If you are searching for how "custody" works in Florida, the first thing to know is that the word does not appear in the current statute. Florida law uses parenting plans and time-sharing schedules instead, and understanding that shift matters because it changes what the forms and the court are actually asking for.
Key Takeaway: Fla. Stat. 61.13 requires a parenting plan and time-sharing schedule in every Florida case involving a minor child, in place of the older terms custody and visitation. Grandparent visitation rights are narrow, limited to specific situations involving a missing, deceased, or incapacitated parent, or a parent convicted of a violent offense.
What Is a Florida Time-Sharing Plan? (Florida Doesn't Use "Custody")
Florida's governing statute, Fla. Stat. 61.13, titled "Support of children; parenting and time-sharing; powers of court," requires the court to determine all matters relating to parenting and time-sharing for each minor child of the parties.
Instead of a single custody award, Florida requires a parenting plan, which is the document that governs how parents will share and be responsible for the daily tasks of raising a child. The time-sharing schedule is one part of that plan, specifying the actual time the child spends with each parent, including holidays and school breaks.
What Are Florida's Parenting Time Guidelines?
Fla. Stat. 61.13(2)(b) requires a parenting plan to designate shared or sole parental responsibility, include a time-sharing schedule with holidays and vacations, designate who is responsible for health care decisions, school-related matters (including which address is used for school boundaries), and other activities, and describe how the parents will communicate with the child.
Unless the parents agree otherwise in writing, the plan also designates where the child will be exchanged between parents; if there is a risk of harm during exchanges, the court can require a neutral, safe exchange location. Florida does not publish a single numeric guideline that dictates a specific split (like 50/50 or every-other-weekend) for every family. The schedule is built around the child's best interest, based on the statutory factors the court weighs when parents cannot agree.
Long Distance Time-Sharing and Relocation
A time-sharing schedule written for two parents living near each other does not automatically work when one parent moves far away. Florida addresses that situation with a separate statute, Fla. Stat. 61.13001, covering relocation with a child. Generally, a parent who wants to relocate a substantial distance with a child needs either the other parent's written agreement to the move and a revised time-sharing schedule, or the court's permission, sought before the move rather than after. Long distance time-sharing plans, once relocation is addressed, commonly rely more heavily on extended school breaks and holidays, plus the electronic communication provisions Fla. Stat. 61.13 allows parenting plans to include, such as video calls, rather than frequent in-person exchanges.
What Are Grandparent Visitation Rights in Florida?
Florida's grandparent visitation law is narrow by design. Fla. Stat. 752.011 allows a grandparent to petition for court-ordered visitation only when the child's parents are deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state, or when one parent is deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state and the other parent has been convicted of a felony or an offense of violence that poses a substantial threat to the child's health or welfare.
Even within that narrow group of cases, the court holds a preliminary hearing first to decide whether the grandparent has made a threshold showing of parental unfitness or significant harm to the child; without that showing, the petition is dismissed. If the threshold showing is made, the court can refer the matter to family mediation before a final hearing, and then has to find by clear and convincing evidence that a parent is unfit or the child would suffer significant harm, that visitation serves the child's best interest, and that it will not materially harm the parent-child relationship.
Outside these specific circumstances, Florida does not give grandparents a general legal right to court-ordered visitation over a fit parent's objection.
What Is the Right of First Refusal in a Parenting Plan?
"Right of first refusal" is a term commonly used in Florida parenting plans, though it is not a phrase defined or required by Fla. Stat. 61.13 itself. In practice, it refers to a provision giving one parent the option to care for the child during the other parent's time-sharing period, before that parent uses paid child care or another caregiver for an extended absence. Because the statute leaves parenting plan content open to what serves the child's best interest and what the parents agree to, whether a right of first refusal clause appears in your plan, and how it is defined, depends on your agreement or your circuit's standard parenting plan forms. Confirm with the court or a family law attorney whether this is something your case's parenting plan should address.
What Can You Do If the Other Parent Isn't Following the Plan?
