Fee Waiver & Indigency Screener Guide for Tennessee
Tennessee fee-waiver and indigency rules
This source-backed guide covers Tennessee civil fee-waiver and indigency procedure. It does not certify criminal appointed-counsel standards, criminal-cost relief, general service rules, or non-civil fee waivers unless a quoted source below says so.
Tennessee — Fee Waiver & Indigency
Tennessee uses a discretionary test — there's no bright-line statutory threshold. A judge or clerk evaluates the factors below and rules based on the full financial and situational picture. The calculator cannot compute a specific answer here, but these are the factors a court will weigh.
What the court will weigh
Gather documentation for the factors that apply to your situation — judges grant waivers more readily when the affidavit is specific.
Income from all sources
Gross household income including wages, self-employment, unemployment, disability, social security, pensions, and regular gifts. The court looks at ongoing income, not one-time amounts.
Assets and liquid resources
Cash on hand, bank balances, vehicles beyond one primary car, and non-retirement investments. Primary residence and a single primary vehicle are usually excluded.
E.g. a homeowner with $500 in checking and a ten-year-old car generally still qualifies if income is low.
Dependents and household size
Number of people supported by the household income — typically children under 18, adults with disabilities, and elderly parents you financially support.
Medical and care expenses
Out-of-pocket medical bills, ongoing treatment costs, and care expenses for dependents with special needs. Often the single biggest factor tipping a close case toward eligibility.
Housing and necessary monthly expenses
Rent or mortgage, utilities, transportation to work, groceries, and essential childcare. Courts assess whether income after these commitments leaves enough to pay filing fees without hardship.
Public assistance status
Current receipt of SNAP, SSI, TANF, Medicaid, SSP, or similar means-tested benefits. In 24 jurisdictions, this alone qualifies you automatically — check the "receives public assistance" option above.
Debts and legal obligations
Existing court-ordered payments (child support, alimony, restitution) and ongoing debts that constrain disposable income.
Employment and earning stability
Recently laid off, seasonally employed, or temporarily unable to work? Courts consider near-term financial trajectory, not just current income.
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Civil filing without prepayment
Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 29 states that a Tennessee resident may commence a civil action without security for costs and without paying litigation taxes by filing the statutory oath of poverty and the required affidavit of indigency.
Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 29. Pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. § 20-12-127(a), any civil action may be commenced by a resident of this state without giving security as required by law for costs and without payment of litigation taxes due by filing the oath of poverty set out in the statute and by filing an affidavit of indigency as prescribed by court rule. Pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. § 20-12-127(a)(2), the uniform civil affidavit of indigency document appended to this rule is hereby adopted and shall be used in all such civil cases. The uniform civil affidavit of indigency shall also be used in all cases commenced pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. § 20-12-128 (pertaining to the pauper's oath in actions filed by guardians), § 20-12-129 (actions filed by next friends of infants) and § 20-12-130 (actions filed by personal representatives).
Court-approved filing-fee postponement form
The Tennessee Supreme Court-approved civil form tells applicants who cannot afford filing fees or costs at the time of filing to complete the form and file it with their case documents, and it gives the judge an approval option allowing filing without paying filing fees or costs at that time.
Tennessee Supreme Court approved form: Request to Postpone Filing Fees and Order. If you cannot afford to pay the filing fees or costs at this time, fill out this form. And file it with your completed case documents. Even if the judge approves this form, you may have to pay court costs at the end of the case. I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of Tennessee that: The information I have provided is true, correct, and complete. I cannot afford to pay the filing fees at this time. The court approves this Request and the applicant may file without paying the filing fees or costs at this time.
Not certified by this page
- This receipt does not certify criminal appointed-counsel indigency under Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 13.
- This receipt does not certify service-of-process rules, appeal-bond waiver details, inmate-claim rules, fee amounts, or any fixed income threshold beyond the Rule 29 civil-affidavit framework.
Use the calculator
DocketMath's fee-waiver tool can organize filing-fee and indigency facts once you identify the controlling jurisdiction, case type, and court rule. Use the source panel for the verified source-backed rule.
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Sources
All sources are official primary law published by www.tncourts.gov.
Corroboration method: Official Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 29 states the civil pauper-oath and uniform-affidavit rule; the Tennessee Supreme Court-approved civil form independently confirms the practical filing-fee postponement process and court approval language.
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