If you’re going to file for divorce, it’s important to know that your state does have residency requirements. Not just anyone can file for divorce in Illinois. They need to have lived in the state for long enough to qualify. These requirements were laid out by the Illinois Marriage And Dissolution of Marriage Act.
Essentially, the residency requirements just state that the person who is filing for divorce needs to live in Illinois for at least 90 days prior to that filing – roughly three months. So you don’t have to be a long-term resident of the state, and it doesn’t matter if you got married outside of Illinois, but you also can’t file for divorce if you just moved here.
Is there a waiting period?
No, not in Illinois. Some states do have waiting periods, requiring that a judge waits for a certain amount of time prior to handing out the final divorce judgment. This can lengthen the process. But Illinois does not have this requirement, so the divorce decree can be given out relatively quickly. The residency requirements simply apply to the amount of time you’ve lived in the state before divorce, but they shouldn’t delay the case once it actually begins.
Moving toward divorce
Many people who are considering divorce in Illinois already meet the residency requirements. Maybe this is where you got married and where you have been living since that marriage. You can file for divorce whenever you want.
But those couples who have recently relocated for work, educational opportunities or some other reason entirely need to know how these laws work. If you are in this position and you are moving closer to divorce, take the time to carefully consider the necessary legal requirements under state law.