Travel and relocation is the section of the parenting plan that gets the least attention until it suddenly becomes the only section that matters. Both parents need to agree on what counts as routine travel, what triggers notification, and what happens if one parent wants to move far enough to disrupt the schedule.
Travel provisions cover three tiers: routine in-state travel (vacations within driving distance, no overnight time loss for the other parent), out-of-state travel (notice required, sometimes consent), and international travel (always consent, passport custody, formal documentation). Relocation provisions cover what happens when one parent wants to move permanently — usually triggered by a distance threshold (50 or 100 miles, or out of state).
Most plans handle in-state travel with a simple notice clause — "the traveling parent will provide an itinerary 7 days in advance." Out-of-state travel typically requires the same plus written acknowledgment from the other parent. International travel requires both parents' consent (DS-3053 form for US passport applications), passport custody (which parent holds them, or an agreed neutral location), and an emergency contact protocol. Relocation triggers are the highest-stakes — most plans require 60-90 days' written notice and trigger automatic reconsideration of the parenting plan if the move exceeds the threshold distance. The non-moving parent typically has a window to object and request a court hearing.
When you draft this section of your parenting plan, make sure it covers each of these points. Skipping any of them is the most common reason this clause becomes a source of conflict later.
Start with the custody schedule — the foundation every other section builds on. Kidtime’s free wizard covers it in minutes.
It depends on what your parenting plan says. Most plans require notification (written, with itinerary, X days in advance) for out-of-state travel but not formal consent. Some plans require written consent. International travel almost always requires consent — both for legal reasons (the other parent has to sign DS-3053 for a US passport application or renewal under 16) and because international travel can complicate jurisdiction if anything goes wrong.
Three common patterns: (1) one parent holds the passports as part of their decision-making authority for travel; (2) passports are stored at an attorney's office or in a bank safety deposit box accessed jointly; (3) the parent traveling holds the passport during the trip and returns it within X days. The cleanest plans address this explicitly so the day-before-a-trip scramble doesn't become a custody fight.
Most parenting plans specify a distance — commonly 50 miles, 100 miles, or out-of-state — beyond which the moving parent must give formal written notice and the other parent has a window to object. The trigger varies by state: California uses 50 miles by default for its UCCJEA notice requirements; Florida uses any move that affects the time-sharing schedule; Texas has its own statute. Whatever your state's default, your parenting plan should specify your agreed-upon trigger.
If the move exceeds the plan's distance threshold, the moving parent serves formal written notice (usually 60-90 days in advance, with the new address, school information, and proposed schedule modification). The non-moving parent has a defined window to either consent or file an objection in court. If they object, the court holds a hearing on whether the move is in the children's best interests — most states use a multi-factor test (impact on the relationship with the non-moving parent, motive for moving, effect on the kids). The outcome can range from "move approved with modified schedule" to "move denied, parent who wants to move can move alone but kids stay" to "move approved and the kids' primary residence shifts."
Right of first refusal (sometimes called "first right of refusal custody") is a clause that says if a parent can't be with the kids for more than X hours during their parenting time, the other parent gets the option before a babysitter, grandparent, or daycare does.
Decision-making authority is the section of the parenting plan that says who decides what — medical care, school choice, religious upbringing, mental health treatment, extracurriculars. This is what "legal custody" actually means.
How and how often coparents communicate — and what they communicate about — is one of the most-fought-over parts of any parenting plan. Writing it down prevents 80% of those fights before they start.
The exchange section says exactly when, where, and how the kids move between households. The most common-sense thing to write down — and the most common source of fights when it isn't.
Kidtime's free schedule wizard covers the most-negotiated section of any plan.