Can I take my child on vacation if I only have visitation rights in Dallas?

Noncustodial parents (either a possessory conservator or a non-primary managing conservator in Texas law lingo) have rights to visitation during certain school breaks and vacations. During these periods of possession, the parent may take the child on a vacation, though the child custody order may contain certain child visitation restrictions.

Be sure to review your custody order and any limitations regarding where you may take the children. You may have to notify the other parent if you are taking the children to another state, for example.

Taking a summer vacation? Here’s what you need to know! 

A noncustodial parent may take 30 days with the child over the summer vacation. The 30-day period begins a minimum of one day after school closes for the break, and ends not more than seven days before the end of school break. 

Those 30 days do not have to be consecutive. You can decide to separate those 30 days into two different periods. For example, if you wish to take the child on a 10-day vacation, you might choose to take the 10 days at the beginning of the summer and then take another 20 days with the child later in the summer.

The noncustodial parent must make known the dates he wishes to have the children during the summer by April 1. If he fails to do so, the default period is July 1 to July 31. But this only applies if the child lives within 100 miles of the noncustodial parent.

What happens when a parent lives more than 100 miles from the child? 

If you live more than 100 miles away from your child and the custodial parent, then you will have a period of 42 days over the summer break. He also has the children during spring break. In this case too, you will have to designate your request to have the child over the summer vacation by April 1.

What if I want to modify my child visitation schedule?

Making modifications to the child custody schedule is challenging, but not impossible. Parents may find the need to make modifications to the schedule if one of them relocates, if the circumstances of a parent or child changes (health conditions, etc.), or for other reasons.

If you have any changes that you wish to make to your child custody order or visitation schedule, speak with a family lawyer in Dallas. Call 214-265-7630 to set up an appointment to speak with attorney Julie Johnson. You can also fill out our online contact form.