How it works
- The fee. $405 to file a civil case in federal district court: $350 set by law plus a $55 administrative fee (fee schedule).
- The application. File a sworn statement of your income, assets and expenses with your complaint (28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)). It's signed under penalty of perjury, and a case can be dismissed if the court finds the statement of poverty untrue.
- If it's granted. You don't prepay the fee, the $55 administrative fee is waived, and the court orders the U.S. Marshals to serve the defendants (Rule 4(c)(3)).
- What it doesn't cover. Copies, witness fees and most other case costs. If you lose, the court can still order you to pay the other side's court costs in some cases (§ 1915(f)), and a court can order any plaintiff to pay the defendants' attorney's fees for claims it finds frivolous.
- Screening. The judge reviews an IFP complaint and must dismiss it if it's frivolous or malicious, fails to state a claim, or seeks money from someone immune from paying it (§ 1915(e)(2)). Many courts let you fix problems by amending.
- If it's denied. The order will say how long you have to pay the fee. If you don't pay in time, the case can be dismissed.
- If you're in prison. You still owe the $350, paid in installments from your account, and the “three strikes” rule can bar IFP status (§ 1915(b) and (g)).
Short form or long form?
There are two national forms: the short form, AO 240, and the long form, AO 239, which also asks about your spouse's income, two years of work history, itemized expenses and expected changes. Which one to use is up to the court, and sometimes the judge. Some courts use their own form. Here's what we found:
| Court | Fee waiver form |
|---|---|
| M.D. Fla. | Most judges require the long form (AO 239) in non-prisoner cases. |
| D.N.J. | National long form (AO 239). |
| N.D. Tex. | National long form (AO 239). |
| D. Ariz. | National long form (AO 239). |
| N.D. Ohio | Posts the national long form (AO 239). |
| D.R.I. | Short form (AO 240). |
| M.D. Tenn. | Labels the short form (AO 240) for prisoners only. |
| S.D.N.Y. | Its own application. |
| N.D. Cal. | Its own application for non-prisoners. |
| E.D. Pa. | Its own version (PAE AO 239). |
| N.D. Ga. | Its own Local Form 239 for non-prisoner cases. |
| E.D. Mich. | Its own version (MIED 240). |
| W.D. Wash. | Its own application and consent form. |
Not on the list? Check the court's forms page. The court finder links to it.
Filing your case? The filing packet builder walks through the AO 239 or AO 240 question by question and fills in the official form for you, along with the rest of your packet.
Worksheet: get your numbers together
Enter monthly amounts. The worksheet follows the long form's categories, so you can copy the numbers onto whichever form your court uses. It only adds things up. It can't tell you whether you'll qualify, because there's no single national income cutoff. The judge looks at your whole situation.
Where your numbers go
Nowhere. The worksheet runs in your browser and sends nothing to us. If you choose “Yes, save here,” your answers are kept in this browser on this device until you erase them or clear your browsing data. “Download my progress” saves a small file you can load later on any device.
What to have on hand
- Recent pay stubs, or benefit letters (Social Security, unemployment, public assistance)
- Bank statements for every account
- Your monthly bills: rent or mortgage, utilities, phone, insurance, car payment, credit cards
- Rough values of your car, home and anything else of value
- Your spouse's income, if your court uses the long form