf/75-02-04.1.pdf |
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| How to apply for child support | Parents can apply for services from North Dakota Health and Human Services Child Support online, by printing and returning a paper application, or by contacting the office to request an application. The agency offers Full Services and Limited Services cases. The application pages read do not state an application fee. |
| When child support ends | Child support ordered until a child reaches majority (18) continues until the end of the month the child graduates from high school or turns 19, whichever comes first, if the child is 18, still enrolled in and attending high school, and living with the parent who receives support. The parent receiving support can file a free declaration with the child support agency to keep support going. A court can also order support after 18 if the parents agree or the court finds it appropriate. Source: N.D.C.C. § 14-09-08.2 |
| Changing a child support order | If an order was entered at least one year before a motion to amend is filed, the court must change support to match the guidelines amount, even without a material change in circumstances, unless the guideline amount is shown to be wrong for the case. Within one year of the order, the person asking must also show a material change of circumstances. The child support agency reviews orders it enforces and must seek an amendment if the current amount is under 85% or over 115% of the guidelines amount. Either parent can ask Child Support for a review by sending a Request for a Review form; the agency says Full Services cases can be reviewed every 18 months, and a parent may instead file a motion directly with the court. Agency review page: https://www.hhs.nd.gov/childsupport/services/review-and-adjustment-orders. The statute sets a review at least every 36 months for agency-enforced orders; the agency page describes an 18-month request cycle. |
| If child support isn't paid | On Full Services cases, Child Support can intercept federal tax refunds ($500 past-due owed to the parent, or $150 owed to the state) and state tax refunds ($25 past-due); report to credit bureaus after one month past-due; deny passports ($2,500 past-due); suspend driver's, occupational and recreational licenses and block vehicle registration (2 months or $2,000 past-due, whichever is less, or a broken payment plan); list the parent on the Lien Registry; intercept gaming and lottery winnings; freeze and seize bank accounts and other assets; seek an order to show cause hearing, where failure to appear can lead to an arrest warrant; and refer willful nonpayment for criminal prosecution (up to a Class C felony). Simple interest is charged on past-due support ordered by a North Dakota court (10% for 2026). Support can also be collected through income withholding from wages. Interest details: https://www.hhs.nd.gov/childsupport/services/enforcement/interest-charges |
| State child support agency | North Dakota's child support program is part of the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services. It establishes paternity, establishes support orders, enforces orders, reviews and adjusts orders, and handles intergovernmental cases. Apply with the online form or a printed application mailed back. Payments can be made by income withholding, autopay, bank account, cash, check or money order, credit or debit card, or PayPal or Venmo, and parents can view their case 24/7 through the Parent Login. |
| Official child support calculator | North Dakota Health and Human Services (Child Support) offers a downloadable Guidelines Calculator (Excel) to estimate a support amount. It says the calculator is for informational purposes only, is not legal advice, and the results are an estimate that depends on the accuracy of the information entered; Windows-based products are recommended. The Child Support Guidelines are used by Child Support, private attorneys and the courts when calculating support. |
Separation, annulment, records and marriage
| Legal separation | Available. The court may grant a temporary or permanent decree of separation for any cause for which a divorce may be granted; the same six-month residency rule applies. |
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| Annulment | A marriage may be annulled for causes existing at the time of marriage, including: a spouse was under the age of legal consent or married without required parental consent (unless the couple freely cohabited after reaching legal age); a spouse's prior marriage was still in force; a spouse was of unsound mind (unless the couple cohabited after recovery); consent was obtained by fraud or force (unless the couple freely cohabited afterward); or a spouse was physically incapable of entering the marriage. Source: N.D. Cent. Code § 14-04-01 |
| Common-law marriage | North Dakota law provides that the marriage relation may be entered into only as provided by law, and a marriage may not be solemnized without a license issued no more than sixty days before the marriage. Marriages validly contracted outside the state are generally recognized as valid in North Dakota. The statutes read do not mention common-law marriage by name. |
| Divorce records | North Dakota Vital Records does not issue copies of divorce decrees. Certified copies of divorce or annulment records can only be obtained from the county office (clerk of court, or in some counties the recorder or auditor) in the county where the divorce was granted. Vital Records can help identify the county. Court case information can be searched through the court system's public access page. Court case search: https://www.ndcourts.gov/public-access |
Marriage and name changes
