Every Hays County divorce is filed with the District Clerk, Suite 2211 of the Government Center at 712 S. Stagecoach Trail in San Marcos. Certified decree copies cost $1 a page plus $5 for the seal; email the clerk for a quote and pay online. Hays County has six district courts, and by local rule an associate judge in the Family Court hears agreed decrees and, unless someone objects, non-jury trials. The filing fee is $350.
County facts on this page were checked against hayscountytx.gov and the county’s posted rules on September 26, 2026. Courts change their procedures; the links go to the official source so you can confirm.
Email the Hays County District Clerk at distclerk@hayscountytx.gov and ask for a quote. Pay it online, and the clerk mails the copies within two working days of payment. A certified copy costs $1 a page plus $5 for the embossed seal.
This is the most common wrong turn. Hays County has two clerks, and only one of them has your divorce. The District Clerk files and keeps every divorce in the county. That is true even when a County Court at Law hears the case, because Texas law makes the District Clerk the clerk for those courts in family cases (Texas Government Code § 25.1072). The County Clerk is the office that issues marriage licenses (Texas Family Code § 2.001). If you need proof of the marriage, that is the County Clerk. If you need proof it ended, that is the District Clerk.
| Certified copy | $1/page + $5 seal |
|---|---|
| Plain or electronic copy, first 10 pages | $1 total |
| Plain or electronic copy, each page after 10 | $0.10/page |
| Clerk records search (per name, 10 years) | $5 |
Sources: the clerk’s Records Search & Copy Request page and the county’s miscellaneous fees list. A 12-page certified decree, for example, comes to $17.
The clerk’s records page links to a free public-access name search. It shows the parties, the cause number, the case type, the filing date and how the case ended. It is the quickest way to find a cause number before you email.
Need a decree from a different county? Our guide to decree copies across Central Texas covers the others.
Hays County’s family courts, the District Clerk and the Law Library are all in the Hays County Government Center, 712 S. Stagecoach Trail, San Marcos, TX 78666. The District Clerk is in Suite 2211. Settings and scheduling go through the District Court Administrator in Suite 3240.
The district courts, the Family Court, the County Courts at Law, the District Clerk and the Law Library all work out of this one building. Do not bring a child here to testify or talk to the judge without the court’s consent. The local rules’ dress code rules out shorts, tank tops and flip-flops.
The District Clerk files and keeps every Hays County divorce, and makes every copy of one. The courts themselves hand out no copies. Payment for copies is due in advance.
Free Westlaw, four public computers set up for e-filing, a scanner and Wi-Fi. Printing is 15 cents a page, cash only. There are no staff attorneys and no legal advice, and with one part-time librarian, hours can change.
Two offices get confused here. The District Clerk takes filings, collects fees and makes copies. The District Court Administrator sets hearings and trials. Neither one can give legal advice, and the courts do not make copies of anything; every copy comes from the clerk.
You do not choose. The District Clerk assigns a new case to a district court under the county’s case assignment guidelines. Under the local rules, the associate judge of the Family Court of Hays County then hears much of it by default, including every agreed final decree.
Each is created by statute, and three of them share their judge with neighboring counties (Texas Government Code chapter 24). See the county’s District Court page.
The county’s District Court page says the court “serves three counties.” That is true of the 22nd and 207th only. The 428th, 453rd and 483rd sit in Hays alone.
Under Texas Family Code chapter 201, the district judges have referred family cases to an Associate District Judge who presides over the Family Court of Hays County. The referral covers every stage of a divorce or custody case, including the trial. By default, Local Rule 28 sends these to the associate judge:
Two protections come with that. First, you can object in writing to the associate judge hearing your trial, but you have to do it within 10 days of receiving the notice of setting (Local Rule 28.4; Family Code § 201.005). Miss that window and the associate judge hears it. Second, after the associate judge rules, a party can ask for a new hearing, called a de novo hearing, before a district judge (Local Rules 28.5–28.6; Family Code § 201.015).
Hays County also has three County Courts at Law. By statute they share jurisdiction with the district courts in family cases, and the District Clerk is their clerk in those cases (Government Code § 25.1072). See the county’s County Court at Law page. Whether a given divorce ever lands in one is a matter of local assignment practice; the local rules speak only of the district courts and the Family Court.
Later changes to a final order, such as a custody or support modification, generally go back to the court that made it.
Every Hays County divorce filed on or after October 1, 2019 comes with the county’s standing order, a set of ground rules for both spouses that takes effect the moment the petition is filed. The petitioner must attach it to the petition and every copy. If an e-filed petition arrives without it, the clerk will not issue citation until it is resubmitted.
Read the Amended Hays County Standing Order Regarding Children, Property, and Conduct of the Parties (PDF) itself; it binds you. Local Rule 30.1 still points to it as the current order. In plain terms:
The order runs as a temporary restraining order for 14 days after filing. If nobody contests it at a hearing within 14 days after service, it continues as a temporary injunction until the final order or dismissal, with no bond. If a protective order conflicts with it, the protective order wins. The court can award attorney’s fees against a spouse who violates it.
