How to modify child custody and parenting time in New Jersey

Sources last checked 4 November 2026. Information only, not legal advice.

New Jersey divorce kit How child support is calculated Alimony in New Jersey Legal aid in New Jersey

The short version

In New Jersey you ask the court to change a custody or parenting time order with a written motion. The court’s own packet says the court will change an order only if important facts or circumstances have changed from the time the order was issued. For a case with an FM docket number (divorce, civil union, domestic partnership), the court’s form packet is CN 10483, How to Ask the Court to Change/Enforce an Order in Your Case or Request Another Related Action in Your Case (Family Multipurpose Post-Judgment Motions). The copy we read is marked “Revised 08/06/2020”. The NJ Courts forms catalog, checked on 3 November 2026, links to this same file for CN 10483, so we found no newer revision there. Cases with an FD docket number use CN 11492 instead. For a case that begins with FV (domestic violence), the packet says to contact the Family Court in the county where the case was last heard.

The packet defines a substantial change as a significant change in your situation or circumstances affecting your case. On the Certification (Form B) you give the specific facts explaining why the court should change your existing custody order or your existing parenting time or visitation order. The packet’s sample wording for the Notice of Motion says the custody status should be changed “because it is in the best interest of my child”. The statute below says what the court looks at when it decides custody.

What the motion can ask for

Change the custody arrangements of a minor child. The packet says this applies if a judge in your case has already issued a custody order and you want to change that arrangement.
Change visitation or parenting time arrangements. The packet says you can ask the court to change a previously ordered visitation or parenting time arrangement.
Enforce litigants’ rights, if the other parent is not following an existing order. This includes custody and visitation orders.
Removal (relocation) of children. The packet says a custodial parent who wants to move out of New Jersey must have either the other parent’s written consent or a court order permitting the relocation. If the other parent does not consent, the packet says the custodial parent must file a motion seeking relocation.
A cross-motion. If the other parent files first, the packet says you can file your own motion responding to it.

On the Notice of Motion (Form A) you tick “Change Custody arrangements” or “Change Visitation arrangements”, or “Other” and say what you want. You then write what you are asking the court to do in numbered paragraphs. For a motion to change custody or parenting time you complete the Proposed Order (Form C). The Uniform Summary Support Order is for child support, not custody.

What else you file

Notice of Motion (Form A) and Certification in Support of Motion (Form B), signed and dated. Include a copy of all previous orders, plus any exhibits that prove what you say.
Proposed Order (Form C): the original and two copies, with a stamped self-addressed envelope.
Certification of Filing and Service (Form D) and Notice to Litigants (Form E). The packet says your motion could be dismissed if the motion papers do not include the Notice to Litigants.
Confidential Litigant Information Sheet (CN 10486). The packet says to complete it any time you file a pleading involving custody, parenting time or visitation, among other things.
Letter to the Clerk (Form G), as the first page of the packet, with a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
Case Information Statement (CN 10482), which the packet requires for an FM motion that asks for monetary relief such as an increase or decrease in support.

Court papers are public. The notice at the top of the forms says not to enter personal identifiers such as a Social Security number, driver’s license number, vehicle plate number, insurance policy number, active financial account number, active credit card number or military status information.

Where to file, cost and timing

Where: online through the Judiciary Electronic Document Submission (JEDS) system, or by mail to the Family Court that issued the order or last heard your case.
Fee: for FM cases the packet says to attach a $50 check or money order payable to Treasurer, State of New Jersey. It says not to send cash. It says FV case types do not require a filing fee.
Copies: the packet says to submit the original and one copy of all the forms, and 2 extra copies of the proposed order, and to keep one full copy for yourself.

What the statute says

N.J.S.A. 9:2-4 was last amended by P.L.2025, c.316. We read it in the Legislature’s unannotated statutes database on 3 November 2026 and compared it on 4 November 2026 with a full copy of the section supplied to us. It says:

