Maybe you got the job offer of your life in another state. Maybe your ex just told you they’re taking the kids three hours away, and the ground feels like it’s shifting under you. Either way, you can’t just pack a bag. Florida has a specific law for moving with a child, and getting it wrong can cost you time with your kid.
What counts as a relocation
Under Florida law, a relocation isn’t just any move. It’s a change in the child’s main home of at least 50 miles, for at least 60 days in a row. Vacations and short trips don’t count. If your move clears that bar, the relocation statute applies, and you have to follow it.
Two ways it can go
You agree. If both parents (and anyone else with time-sharing) agree to the move, you can sign a written agreement that spells out the new time-sharing schedule and how the child gets back and forth. If there’s already a case on file, the court ratifies that agreement, usually without a hearing.
You don’t agree. If the other parent won’t sign off, the parent who wants to move has to file a petition to relocate and serve it on the other parent. From there, the other parent has 20 days to object in writing. Miss that window, and the law presumes the move is in the child’s best interest, and the court can allow it without a hearing. Object in time, and a judge decides.
When a judge has to decide, there’s no thumb on the scale either way. The court weighs a list of best-interest factors: the child’s relationship with each parent, the reason for the move, whether it actually improves life for the parent and child, and whether a workable long-distance schedule can keep the other parent in the child’s life.
One warning worth taking seriously
Do not move the child first and ask permission later. Relocating without following this process can land you in contempt, get the child ordered back, and stick you with the other side’s attorney’s fees. Judges remember it.
How we help
Relocation cases move fast, and the deadlines are unforgiving. Whether you’re the one who wants to move or the one trying to keep your kids close, we help you build the case the statute actually requires: the right paperwork, the right timeline, and an honest read on how a judge is likely to see it.
Want the deeper background first? Read our article on whether the primary parent can move out of state with a child.