A parenting plan and time-sharing schedule are court orders once approved, and a parent who does not follow them can be brought back to court through a motion to enforce. Separately, Fla. Stat. 61.13(3) lists factors a court considers when parental responsibility or time-sharing comes back before it, including each parent's demonstrated capacity and willingness to facilitate a close relationship between the child and the other parent, and to follow the time-sharing schedule. Repeated, documented failures to follow the plan can factor into a later modification request, in addition to any enforcement remedy the court orders for the violations themselves.
- Using the word "custody" on Florida forms instead of parenting plan and time-sharing; Florida's forms and statute use the current terms
- Assuming grandparents in Florida have a general visitation right; the statute limits it to specific, narrow circumstances
- Moving out of state or a significant distance with a child before addressing relocation under Fla. Stat. 61.13001
- Assuming right of first refusal is automatically part of every Florida parenting plan; confirm what your plan actually includes
- Letting repeated schedule violations go undocumented if you may need to ask the court to enforce or modify later
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Florida use the term custody?
No. Florida law replaced the terms 'custody' and 'visitation' with 'parenting plan' and 'time-sharing schedule.' Fla. Stat. 61.13 requires every case involving a minor child to include a parenting plan approved by, or created by, the court, which sets the time-sharing schedule specifying how much time the child spends with each parent.
What is a time-sharing schedule in Florida?
It is the part of a parenting plan that specifies the actual time each parent spends with the child, including regular schedules, holidays, and school breaks. Fla. Stat. 61.13(2)(b) requires a parenting plan to include time-sharing arrangements that specify this time, along with how the parents will communicate and who is responsible for decisions like health care and school matters.
What are grandparent visitation rights in Florida?
Very limited. Fla. Stat. 752.011 allows a grandparent to petition for visitation only when both parents are deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state, or when one parent is deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state and the other parent has been convicted of a felony or violent offense that poses a substantial threat to the child. There is no general grandparent visitation right in Florida outside these narrow circumstances.
What is the right of first refusal in a Florida parenting plan?
It is a provision some Florida parenting plans include, giving one parent the option to care for the child before the other parent uses paid child care or another caregiver during their own time-sharing period. Florida's time-sharing statute does not use this exact term or require it by default. Whether your parenting plan includes it depends on what you and the other parent agree to, or what the court orders in your case; ask the court or a family law attorney whether your circuit's parenting plan forms address it.
What can I do if the other parent isn't following the parenting plan?
You can file a motion asking the court to enforce the existing parenting plan or time-sharing schedule. A parent who repeatedly fails to follow the schedule can face consequences the court orders, and, separately, Fla. Stat. 61.13(3) lets a court consider a demonstrated capacity and willingness to follow the time-sharing schedule when it later reviews or modifies parental responsibility.
Can a Florida time-sharing schedule be changed for a long distance move?
Yes, but relocation with a child has its own statute and its own process, Fla. Stat. 61.13001, separate from a routine parenting plan modification. Generally, a parent who wants to relocate a significant distance with a child has to either get the other parent's written agreement or ask the court for permission before moving, rather than moving first and addressing time-sharing afterward.
How Virdix Helps
If you and the other parent already agree on a parenting plan and time-sharing schedule, Virdix asks about the schedule, decision-making, and communication terms you have agreed to, and prepares the matching Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure parenting plan form as part of your uncontested case. Virdix does not handle contested custody disputes, grandparent visitation petitions, or relocation cases. Start free. Pay once, only when your documents are ready.
Start Your Florida Case Free →
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Virdix is a document preparation service, not a law firm, and does not provide legal advice. Statutes and procedures can change; always confirm current information with the Florida Courts, the Florida Statutes, or your circuit court clerk. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed Florida attorney.
Sources: Chapter 61, Florida Statutes, Section 61.13 and Section 61.13001 (leg.state.fl.us), Chapter 752, Florida Statutes, Section 752.011, Grandparent Visitation (leg.state.fl.us)