| Getting a marriage license | Apply to the county recorder (or another official the county commissioners designate) in the county where either party lives, where a parent of either party lives, or where the wedding will take place. Each applicant must show a birth certificate or other satisfactory evidence of age, sign an affidavit about age and any prior divorce (with a certified copy of any divorce decree), and give a Social Security number. The law sets no waiting period, but the license must have been issued no more than 60 days before the wedding. The license fee is up to $30, plus a $35 supplemental fee for the domestic violence prevention fund. |
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| Minimum marriage age | A person 18 or older may marry. A person aged 16 or 17 may get a marriage license only with the written consent of a parent or guardian (if there is one). No license may be issued to anyone under 16, even with parental consent. |
| Legal name change | File a petition in the district court of the county where you live, stating that you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, have lived in the county at least six months, the reason for the change, and the name you want. The court checks criminal history and may require a criminal background check at your cost; a person with a felony conviction must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the request is in good faith. Notice must be published in the county's official newspaper 30 days before the hearing, but the court may waive publication for a change of first name only or for a domestic violence victim. |
Adoption, guardianship and paternity
| Adoption requirements | A married couple adopting together, an unmarried adult, or the unmarried parent of the person to be adopted may adopt; a married person may adopt alone only in limited cases (such as a stepparent adoption or a legal separation). Written consent is generally needed from the mother, the legal or presumed father, any person or agency with custody, and the child if over 10 (unless the court excuses it); consent is not needed from a parent who abandoned the child or who for at least one year failed significantly, without justifiable cause, to communicate with or support the child. A licensed child-placing agency (or the Department of Health and Human Services) must investigate whether the adoption is in the child's best interest and the home is suitable. Except for a stepchild, the final decree generally may not issue until the child has lived in the adoptive home for at least six months. The petition is filed where the petitioner or the child lives or where the placing agency is located. |
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| Stepparent adoption | A stepparent may adopt without the other spouse joining the petition if the spouse (the child's parent) consents. The other parent's consent is still required unless an exception applies, such as abandonment or at least one year of significant failure, without justifiable cause, to communicate with or support the child. No agency investigation and report is required when the petitioner is a stepparent, and the six-month residence requirement does not apply to a stepchild. |
| Guardianship of a child | Any person interested in the welfare of a child may petition the juvenile court, generally in the county where the child lives. The petition needs a supporting affidavit showing the basis for the guardianship and that it is in the child's best interest; the court appoints a lay guardian ad litem and sets a hearing. The court may appoint a guardian if it finds by clear and convincing evidence that the appointment is in the child's best interest and either both parents are dead (or the surviving parent's rights were terminated) with no guardian named by will, the parents consented in writing by affidavit, parental rights were terminated, or the child is a child in need of protection. A parent may also name a guardian in a will, which takes effect after court approval in the district court where the will is probated. |
| Guardianship of an adult | Any person interested in the welfare of an allegedly incapacitated adult may petition the court; the petition must state that less intrusive alternatives were considered. A guardian may be appointed only on clear and convincing evidence that the person is incapacitated, that no suitable alternative resource plan could be used instead, that guardianship is the best means of providing care, and that the powers granted are the least restrictive form of intervention. Age, eccentricity, poverty or a medical diagnosis alone is not enough. The court must consider any existing durable powers of attorney and health care powers of attorney, and a durable power of attorney for health care generally takes precedence over a guardian's medical decision authority. Unless the court specifically finds otherwise, the person keeps the right to vote, to marry or divorce, and to keep a driver's license. |
| Establishing paternity | The mother and a man claiming to be the genetic father may sign an acknowledgment of paternity under penalty of perjury on forms prescribed by the Department of Health and Human Services, with which it is filed. A signer may rescind by starting a court proceeding before the earlier of 60 days after the acknowledgment takes effect or the first court hearing about the child (such as a support case). After that, it can be challenged only for fraud, duress or material mistake of fact, within two years after filing. Paternity may also be decided in a civil court case, and the court must order genetic testing on a sworn request; test results showing at least a 99% probability of paternity (and a combined paternity index of at least 100 to 1) rebuttably identify the man as the father. |
| Emancipation of a minor | North Dakota has no court process for emancipating a minor. The age of majority is 18. According to the state courts' self-help guide, a parent's authority ends when the child turns 18, marries before 18 with parental consent, or has a court-appointed guardian. |
Where to get help in North Dakota
Divorce & Family Law FAQ
How long do you have to live in North Dakota to file for divorce?
