You can wait to start writing a parenting agreement until you've nailed down details with the other parent, or you can create drafts earlier in the process. Ideally, parents should work together closely, rather than have one simply sign off at the end.
You can have a lawyer write your custody agreement — or if you want to save money, you can write it yourself. To do this easily, you can use the Custody X Change app.
Visualize your schedule. Get a written parenting plan. Calculate your parenting time.
Your parenting agreement should contain any information that you and the other parent need to raise your child after you separate.
The general parts of a parenting agreement are:
Your agreement should be personalized to fit the needs of your child and your unique situation. Each part of your agreement should work for your family and benefit your child.
You make a parenting time schedule to show when your child is with each parent.
A good schedule has the following:
Custody X Change guides you through the process of creating each part of your schedule. Then, it puts your schedule into a calendar so you know exactly what's going on.
Creating your schedule with Custody X Change allows you to:
Your agreement needs to explain how you and the other parent will make decisions for your child about medical care, dental care, education, religion, extracurricular activities, etc.
Here are some ways you can share or divide the decision-making responsibility:
When you make your agreement in Custody X Change, the "decision-making" section of the parenting plan template helps you decide what decision-making authority to select and how to explain it.
In most states, you need to file child support papers along with your parenting agreement. You may want to include child support information in your agreement so you have everything together.
Since support is often dependent on parenting time, you can use the parenting time calculator in Custody X Change to help you get the right information for your state's child support formula.
You should also come up with a plan for how you and the other parent will handle additional expenses for the child and put the information in your agreement. This includes expenses for school activities and other things that child support may not cover.
You can put additional parenting rules and provisions in your agreement to make the custody situation work better.
Some common provisions that parents include are:
Custody X Change has more than 140 provisions you can choose from, and you can make as many custom rules as you like. Think about common problems in your situation and come up with a provision that will help.
If your child has special needs or you have a unique situation, address that in your agreement. To get the best agreement, use the Custody X Change parenting plan template and then include any extra information that is relevant to your circumstances.
You may want to track your actual parenting time and keep a parenting journal after you create your agreement.
Tracking your visitation time lets you know how well the schedule is working and being followed. If there are frequent problems, you may need to modify the schedule. And if the actual parenting time is quite different then the scheduled time, your child support could change.
You can also keep a parenting journal to record information about your child. You can use these notes when you communicate with the other parent or if you have to go to court.
Custody X Change has actual-time tracking and journaling features that let you:
Check your state custody procedures to find out how to file your agreement. You may need to file specific papers, or you may be able to submit your own written plan.
Custody X Change can help you prepare these documents to file with the court:
If your state requires specific documents, you can write the information from Custody X Change onto the papers so you're assured the language is court-ready with no loopholes.
If your state lets you submit your own plan, you can submit your Custody X Change documents directly. You can print them or save them as a Microsoft Word or PDF document.
If you and the other parent agree on the plan, you can submit it to the court and the judge will almost always approve it. If you and the other parent do not cooperate on the agreement, you will go to trial.
After your agreement is approved by the judge, it becomes an official court order. This means that you and the other parent are legally obligated to follow it. If either parent doesn't, the court can enforce your agreement.
If you don't file your agreement with the court, the court cannot help you if the other parent violates it.
Creating a parenting agreement on your own can feel overwhelming. You have to address all possible situations, while using airtight legal language.
Use technology to take the guesswork out of the equation. The Custody X Change app walks you through each step of creating an agreement.
The result will be a professional document that demonstrates your competence as a parent and secures your child's future.
The easiest and most reliable way to make a parenting agreement is with Custody X Change.
Visualize your schedule. Get a written parenting plan. Calculate your parenting time.
