Court Fees and Fee Waivers

• Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs or an Appeal Bond (Bilingual)
• Guided Form

Do not use the Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs or an Appeal Bond if you have a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case. Get the Chapter 7 bankruptcy fee waiver form and additional information at What is Chapter 7 Bankruptcy?

Watch the video instructions below or see Lone Star Legal Aid's written instructions. You can also use the I cannot afford my court fees guide.

When you file a court case, you must usually pay a “filing fee.” There may be other court fees depending on your case. For example, you may need to pay for copies or pay to have the other side served with court papers. If a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs is approved, you do not have to pay for any costs charged by the court. This includes costs for issuance of service and copies.

Court fees vary by county. Contact the district clerk’s office in the county where you plan to file your court papers to learn the fees for your case.

If you don’t have enough money to pay the court fees, you can ask a judge to waive the fees.

Your fees should be waived if you can prove that any of the following are true:

• You get government benefits because you are poor (for example, food stamps, TANF, Medicaid, SSI, or public housing).
• You are represented by a free lawyer through a legal aid provider.
• You applied for a lawyer through a legal aid provider and were financially eligible for legal aid services, but the legal aid provider could not take your case.
• You do not have enough money to pay for your household’s basic needs and the court fees.

Read the law here: Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 145. 

To waive your court fees, you can either fill out the Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs or an Appeal Bond form or submit another sworn document that includes the same information. If you choose to submit a sworn document, it must be signed by a notary public. See General Affidavits and How to Draft Your Own Court  Documents for guidance if you need to create your own affidavit.

The form (or affidavit) must include information about your government benefits, household income, financial dependents, and expenses. If you have unusual expenses or emergencies, you can attach a separate page with that information. If you have privacy concerns and do not want to list your address, you can draft and submit a sworn document (affidavit) that does not include your address, but you should talk to the Family Violence Legal Line if you have safety concerns. It is important to provide complete and accurate information, and lying on the form is a crime. Submit the completed form or document at the clerk's office with your other court forms.

The clerk will review your Statement. The clerk may use the Federal Poverty Guidelines as a guide. If the clerk does not think you qualify for a fee waiver, the clerk will file a “contest” to ask a judge to decide. The other side could also file a contest.

If no one files a contest, the fees are waived.

If your court costs are waived, you do not have to pay for "any fee charged by the court or an officer of the court, including, but not limited to,

• filing fees,
• fees for issuance and service of process,
• fees for copies,
• fees for a court-appointed professional, and
• fees charged by the clerk or court reporter for preparation of the appellate record,"
• any other fees charged by the court or court officer.

See Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 145(a).

Filing Fees

When you file or appeal a case, there is a fee. If your costs are waived, you do not have to pay this fee.

Fees for Issuance and Service of Process

When you sue someone, they have a right to "service of process." Service of process is when the sheriff or constable gives your opponent a copy of the documents you filed at the start of your case. This is important because it formally tells your opponent there is a lawsuit. If your costs are waived, you do not have to pay for the sheriff or constable to serve your opponent. 

There will also be no fee for service by posting or publication in the event you cannot locate your opponent for in-person service. (If you use service by publication in your case, the clerk can publish notice on the state website instead of publishing in a newspaper. Newspaper fees may not be covered under a fee waiver.)

Note that if you choose to use a private process server instead of a sheriff or constable, you will be responsible for paying the private process server.

Fees for Copies

If your costs are waived, there is no fee to get copies of court documents that relate to your case. This includes certified copies. (Certified documents have the court’s stamp. The stamp shows that they are official and from the court.)

Fees for a Court-Appointed Professional

This includes the cost of hiring any professional that the court appoints to your case. For example, an amicus attorney or attorney ad litem. Section 57.002 of the Government Code also makes it clear that a fee waiver covers the cost of an interpreter. 

A fee waiver does not guarantee a free attorney. However, it does mean that you do not have to pay for any attorney that the court may appoint to your case.

Fees charged by the clerk or court reporter for preparation of the appellate record.
When you appeal a case, the court sends your case record to the higher court. There is usually a fee for this. If your costs are waived, you do not have to pay this fee.

Other Fees

If your costs are waived, you will not have to pay any other fees that the court or a court officer would otherwise charge.
 

No. The clerk must still let you file your case and have the other side served without making you pay.

You are not required to pay fees until

1. There is a hearing (you must be given 10 days' notice of the hearing) and
2. There is evidence presented, and the court finds that you can afford to pay costs.

See Rule 145(f) Notice; Hearing; Requirements of Order.

If your Statement is contested, you must return to the courthouse for a hearing. You must bring proof of your income (such as a copy of your pay stub) and proof of your expenses to the hearing. You must also bring proof of any government benefits you get.

A judge will review your evidence at the hearing and listen to your testimony. The judge will then decide if you can afford the court fees.

2023 Federal Poverty Guidelines

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (at 100%), January 2023, https://aspe.hhs.gov/topics/poverty-economic-mobility/poverty-guidelines and the Federal Register.

Note: Your income includes any household income you can use. Do not include your spouse’s income if it is not available to you.