The filing spouse must have been a North Dakota resident in good faith for the six months before filing. If not, a divorce or separation may still be granted if the filing spouse has been a resident for the six months immediately before the decree is entered.
Is North Dakota a no-fault divorce state?
Divorce may be granted for irreconcilable differences (no-fault), defined as substantial reasons for not continuing the marriage that make it appear the marriage should be dissolved. Fault grounds are adultery, extreme cruelty, willful desertion, willful neglect, abuse of alcohol or controlled substances, and conviction of a felony.
Is there a waiting period for divorce in North Dakota?
The courts' self-help page lists no waiting period other than the six-month residency requirement. After being served, the other spouse has 21 days to respond.
How much does it cost to file for divorce in North Dakota?
The fee to file a petition for divorce, annulment or separation is $160 (court fee schedule effective July 1, 2025). A filing fee waiver request form is available.
How do you get an uncontested divorce in North Dakota?
Spouses who agree on all issues in writing can use the courts' simple divorce (no children) or uncontested divorce with children packets. If every required document is filed correctly, the divorce is generally granted quickly and without a hearing. With children, the spouses must calculate child support, and both must sign the agreement forms.
Is North Dakota a community property state?
The court makes an equitable distribution of the spouses' property and debts. Unless the spouses agree on a valuation date, marital property and debt are valued as of sixty days before the first scheduled trial date.
How is alimony decided in North Dakota?
The court may not award permanent spousal support. It may order support for a limited period if it finds the recipient lacks enough property or income for reasonable needs (considering the marital standard of living) and the payor can pay without undue hardship. Factors include age, earning ability, length of the marriage, conduct during the marriage, station in life, circumstances and needs, health, and financial circumstances including property owned at the divorce.
How is child custody decided in North Dakota?
Parental rights and responsibilities are decided by the child's best interests and welfare, using listed factors such as emotional ties, each parent's ability to provide for the child, developmental needs, home stability, willingness to encourage the child's relationship with the other parent, moral fitness, mental and physical health, and the child's school and community records. If the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the child is mature enough to make a sound judgment, it may give substantial weight to the child's preference. Credible evidence of serious domestic violence or a pattern of it creates a rebuttable presumption against giving that parent residential responsibility.
How is child support calculated in North Dakota?
Child support guidelines are set by the Department of Health and Human Services. The basic calculation assumes one parent is the primary caregiver and applies the paying parent's (obligor's) net income and the number of children to a support schedule; separate rules cover equal or shared residential responsibility. The department publishes an official guidelines calculator.
Can you get a legal separation in North Dakota?
Available. The court may grant a temporary or permanent decree of separation for any cause for which a divorce may be granted; the same six-month residency rule applies.
What are the grounds for annulment in North Dakota?
A marriage may be annulled for causes existing at the time of marriage, including: a spouse was under the age of legal consent or married without required parental consent (unless the couple freely cohabited after reaching legal age); a spouse's prior marriage was still in force; a spouse was of unsound mind (unless the couple cohabited after recovery); consent was obtained by fraud or force (unless the couple freely cohabited afterward); or a spouse was physically incapable of entering the marriage.
Does North Dakota recognize common-law marriage?
North Dakota law provides that the marriage relation may be entered into only as provided by law, and a marriage may not be solemnized without a license issued no more than sixty days before the marriage. Marriages validly contracted outside the state are generally recognized as valid in North Dakota.
Do grandparents have visitation rights in North Dakota?
North Dakota's former grandparent visitation statute was repealed in 2019. Grandparents and other nonparents may seek custody or visitation under the Uniform Nonparent Custody and Visitation Act by proving they are a consistent caretaker (lived with and cared for the child for at least 12 months without pay) or have a substantial relationship with the child and denial would harm the child, and that the order is in the child's best interest. A parent's decision is presumed to be in the child's best interest, and the nonparent must rebut it by clear and convincing evidence.
At what age does child support end in North Dakota?