One more thing the order does, which we think matters: it encourages the parties to use mediation and collaborative law to settle. Hays County’s own ground rules point toward working it out.
The Local Rules for the District Courts of Hays County took effect August 21, 2024, signed by all six district judges, and replace every earlier version. The one that catches people first: the court does not tell you when your hearing is. The side that gets the setting has to send the notice.
Every setting runs through the District Court Administrator. Neither the court nor the administrator mails you a notice of the date. Whoever gets the setting must e-file a Notice of Setting within seven days, have the coordinator approve it, and serve it on the other side the same day, with a time estimate and a certificate of conference. Local Rules 9.1–9.3.
Two weeks before a final trial, each side files with the District Clerk, and sends the other side, a Proposed Property Division, a Proposed Support Decision, a Proposed Parenting Plan and a Proposed Disposition of Other Issues. Anything left off is deemed waived unless there is good cause. The deadline cannot be extended by the administrator or waived by agreement. Local Rule 30.
Anyone, lawyer or not, who uses artificial intelligence for research or drafting must certify in writing, before filing, that a Texas-licensed attorney verified everything the AI produced against traditional legal sources. If a chatbot filled out your forms, that is a real hurdle for a self-represented filer. Local Rule 1.6.
A case can land on the dismissal docket if there is no answer after 180 days, or if it is over 18 months old, not set for trial and idle for 180 days. A motion to retain is due 14 days before the dismissal date. Missing the dismissal hearing means dismissal. Local Rule 18.
Every default must be set for hearing. In a divorce, the court needs evidence of the character and value of the community estate and of joint debts, plus a certificate of last known address and a non-military affidavit on file. Local Rule 32.
Jury cases must mediate at least 45 days before trial, with the mediator’s report filed at least 30 days before. In non-jury cases it is up to the judge. The courts also hold a Settlement Week each spring and fall. Local Rules 16 and 17.
If you have children, both parents take an approved Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course. Local Rule 33 requires it in every divorce with children and every original custody case, unless the court finds good cause. The county’s parenting-course order (PDF) adds the practical parts: finish it within 60 days of service on the respondent, and no final hearing happens without the certificate of attendance attached to the setting request. The standing order separately requires proof of attendance to be filed with the District Clerk.
Hearings are in person by default. A remote appearance needs good cause, shown after notice, except in Attorney General child support and CPS cases. The courts discourage calling children to testify; a motion to confer with a child is set the same day as the hearing it relates to.
Temporary orders hearings have their own paperwork. If support is at issue, each side brings a Proposed Support Decision, the last four pay stubs and last year’s tax return, and a Proposed Disposition of Issues (Local Rule 30.3). For a final trial, the Proposed Parenting Plan follows Texas Family Code § 153.603, and in a support case each side brings two years of tax returns and pay records.
The filing fee for a Hays County divorce is $350. Civil cases are filed electronically through the statewide portal, eFileTexas, and Hays stopped accepting fax filings in 2018. If you do not have a computer, the Law Library in Suite 2026 has public terminals set up for e-filing.
One spouse must have lived in Texas for the last six months and in Hays County for the last 90 days (Texas Family Code § 6.301). If you and your spouse live in different counties, you can file in either one, as long as one of you meets the 90-day rule there.
| Divorce, with or without children | $350 |
|---|---|
| E-filing convenience fee | $2 |
| Change-of-name certificate in a divorce decree | $10 |
| Later family filings (counterclaim, modification, enforcement, contempt) | $80 |
Your total is the filing fee plus the citation issuance fee plus the service fee. See the county’s Court Costs & Fees page for the current issuance and service amounts.
If your spouse will sign a waiver or file an answer, you do not need formal service. If not, know this before you pay anyone: the Hays County Sheriff does not serve civil process. Service goes through a Hays County constable or a private process server, and whoever serves the papers files the proof, called the Return of Service, with the clerk.
An uncontested divorce is one where you and your spouse have settled every decision by the end: property, debts, and, if you have children, custody, visitation and support. In Hays County the finish line is an email to the Family Court Coordinator, not a filing with the clerk. You do not have to agree on everything on day one. You have to agree by the time you finish.
Most people use the free forms on TexasLawHelp.org. Pick the guide that fits your family: divorce without minor children or divorce with children under 18.
The petition is just an ask. It tells the court the divorce has started and what you would like to happen. We think of it as a plain vanilla petition: it does not need to accuse anyone of anything.
Filling it out: the person who files is the Petitioner; the spouse is the Respondent. Use full legal names, spelled the same way on every form that follows. Leave the cause number and court blank; the clerk fills those in. Answer the residency questions honestly, since they are what gives a Hays court the power to hear your case. If you have children, list each one. If either spouse wants a former name back, say so in the petition.
