Custody & parenting ยท Relocation
St. Louis Child Relocation Lawyer
Moving with a child when the other parent has custody or parenting time is governed by a specific Missouri statute with a 60-day notice rule and a 30-day window to object. Miss a step and the move can be blocked or reversed. We represent St. Louis parents on both sides: the one who needs to move and the one who wants the child to stay.
The first question most people ask
Can I move with my child in Missouri?
Not without following Section 452.377 of the Missouri Revised Statutes. Any parent with custody or parenting time rights who intends to change the child’s principal residence for 90 days or more has to give the other parent written notice, and the other parent has the right to object in court. There is no mileage threshold: a move across town triggers the statute the same as a move across the country.
The 60-day notice
Notice has to be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, at least 60 days before the move, and it must include:
- The new address, including the specific residence if known
- The home telephone number of the new residence, if known
- The date of the intended move
- A brief statement of the reasons for the move
- A proposed revised parenting plan that works with the new location
Every Missouri custody judgment includes this notice language. A notice that is late, incomplete, or sent the wrong way does not start the clock, and moving without proper notice can be grounds for a change of custody and for an order returning the child. See a guide to relocating with a minor child after divorce in Missouri.
The 30-day objection
The parent who receives notice has 30 days to file a motion asking the court to prevent the relocation. If no motion is filed within 30 days, the relocating parent may move and the court will generally adopt the proposed revised plan. If a motion is filed, the move is on hold until the court decides, and the court can enter an order preventing it in the meantime.
At the hearing, the parent who wants to move carries the burden on both questions: that the move is proposed in good faith, and that it is in the child’s best interests. Good faith means a real reason, such as a job, a spouse, family support, or housing, rather than a desire to put distance between the child and the other parent. Best interests is weighed using the same custody factors, with the loss of the other parent’s regular contact squarely in view.
Related reading: relocating after divorce when you share custody.
Both sides of a relocation case
What persuades a Missouri court, on either side
Relocation cases are among the hardest in family court because someone’s relationship with the child changes no matter what the judge decides. Preparation is what separates the outcomes.
If you want to move
Courts respond to specifics. A written job offer, the school the child would attend, the home, the nearby family, and a proposed parenting plan that gives the other parent real time: longer summers and school breaks, travel cost sharing, regular video calls. A parent who has encouraged the other parent’s relationship with the child and who proposes a generous plan is far more credible than one who treats the move as settled. Send the notice correctly and early, and do not move first.
If you want the child to stay
File the objection within 30 days; waiting forfeits the right. Then document what the child would lose: your actual parenting time and involvement, the child’s school, activities, friends, extended family, and medical providers here. If you can show the move’s stated reason is thin, or that your relationship with the child cannot be maintained from a distance, the court may deny it. Courts also consider whether you would take primary custody if the other parent moves anyway.
Moves within the St. Louis area
The notice rule applies to every change of principal residence, including a move from the city to the county or across the river. Most local moves are not contested, but the notice still has to go out, and the parenting plan may need adjusting for a new school district or a longer exchange drive. We handle these as paperwork rather than litigation, which keeps them that way.
Moving out of state
Missouri keeps jurisdiction over the custody order after a child moves, generally for as long as one parent still lives here, under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. The revised parenting plan should address which state’s court handles future disputes, how transportation is paid for, and how holidays are divided when the distance makes alternating weekends impossible.
Relocation and modification
A relocation case often becomes a modification case. If the move is allowed, the plan is rewritten; if it is denied and the parent moves anyway, custody may shift to the parent who stayed. See your parental rights in a Missouri custody modification.
How it works
Notice, objection, hearing
The statute sets the sequence and the deadlines. The work is in what goes into each step.
1
Notice, done right
We draft the notice with every required element and a revised parenting plan that is actually workable, and send it certified at least 60 days out. For the objecting parent, we calendar the 30 days the day the notice arrives.
2
Motion and negotiation
If an objection is filed, the case is set for hearing. Many relocation disputes settle on a revised plan before trial, sometimes in mediation, once both parents see what the court is likely to weigh.
3
Hearing and revised judgment
The judge hears evidence on good faith and best interests and either permits the move with a new plan or denies it. A Guardian ad Litem may be appointed to report on the child’s interests in a contested case.
Relocation plans are often mediated. When both parents accept that a move is happening, mediation can produce a long-distance parenting plan that neither side would get from a judge. David is on the St. Louis County Family Court’s Court Approved Mediator List.
Common questions
Relocation questions we hear most
How far can I move without permission in Missouri?
There is no distance exception. Missouri’s statute covers any change of the child’s principal residence lasting 90 days or more, so even a move to the next suburb requires the 60-day written notice. What changes with distance is how likely the other parent is to object and how much the parenting plan has to change.
What happens if the other parent does not respond to my notice?
If the notice was complete and properly served and no motion is filed within 30 days, you may relocate. Keep the certified mail receipt. It is still wise to have the revised parenting plan entered as a court order so the new schedule is enforceable.
Can I move first and sort it out later?
Do not. Moving without proper notice violates the custody judgment. The court can order the child returned, can treat the move as a factor supporting a change of custody to the other parent, and can award the other parent attorney fees. The 60 days exist to let the court decide before the child’s life is uprooted.
Does the other parent have to agree?
No. The other parent can object, but the decision is the court’s. Written agreement from the other parent, with a revised plan, is the easiest path and can be submitted to the court as a consent modification without a contested hearing.
What if we have joint custody?
The notice and objection rules are the same, but the stakes are higher because an equal or near-equal schedule cannot survive a long-distance move. The court has to decide which parent the child will primarily live with, and the moving parent has to show the move serves the child even at the cost of the current arrangement.
Sixty days is not much time. Use it well.
If you are planning a move with your child, or you have just received a relocation notice, call or reach out online to schedule a confidential consultation. The deadlines run from the date of notice, so sooner is better.
This page provides general information and is not legal advice. Every case is different, and outcomes depend on specific facts and circumstances. Part of our custody and parenting practice. See all family law practice areas.