Child support ordered until a child reaches majority (18) continues until the end of the month the child graduates from high school or turns 19, whichever comes first, if the child is 18, still enrolled in and attending high school, and living with the parent who receives support. The parent receiving support can file a free declaration with the child support agency to keep support going. A court can also order support after 18 if the parents agree or the court finds it appropriate.
How do I file for child support in North Dakota?
Parents can apply for services from North Dakota Health and Human Services Child Support online, by printing and returning a paper application, or by contacting the office to request an application. The agency offers Full Services and Limited Services cases. The application pages read do not state an application fee.
What happens if you don't pay child support in North Dakota?
On Full Services cases, Child Support can intercept federal tax refunds ($500 past-due owed to the parent, or $150 owed to the state) and state tax refunds ($25 past-due); report to credit bureaus after one month past-due; deny passports ($2,500 past-due); suspend driver's, occupational and recreational licenses and block vehicle registration (2 months or $2,000 past-due, whichever is less, or a broken payment plan); list the parent on the Lien Registry; intercept gaming and lottery winnings; freeze and seize bank accounts and other assets; seek an order to show cause hearing, where failure to appear can lead to an arrest warrant; and refer willful nonpayment for criminal prosecution (up to a Class C felony). Simple interest is charged on past-due support ordered by a North Dakota court (10% for 2026). Support can also be collected through income withholding from wages.
How do you modify child support in North Dakota?
If an order was entered at least one year before a motion to amend is filed, the court must change support to match the guidelines amount, even without a material change in circumstances, unless the guideline amount is shown to be wrong for the case. Within one year of the order, the person asking must also show a material change of circumstances. The child support agency reviews orders it enforces and must seek an amendment if the current amount is under 85% or over 115% of the guidelines amount. Either parent can ask Child Support for a review by sending a Request for a Review form; the agency says Full Services cases can be reviewed every 18 months, and a parent may instead file a motion directly with the court.
How do you get emergency custody in North Dakota?
In a divorce or other family case, a party can ask the court for an interim (temporary) order. An interim order normally requires notice and a hearing, but the court may issue an ex parte (emergency) interim order without a hearing if it specifically finds exceptional circumstances, such as a threat of imminent danger to a party or a minor child. The person asking must sign a declaration stating the specific facts. The order must set a hearing within 30 days, and the person who got it must personally serve the order and hearing notice on the other party. After a final judgment, an ex parte order may change parenting time but may not change primary residential responsibility.
Are divorce records public in North Dakota, and how do I get a copy?
North Dakota Vital Records does not issue copies of divorce decrees. Certified copies of divorce or annulment records can only be obtained from the county office (clerk of court, or in some counties the recorder or auditor) in the county where the divorce was granted. Vital Records can help identify the county. Court case information can be searched through the court system's public access page.
How do you get a marriage license in North Dakota?
Apply to the county recorder (or another official the county commissioners designate) in the county where either party lives, where a parent of either party lives, or where the wedding will take place. Each applicant must show a birth certificate or other satisfactory evidence of age, sign an affidavit about age and any prior divorce (with a certified copy of any divorce decree), and give a Social Security number. The law sets no waiting period, but the license must have been issued no more than 60 days before the wedding. The license fee is up to $30, plus a $35 supplemental fee for the domestic violence prevention fund.
What is the legal age to get married in North Dakota?
A person 18 or older may marry. A person aged 16 or 17 may get a marriage license only with the written consent of a parent or guardian (if there is one). No license may be issued to anyone under 16, even with parental consent.
What are the requirements to adopt a child in North Dakota?
A married couple adopting together, an unmarried adult, or the unmarried parent of the person to be adopted may adopt; a married person may adopt alone only in limited cases (such as a stepparent adoption or a legal separation). Written consent is generally needed from the mother, the legal or presumed father, any person or agency with custody, and the child if over 10 (unless the court excuses it); consent is not needed from a parent who abandoned the child or who for at least one year failed significantly, without justifiable cause, to communicate with or support the child. A licensed child-placing agency (or the Department of Health and Human Services) must investigate whether the adoption is in the child's best interest and the home is suitable. Except for a stepchild, the final decree generally may not issue until the child has lived in the adoptive home for at least six months. The petition is filed where the petitioner or the child lives or where the placing agency is located.
How does stepparent adoption work in North Dakota?
