Divorce in Georgia is a legal process affecting finances, living arrangements, and parental relationships. Understanding the state’s rules for dissolving a marriage is helpful if you are considering or responding to a divorce. Georgia’s laws set specific requirements for starting a divorce, dividing marital property, and determining child custody and support. Knowing your rights and obligations can help you prepare.
Residency Requirements for Filing
To file for divorce in Georgia, at least one spouse must have been a resident of the state for at least six months right before filing.1Justia Law. Georgia Code § 19-5-2 (2024) – Residence Requirements; Venue Residency means Georgia is your true home, shown by things like a Georgia driver’s license, voter registration, or owning property here. If this six-month residency rule isn’t met, Georgia courts cannot grant the divorce.
After establishing residency, the divorce must be filed in the correct county. If the defendant (the spouse the divorce is filed against) lives in Georgia, the case is filed in the superior court of their county. If the defendant doesn’t live in Georgia, the petitioner (the spouse starting the divorce) can file in their own county. Filing in the wrong county can cause your case to be dismissed or moved, leading to delays.
Grounds for Divorce
Georgia law requires a legal reason (ground) for divorce. The state has no-fault and fault-based grounds. The most common is no-fault, meaning the marriage is irretrievably broken with no hope of reconciliation, and no blame is assigned.
Georgia also has twelve fault-based grounds, where one spouse must prove the other’s misconduct caused the marriage to fail. These include actions like adultery, desertion for at least a year, conviction of certain crimes, habitual intoxication or drug addiction, and cruel treatment.2Justia Law. Georgia Code § 19-5-3 (2024) – Grounds for Total Divorce Other grounds relate to conditions existing at the time of marriage, such as fraud or mental incapacity.
Filing on a fault-based ground can affect alimony but doesn’t automatically change how marital property is divided.
Division of Marital Property
Georgia uses equitable distribution to divide marital assets and debts in a divorce.3Justia Law. Georgia Code § 19-5-13 (2024) – Disposition of Property in Accordance With Verdict This means property acquired during the marriage is divided fairly, though not always equally, based on the case’s specifics.
Assets and debts are categorized as marital or separate. Marital property includes items acquired by either spouse during the marriage, like the home, cars, bank accounts, investments, and retirement funds. Gifts between spouses bought with marital funds are also marital property.
Separate property includes assets owned before marriage, or inheritances and gifts received individually by one spouse from someone else during the marriage. This remains the owner’s separate property. However, separate property can become marital if mixed with marital assets or if marital funds improve it. An increase in separate property value due to a spouse’s efforts or marital funds might also be considered marital.
Accurate valuation of assets and debts is needed. Some valuations are simple, but others, like real estate or businesses, may require professional appraisals, which courts can order.
To divide marital property fairly, courts consider factors like each spouse’s financial and non-financial contributions (such as homemaking), financial status, earning capacity, age, health, length of the marriage, prior marriages, and future needs. Misconduct that wasted assets may also be considered.
Marital debts are also divided fairly, considering who incurred the debt, its purpose, and each spouse’s ability to pay. If a divorce decree assigns a debt to one spouse, creditors might still pursue the other if their name is on the account. Spouses can agree on property division through negotiation or mediation; otherwise, a judge decides. The division is finalized in the divorce decree.
Spousal Support
Spousal support in Georgia, or alimony, is financial assistance from one spouse to the other when living separately. Alimony can be temporary during the divorce or a permanent award in the final decree. It’s not automatic; it depends on one spouse’s need and the other’s ability to pay.
Courts consider factors like the marital standard of living, length of the marriage, age and health of both spouses, financial resources, time needed for education or job training, and contributions to the marriage (like homemaking or career support).4Justia Law. Georgia Code § 19-6-5 (2022) – Factors in Determining Amount of Alimony; Effect of Remarriage on Obligations for Alimony
Georgia has several types of alimony. Temporary alimony supports a spouse during the divorce. Permanent alimony, which isn’t always for life, can be for a set time (periodic alimony) to help a spouse become self-sufficient, or as a lump-sum payment or property transfer.
Marital conduct can affect alimony. A spouse whose adultery or desertion caused the separation may be denied alimony. Such misconduct can prevent an alimony award but does not influence the amount if alimony is granted, nor does it affect property division.