Public policy. The welfare of minor children, physically and emotionally, is paramount. Continuing contact with both parents is encouraged where it is in the child’s best interest, decisions are made case by case, and the child’s expressed preferences are considered. Judicial decisions on custody and access shall promote “safety of children as a threshold issue”.
Orders the court may enter. The rights of both parents are equal. The order may be joint custody (with residential arrangements and consultation on major decisions about health, education and general welfare), sole custody to one parent with appropriate parenting time for the other, or any other arrangement in the child’s best interests.
The factors. The court considers, but is not limited to, 15 listed factors: the parents’ ability to agree, communicate and cooperate; willingness to accept custody and any history of unwillingness to allow parenting time not based on substantiated abuse; the child’s relationship with parents and siblings; domestic violence and child abuse history; the safety of the child, siblings and either parent; the child’s preference when of sufficient age and capacity; input from a State-licensed mental health professional treating the child; the child’s needs; stability of the home; quality and continuity of education; the parents’ fitness, including court-appointed assessments; geographical proximity; time spent with the child before and after separation; employment responsibilities; and the age and number of the children.
Unfitness. A parent is not deemed unfit unless that parent’s conduct has a substantial adverse effect on the child.
Guardian ad litem. For good cause and on its own motion the court may appoint a guardian ad litem, an attorney, or both for the child, and may split their fees between the parties.
Agreements and plans. The court orders any custody arrangement both parents agree to unless it is contrary to the child’s best interests. If they cannot agree, it may require each parent to submit a custody plan.
Reasons on the record. The court places on the record the factors that justify any arrangement the parents did not agree to. If it goes against the child’s expressed preferences, it must also state the factors that justify disregarding them.
Court-ordered therapy. No therapy unless there is generally accepted and scientifically valid proof of its safety, effectiveness and therapeutic value, and good cause is shown. No reunification program for an estranged child without the consent of both parties and a finding that the child is of sufficient age. Good-cause factors include each side’s view of the separation, the child’s age and maturity, willingness to take part, history of therapy, and any domestic violence or abuse. A child of sufficient age who asks to speak to the court is heard privately in chambers, and the record is sealed.
Limits on therapy. The statute does not allow therapy that cuts a child off from a safe, bonded parent who is not abusive, force or threats that risk the child’s safety, or undue coercion, verbal abuse or isolation. The court may not presume a child’s reluctance was caused by the other parent, and where there is a history of violence or abuse the offending party may not be given more custody to repair the relationship. Parents may still agree to therapy voluntarily.
Review. The Rutgers Institute for Families must report on the effect of the 2025 amendments within three years of their effective date.

N.J.S.A. 2A:34-23 says that while a matrimonial action is pending, or after a judgment of divorce or dissolution, the court may make orders about “the care, custody, education and maintenance of the children”, and that orders “may be revised and altered by the court from time to time as circumstances may require.” We did not read the published New Jersey decisions on modifying custody ourselves. A 2013 Appellate Division opinion, K.K. v. W.L. (Docket A-2410-12T1, decided 12 June 2013), as summarized on FindLaw, quotes Hand v. Hand, 391 N.J. Super. 102 (App. Div. 2007), for the rule that a party seeking modification “must demonstrate changed circumstances that affect the welfare of the children”. It also says, citing Faucett v. Vasquez, 411 N.J. Super. 108 (App. Div. 2009), that changes in custody should not be ordered without a full plenary hearing unless the situation is urgent, and that a hearing is needed when the papers show a substantial factual dispute about the children’s welfare. We saw this only through that summary, not through Hand, Beck v. Beck or Faucett themselves, and we do not know whether K.K. is published, so treat it as a pointer and not a full statement of the law.

Notice, service and hearing

Hearing date: pick a Friday date from the court’s calendars page on njcourts.gov, and put it on the Notice of Motion. The packet says the date might change depending on the judge’s schedule, and that the court will contact all parties if it does.
Deadlines: the other side or their lawyer must receive your papers at least 24 calendar days before the hearing. If you mail them, mail no later than 27 calendar days before.
Responses: Form E says a response or cross-motion must be filed 15 days (Thursday) before the return date, and answers to opposing affidavits and cross-motions not later than 8 days (Thursday) before. It says to add three days if you mail your papers.
How to serve: by regular and certified mail with return receipt requested; by a process server, courier or adult neutral third party with a notarized affidavit of service; or by personal delivery with the other party’s notarized Acknowledgement of Personal Service (Form H). Serve the other parent’s lawyer if they have one, and the other parent if they represent themselves. For FV cases the packet says not to serve personally and to contact the Family Court.
Oral argument: you say on Form A whether you want it. The packet says the judge decides whether to grant it. If it is not requested, the judge decides the motion on the papers.
Appeals and reconsideration: an appeal must be requested within 45 days after the judge decided the case and signed a judgment. The packet points to CN 10837 for appeals. A motion for reconsideration asks the court to reconsider a decision it rendered within 20 days of a signed court order.

Before you file

Court staff cannot give legal advice or change an order issued by a judge. The packet recommends getting a lawyer if you can, through legal services if you cannot afford one or a county bar lawyer referral service. See legal aid in New Jersey.
The packet is not for a case where your only request is that child support or alimony be paid through Probation. For money questions see child support in New Jersey, alimony in New Jersey and the New Jersey divorce kit.
Forms and deadlines change. Check the current packet on njcourts.gov before you file. The forms catalog links to the 08/06/2020 copy, but the catalog page shows no revision date, so check the packet itself before you file.

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