A stepparent may adopt without the other spouse joining the petition if the spouse (the child's parent) consents. The other parent's consent is still required unless an exception applies, such as abandonment or at least one year of significant failure, without justifiable cause, to communicate with or support the child. No agency investigation and report is required when the petitioner is a stepparent, and the six-month residence requirement does not apply to a stepchild.
How do you get guardianship of a child in North Dakota?
Any person interested in the welfare of a child may petition the juvenile court, generally in the county where the child lives. The petition needs a supporting affidavit showing the basis for the guardianship and that it is in the child's best interest; the court appoints a lay guardian ad litem and sets a hearing. The court may appoint a guardian if it finds by clear and convincing evidence that the appointment is in the child's best interest and either both parents are dead (or the surviving parent's rights were terminated) with no guardian named by will, the parents consented in writing by affidavit, parental rights were terminated, or the child is a child in need of protection. A parent may also name a guardian in a will, which takes effect after court approval in the district court where the will is probated.
How do you get guardianship of an adult in North Dakota?
Any person interested in the welfare of an allegedly incapacitated adult may petition the court; the petition must state that less intrusive alternatives were considered. A guardian may be appointed only on clear and convincing evidence that the person is incapacitated, that no suitable alternative resource plan could be used instead, that guardianship is the best means of providing care, and that the powers granted are the least restrictive form of intervention. Age, eccentricity, poverty or a medical diagnosis alone is not enough. The court must consider any existing durable powers of attorney and health care powers of attorney, and a durable power of attorney for health care generally takes precedence over a guardian's medical decision authority. Unless the court specifically finds otherwise, the person keeps the right to vote, to marry or divorce, and to keep a driver's license.
How do you establish paternity in North Dakota?
The mother and a man claiming to be the genetic father may sign an acknowledgment of paternity under penalty of perjury on forms prescribed by the Department of Health and Human Services, with which it is filed. A signer may rescind by starting a court proceeding before the earlier of 60 days after the acknowledgment takes effect or the first court hearing about the child (such as a support case). After that, it can be challenged only for fraud, duress or material mistake of fact, within two years after filing. Paternity may also be decided in a civil court case, and the court must order genetic testing on a sworn request; test results showing at least a 99% probability of paternity (and a combined paternity index of at least 100 to 1) rebuttably identify the man as the father.
How do you legally change your name in North Dakota?
File a petition in the district court of the county where you live, stating that you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, have lived in the county at least six months, the reason for the change, and the name you want. The court checks criminal history and may require a criminal background check at your cost; a person with a felony conviction must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the request is in good faith. Notice must be published in the county's official newspaper 30 days before the hearing, but the court may waive publication for a change of first name only or for a domestic violence victim.
How does a minor get emancipated in North Dakota?
North Dakota has no court process for emancipating a minor. The age of majority is 18. According to the state courts' self-help guide, a parent's authority ends when the child turns 18, marries before 18 with parental consent, or has a court-appointed guardian.
Where can I get divorce papers and forms in North Dakota?
The North Dakota Supreme Court's Legal Self Help Center offers free divorce form packets: uncontested divorce with no children; uncontested divorce with children (including child support calculations), for spouses who agree on all issues in writing before filing; starting a contested divorce (Plaintiff); answering a divorce complaint (Defendant), with an answer and counterclaim due 21 days after service; default divorce motions; and case management, trial preparation and final judgment guides. The page also links to service instructions, a fee waiver request and the court's E-File Portal.
Who handles child support in North Dakota, and how do I contact them?
North Dakota's child support program is part of the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services. It establishes paternity, establishes support orders, enforces orders, reviews and adjusts orders, and handles intergovernmental cases. Apply with the online form or a printed application mailed back. Payments can be made by income withholding, autopay, bank account, cash, check or money order, credit or debit card, or PayPal or Venmo, and parents can view their case 24/7 through the Parent Login.
Is there an official child support calculator in North Dakota?
North Dakota Health and Human Services (Child Support) offers a downloadable Guidelines Calculator (Excel) to estimate a support amount. It says the calculator is for informational purposes only, is not legal advice, and the results are an estimate that depends on the accuracy of the information entered; Windows-based products are recommended. The Child Support Guidelines are used by Child Support, private attorneys and the courts when calculating support.
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