Alimony can change or end. Permanent alimony terminates if the recipient remarries or if either party dies. Cohabitation by the recipient with a new partner in a romantic relationship can be grounds to modify alimony.5FindLaw. Georgia Code Title 19. Domestic Relations § 19-6-19 – Revision of Judgment for Permanent Alimony For divorces after December 31, 2018, alimony payments are not federally tax-deductible for the payer nor taxable income for the recipient.6Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 452, Alimony and Separate Maintenance
Child Custody
Child custody in Georgia divorces is decided based on the child’s best interest. Judges aim for arrangements that promote the child’s welfare and happiness, with no automatic preference for either parent or any specific type of custody.
Georgia law defines legal custody (decision-making rights for education, healthcare, etc.) and physical custody (where the child lives). Both can be sole or joint. In joint physical custody, one parent is often named the primary physical custodian for school purposes and may have final decision-making authority if a judge orders it.
To determine a child’s best interests, courts consider factors like emotional ties between parent and child, each parent’s ability to provide love and care, knowledge of the child’s needs, home environment safety, stability, and each parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent.7Justia Law. Georgia Code § 19-9-3 (2024) – Establishment and Review of Child Custody and Visitation Evidence of family violence, child abuse, or substance abuse is also reviewed.
A parenting plan is a required part of custody decisions.8Justia Law. Georgia Code § 19-9-1 (2024) – Parenting Plans; Requirements for Plan Parents must submit a plan, together or separately, detailing daily living arrangements, holiday and vacation schedules, transportation, and decision-making for joint legal custody. It also ensures both parents can access the child’s records.
A child’s preference can be considered, depending on their age and maturity. Children 14 or older can choose their custodial parent, and this choice is usually followed unless it’s not in their best interest.9FindLaw. Georgia Code Title 19. Domestic Relations § 19-9-3 For children aged 11-13, their wishes are considered but don’t automatically decide custody.
If a parent with primary physical custody plans to move, they must notify the other parent at least 30 days in advance. The other parent can object, and a court will decide if the move requires a custody change, based on the child’s best interest. In family violence cases, the court focuses on the safety of the child and victim parent, and may order supervised visits.
Child Support
Child support in Georgia is determined using guidelines based on an Income Shares Model. This model aims for children to receive a similar proportion of parental income as if their parents lived together, reflecting a shared duty of support.
The process starts by calculating each parent’s gross monthly income (earnings, bonuses, investments, benefits). Deductions like self-employment taxes and payments for other child support orders result in an adjusted gross income. Courts can assign an income level (impute income) to a parent who is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed.
Parents’ adjusted gross incomes are combined. This total is used with Georgia’s child support table to find the Basic Child Support Obligation (BCSO), covering essential expenses like housing and food. The BCSO is then divided proportionally based on each parent’s share of the combined income.
Costs for the child’s health insurance and work-related childcare are added to the BCSO before it’s divided. The parent paying these gets a credit. Courts can adjust the support amount if the standard calculation is unfair or not in the child’s best interest. Reasons for adjustment include very high or low parental income, significant parenting time by the non-custodial parent, or unusual child expenses. Adjustments require written court findings.
Child support continues until a child turns 18, dies, marries, or becomes emancipated. If a child over 18 is still in high school full-time, support can extend until graduation or age 20, whichever is first.10Georgia Commission on Child Support. Georgia Code § 19-6-15 – Child Support Guidelines (Effective Through Jan 1, 2026) Calculations are detailed in a Child Support Worksheet filed with the court.
Modification of Court Orders
After a divorce, circumstances can change, possibly requiring a modification of court orders for child custody, child support, or alimony. A party seeking modification must show a substantial and material change in circumstances since the original order.
For child custody, a material change affecting the child’s welfare must be shown. A child 14 or older can also choose to change their custodial parent, which can lead to a modification review. A parent’s relocation can also be a reason to seek a custody change.
Child support orders can be reviewed and modified if there’s a significant change in either parent’s income, job status, or the child’s needs. Georgia law allows a review of child support orders every two years without showing a substantial change, or sooner if a substantial change is proven.
Alimony can be modified if there’s a change in the financial situation of either spouse. Alimony can end if the recipient remarries and may be modified if the recipient cohabits with a new partner in a romantic relationship. Lump-sum alimony is not modifiable. Modification requests must be filed with the court.