Attach the Hays County standing order to the petition and to every copy. Without it, the clerk will not issue citation and the court can strike the petition. File through eFileTexas. The clerk assigns the cause number and the court. The 60-day waiting period starts now (Texas Family Code § 6.702), with an exception only for certain family-violence cases.
Write down the cause number and your court. Every form from here on needs both, copied exactly.
If your spouse is cooperating, give them a copy of the file-stamped petition, with the standing order, and either a Waiver of Service or an Original Answer to sign and file. Signing a waiver does not mean your spouse agrees to your terms; it means they do not need a process server. If they will not sign anything, arrange service through a constable or private process server (see § 06).
Start it right away. The county’s order gives you 60 days from service on the respondent, and the certificate of attendance has to be attached before a final hearing can be set. File proof of attendance with the District Clerk. This is the Hays step people most often find out about late.
The Final Decree of Divorce is the document that matters. It is the order the judge signs and the one you will show a bank, a title company or a school for years. It must be complete. A property item or a debt left out of the decree is a problem later.
Filling it out: list every account, vehicle, piece of real estate, retirement plan and debt, and say who gets each one. If you have children, the decree covers conservatorship, the possession schedule and child support. If support will be paid through wage withholding, prepare the income withholding order now; under Local Rule 34, the parent receiving support hands it to the judge when the decree is signed and completes the clerk’s account paperwork.
Hays County lets an agreed divorce be proved up on paper. Under Local Rule 29.3, when one or both spouses are representing themselves, the proof is a sworn affidavit signed in front of a notary by at least one spouse. If neither spouse has a lawyer, each of you signs one. The court will not accept an unsworn declaration under Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 132.001, the “under penalty of perjury” form many online templates use. Get it notarized.
The affidavit covers what a judge would ask in person: residency, the grounds for divorce, the children, and why the property division is fair. If you would rather testify, you can ask for a remote teleconference hearing instead.
This is the Hays-specific part. Email the agreed decree, signed by both of you, to the Court Coordinator for the Family Court, together with the sworn affidavit or affidavits, or with a request for a remote setting. A decree filed with the District Clerk is not forwarded to the judge. Filing it and waiting does not put it in front of the judge.
If the court decides a self-represented case cannot be finished without a hearing, it sets one as soon as it can. If AI helped you prepare anything you submit, remember the Local Rule 1.6 certification in § 05.
If your spouse was served and never answered, the path is a default, and in Hays County every default is set for a hearing where you prove up the community estate and joint debts (§ 05, rule v). If you agree on some things but not others, the pretrial-forms rule and the 10-day objection window both come into play. Those are the points where people tend to call us.
Your county is set by where you and your spouse actually live, not by the city on your mailing address. A city name on an address is a postal label, and it does not settle which county you live in. Check the county itself before you file.
Not sure which side you are on? Your property-tax bill or voter registration card names your county. Check before you file, since a petition filed in the wrong county may have to be refiled.
Court staff and the law librarian cannot give legal advice, but the Hays County Law Library in Suite 2026 has free Westlaw, e-filing computers and a scanner, and it keeps a list of free legal-aid options.
See also our list of free and low-cost legal resources.
Email the District Clerk at distclerk@hayscountytx.gov for a quote, pay online at certifiedpayments.net using Bureau Code 5779509, and the clerk mails the copies within two working days of payment. Certified copies cost $1 a page plus $5 for the seal. You can also mail a request with a check or money order to Suite 2211, 712 S. Stagecoach Trail, San Marcos, TX 78666.
The District Clerk. Divorces are filed and kept by the District Clerk, even when the case is heard in a County Court at Law. The County Clerk is the office that issues marriage licenses, so a marriage record and a divorce record come from two different offices.
The filing fee for a divorce is $350. E-filing adds a $2 convenience fee. Issuing citation and serving your spouse cost extra; the county’s court-costs pages list those amounts, and the Hays County Sheriff does not serve civil papers, so service goes through a constable or a private process server.
Often not. Under Local Rule 29, an agreed decree is emailed to the Family Court Coordinator with a sworn affidavit, or with a request for a remote hearing. If neither spouse has a lawyer, each spouse signs a sworn affidavit. A decree simply filed with the clerk is not forwarded to the judge.
Yes, if you have children. The local rules require an approved parent education course in every divorce with children unless the court finds good cause. The county’s parenting-course order sets a 60-day deadline after the respondent is served and says no final hearing happens without the certificate.
It is an associate judge’s court. The district judges have referred family cases to an associate judge, who by default hears temporary orders, agreed final orders and non-jury trials. A party can object in writing within 10 days of getting notice of a trial setting, and can ask a district judge for a new hearing afterward.
An agreed Hays County divorce can often be finished with the forms above, a notary and an email to the Family Court Coordinator. When it gets complicated, with a house or a retirement account to divide, a spouse who stops answering, or children and a schedule you cannot settle, that is usually when a lawyer earns the fee. Trusler Legal PLLC is at 3701 Bee Caves Rd #102 in Austin. If we can help, let us know.