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Wisconsin court costs guide
Filing for divorce in Wisconsin costs $184.50 in court filing fees. This guide covers the verified filing fees for divorce, name change, general civil cases, and probate in Wisconsin — every figure from the official schedule or statute named at the foot of the page.
| Wisconsin at a glance | Figure |
|---|---|
| Court | Circuit Court |
| Divorce filing fee | $184.50 with no support/maintenance request; $194.50 with a support request (§814.61(1)(a)&(b)), per the official Circuit Court Fee Tables (updated September 2, 2026; excluding the $35/party eFiling fee). |
| Name change filing fee | $164.50 — $75 + $68 court support surcharge + $21.50 justice information fee. |
| Name-change publication | Required — Required — §786.37(1): a class 3 notice under ch. 985 must run before petitioning (confidentiality exception at §786.37(4)). |
| General civil filing fee | $265.50 for a money judgment over $10,000; personal injury/tort $5,000–$10,000 is $147.50; a no-money-judgment filing is $164.50 (§814.61). |
| Probate filing fee | No flat fee — an inventory fee applies under §814.66(1)(a)2: $20 minimum, or 0.2% of the value over $10,000, payable at inventory filing. |
Filing fee + service + publication + certified copies is the real number. Stack all four for your state and procedure in the calculator.
Open the cost calculatorDivorce filing fees
$184.50 with no support/maintenance request; $194.50 with a support request (§814.61(1)(a)&(b)), per the official Circuit Court Fee Tables (updated September 2, 2026; excluding the $35/party eFiling fee).
See the national picture — including the states where the fee is set county by county — in our divorce filing cost guide.
Name change: fee and publication
$164.50 — $75 + $68 court support surcharge + $21.50 justice information fee.
Publication: Required — §786.37(1): a class 3 notice under ch. 985 must run before petitioning (confidentiality exception at §786.37(4)).
Publication is the step readers most often get wrong, because the rule changed recently in several states. The full state-by-state picture is in our name change cost guide.
General civil filing fees
$265.50 for a money judgment over $10,000; personal injury/tort $5,000–$10,000 is $147.50; a no-money-judgment filing is $164.50 (§814.61).
Probate court costs
No flat fee — an inventory fee applies under §814.66(1)(a)2: $20 minimum, or 0.2% of the value over $10,000, payable at inventory filing.
How filing works in Wisconsin
- Prepare the petition or complaint for the Circuit Court — most Wisconsin courts publish the forms on their self-help pages.
- File with the clerk and pay the filing fee above. Keep the stamped copy; it is your proof of filing.
- Arrange service of process on the other party where the case requires it (divorce and general civil cases do; a name change usually does not).
- Complete any publication the rules require — for a Wisconsin name change: required.
- Attend the hearing or, in uncontested matters, submit the proposed decree for the judge's signature.
Worked total: what a divorce filing costs
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Filing fee | $184.50 |
| Service of process (typical private process server) | $50–$100 |
| Estimated total to file | $234.50–$284.50 |
Filing fee plus service for one respondent, before any mediation, parenting-class, or copy charges described in the guides. Run your own combination in the cost calculator.
Sources: Wisconsin Court System — Circuit Court Fee Tables · Wis. Stat. §786.37 — Wisconsin Legislature. Researched October 2026 — confirm current figures with the court clerk.
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