VTCourtForms: Asking to Waive Court Filing and Service Fees

• VTCourtForms is made for Vermonters who are not represented by a lawyer. If you do have a lawyer, contact your lawyer before you start this.
• Do you need this fee waiver form? Before you begin, check to be sure you actually need to pay a court filing fee. When you ask the court for a Relief from Abuse (RFA) order, there are no court fees. It is free.
• Here is the full list of forms that have no filing fee:
  • Request for Relief from Abuse
  • Request for Abuse Prevention for a Vulnerable Adult
  • Request for Order Against Stalking
  • Request for Order Against Sexual Assault
  • Request for Extreme Risk Protection Order
  • Abusive Litigation
• You do not pay a fee to file an “answer” in a court case. However, there is a fee to file a “counterclaim” in some cases (such as eviction or small claims), but not others (such as divorce or parentage).
• Who can get their fees waived? The Vermont Judiciary says the court can waive your filing fee and service costs if:
  • you get any kind of public assistance, or
  • your gross income is at or below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines, or
  • the court finds you can't pay the fee without expending resources needed to support you and your dependents.
• Visit the Vermont Judiciary website to learn more about filing and service fees and asking to file court papers for free in Vermont.

To use this tool, you will need to know:

• the name and address of any employer you might have
• any public assistance that you get (like 3SquaresVT food help, ReachUp help for families, SSI, etc.) and the amount, and
• information about the court case for which you want a fee waiver. (You can find this information on other court papers you have about this case. If you are starting a court action – like filing for divorce – you won’t have a case number or docket number yet.)

If you get public assistance, that’s all you need. If you don’t get public assistance, you will also need to know:

• your income – If you work or get unemployment, have those paystubs on hand. If you get child support, have that information on hand. If you are self-employed, have your IRS Schedule C on hand or have your income and business expenses from the last 12 months.
• your expenses (like rent, utilities, insurance payments, child care, etc.) – looking back over the last 12 months
• the amount of money you have in the bank and on hand
• the value of your vehicle/car, real estate/home, and any other major things you might own, and
• if filling out form on behalf of a minor or incompetent adult, you need that person’s information.

• At the end you will get a chance to preview your form and make changes if you need to.
• Then you can download, save, print and/or email a PDF of your completed form.
• You will also get an instruction sheet about how to get the completed form to the court – this includes emailing them or dropping them off at court.
• This tool does not file forms for you. You will need to follow the instructions to get them to the court.