Texas Small Claims Court Fee Waiver: How to File Without Paying Court Costs

Filing a small claims case in Texas typically costs $54 in court fees plus $65–$100 for constable service — roughly $120 to $155 total before you even get to the hearing. If you cannot afford those costs, TRCP Rule 502.3 allows you to file a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs and have the fees waived entirely.

What the Fee Waiver Covers

The Statement of Inability waives:

• Clerk filing fees
• Citation issuance fees
• Constable service of process fees
• Jury demand fees
• Appeal bonds

It does not cover:

• Private process server fees (if you choose a private server instead of a constable)
• Private mediator fees
• Costs of obtaining your own evidence (printing, copying, obtaining records)

Getting and Completing the Form

The form is standardized by the Texas Supreme Court. You can download it from the Texas Judicial Branch website (txcourts.gov), pick one up from any Justice Court clerk's office, or find it on TexasLawHelp.org.

The form asks for basic financial information:

• Your income sources and amounts
• Whether you receive government assistance (SNAP, Medicaid, TANF, SSI)
• Your monthly expenses
• The number of people in your household

If you currently receive means-tested government benefits, that is generally sufficient to qualify. The form includes a checkbox for this — if you check it, you may not need to provide detailed income and expense information.

Sign the form under penalty of perjury. The information you provide must be truthful — knowingly filing a false statement can result in sanctions.

Filing the Statement

Submit the Statement of Inability along with your Small Claims Petition. The clerk must accept your petition for filing even before the statement is reviewed — the court cannot reject a petition using the official Supreme Court fee waiver form as the basis for refusal.

If you are e-filing through eFileTexas, upload the statement as a separate document alongside your petition. The portal may still require you to select a payment method — select the fee waiver option if available, or contact the clerk if the portal does not have a clear waiver pathway.

What Happens If It Is Contested

The defendant may contest your statement within 7 days after the day the defendant's answer is due. If the statement says you receive a government entitlement based on indigence, the defendant may contest only whether that statement is true. The judge may also review the statement and hold a hearing even if the defendant does not contest it.

At the hearing, bring documentation supporting your financial claims:

• Recent pay stubs or proof of income
• Government benefit award letters
• Bank statements showing your account balance
• Bills and expense records

If the judge determines that you can afford the fees, the written order must state the reasons and set a time for payment. If you do not pay by that deadline, the case will be dismissed without prejudice.

If the judge finds that you cannot afford the fees, you proceed without paying the covered costs. The judge may review the statement even if the defendant does not contest it, so the statement is not automatically approved when no contest is filed.

Practical Considerations

The fee waiver addresses court costs; it does not decide who is right in the case. The Statement of Inability is part of the court record, and the defendant may contest it under Rule 502.3.

If you win your case, you can ask the judge to order the defendant to pay court costs as part of the judgment — even though you did not personally pay them. The court is entitled to recover the waived fees from the losing party.

The Texas Small Claims Filing Guide includes the full filing process from petition through hearing, with fee waiver instructions integrated into the timeline so you know exactly when and how to submit the statement.

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