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Filing for Divorce in Illinois: Residency Requirements
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There are a few residency requirements to file for divorce in the State of Illinois. The most basic requirement is that either you or your spouse must be a resident of Illinois. The location or State of your marriage does not matter. For example, if you and your spouse were married in California, you can still file for divorce in Illinois as long as one of you has their primary residence here. What this also means, however, is that even if you were married in Illinois, if you and your spouse both maintain residency elsewhere, you cannot file for divorce in Illinois.
To have legal residency in Illinois, you must have an address that you declare as your primary residence for at least 90 days. This includes either you or your spouse being stationed in Illinois as a member of the armed services, so long as the military presence has been maintained for 90 days. Note that if you are in the process of moving to Illinois, or if you moved to Illinois last month (or any time less than 90 days ago); you cannot file for divorce in Illinois, unless your spouse has residency in the State.
The last residency requirement is that you must file within the appropriate county. If only your spouse is an Illinois resident, then you would file within the county that they reside in. If both you and your spouse maintain residency in Illinois (and both reside in different counties), then you could file in either county.
Does this sound confusing? It can be. If you have any questions about Illinois divorce residency requirements or would like an attorney referral, please do not hesitate to contact us.