CasewellThe law in plain words
"When the parents cannot agree to divide or share parental rights and responsibilities, the court shall award [them] primarily or solely to one parent." 15 V.S.A. § 665(a)
Put simply, a Vermont judge cannot impose shared custody on parents who disagree. Parents who agree can share, if the judge finds the plan serves the child.
The same section tells the judge to follow the child's best interests. A separate policy statement, 15 V.S.A. § 650, favors "maximum continuing physical and emotional contact with both parents." That policy gives way when contact is likely to cause physical or significant emotional harm.
Wondering who usually ends up with custody? Our page on the chances of getting full custody in Vermont explains what the figures can and cannot show.
Parental rights and responsibilities: Vermont's custody terms
Vermont statutes rarely say "custody." They use the terms defined in 15 V.S.A. § 664.
- Parental rights and responsibilities: the whole bundle. It covers where the child lives, school, health care, religion, travel and upbringing.
- Legal responsibility: the power to make major decisions, such as education, medical and dental care, religion and travel.
- Physical responsibility: routine daily care and control of the child, including where the child lives.
- Parent-child contact: the visiting time of a parent who does not hold physical responsibility. People also call it parent-time.
Each kind of responsibility can be held by one parent, shared, or divided between them. For other laws, the parent with physical responsibility counts as the custodial parent.
"Full custody" and "sole custody" are not statutory terms. People usually mean sole legal and sole physical responsibility. Even then, the court's self-help page says the other parent can generally still see school and medical records.
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Vermont judges weigh the child's bond with the primary care provider. Keep a dated record of the care you give.
- Meals, bedtimes, school mornings and doctor visits you handled
- Each contact visit, kept, late, missed or refused
- Any safety concern, with police reports or abuse orders
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Is Vermont a 50/50 state?
No. Vermont law contains no presumption of equal time or of shared parental rights.
- Sharing needs consent: the court can order shared or divided rights, but only when both parents agree to share.
- Agreements get weight: under 15 V.S.A. § 666, a parents' agreement to share is presumed to serve the child.
- The judge still checks: the court must refuse an agreement that is not in the child's interests, or was not made voluntarily.
- Without agreement: the court awards the rights primarily or solely to one parent.
That does not shrink the other parent's time to nothing. Parent-child contact is set separately, and state policy favors frequent contact with both parents.
Lawmakers have tried to change this. H.369 in 2025 and S.304 in 2026 proposed a rebuttable presumption favoring shared rights. Both stayed in committee and did not become law. For household figures, see full and 50/50 custody chances in Vermont.
The best-interest factors
Under 15 V.S.A. § 665(b), the judge must consider at least these nine factors:
- the child's relationship with each parent, and each parent's ability to give love, affection and guidance
- each parent's ability to provide food, clothing, medical care, other material needs and a safe home
- each parent's ability to meet the child's present and future developmental needs
- how well the child has adjusted to home, school and community, and the likely effect of a change
- each parent's willingness to foster a positive relationship and frequent contact with the other parent, unless contact would cause harm
- the quality of the child's relationship with the primary care provider, where suited to the child's age and development
- the child's relationship with anyone else who may significantly affect the child
- the parents' ability to communicate, cooperate and decide together, where rights will be shared or divided
- any evidence of abuse, and its impact on the child and on the child's bond with the abusing parent
The court's self-help page says the primary care provider factor is often the most important. Its weight depends on the child's age, and other factors can outweigh it.
The judge may not prefer a parent because of either parent's sex, the child's sex or a parent's money. Conduct unrelated to these factors counts only if it affects the parent's relationship with the child.
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Your child's preference
Vermont sets no age at which a child decides. The child's wishes are not one of the nine listed factors, though the list is a minimum, not a limit.
Testifying is tightly controlled by 15 V.S.A. § 594.
- A lawyer first: the court must appoint an attorney for the child before calling the child as a witness.
- A strict test: the testimony must be necessary, worth more than the harm to the child, and unavailable any other way.
- In chambers: if the child is called as a witness, the judge can question them in chambers. A court reporter must record it.
- Other routes: the court may appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the child's interests. Expert evaluation reports are admissible if the expert can be cross-examined.
In practice, the judge usually learns about a child's views through these people, not the witness stand.
Mothers' and fathers' rights
Vermont law is neutral between mothers and fathers. Section 665 bars any preference based on the sex of a parent or child.
For married parents, parentage usually follows from the marriage. Under 15C V.S.A. § 401, a person is presumed to be a parent if:
- Married at birth: they were married to the birth parent when the child was born.
- Recent divorce: the child was born within 300 days after the marriage ended.
- Married later: they married after the birth, claimed parentage and were named on the birth certificate.
- Raised the child: they lived with the child for the first two years and openly treated the child as theirs.
The presumption is rebuttable, meaning it can be challenged. A challenge usually has to start within two years of the birth.
Once parentage is settled, a father's custody case rests on the same factors as a mother's.
If you were never married
The statutes we reviewed name no default custodian when parents never married. Either legal parent can ask the court for orders.
- Acknowledgment of parentage: both parents can sign this form at the hospital, a child support office or court. A witness must sign too.
- Its effect: once filed with the Department of Health, it equals a court ruling on parentage under 15C V.S.A. § 305.
- Changing your mind: a signer can rescind it within 60 days, under 15C V.S.A. § 307. A court hearing about the child can end that window sooner.
- Later challenges: after that, a signer needs fraud, duress, coercion, a threat or a material mistake. The deadline is two years, with clear and convincing evidence.
- Birth certificate: an acknowledgment filed within six months of birth adds the parent's name to it.
- Court route: either parent, the child or the Office of Child Support can start a parentage case.
A parentage case can also settle parental rights, contact and child support. Final orders follow the same section 665 rules as a divorce.
Domestic violence
Vermont has no presumption against custody for an abusive parent. Abuse is instead factor nine of 15 V.S.A. § 665, weighed with the rest.
- What counts: abuse includes physical harm, threats, stalking and sexual assault. Since July 1, 2024, it also includes coercive controlling behavior.
- Coercive control means: a pattern of isolating, monitoring, threatening or controlling someone's money or movements, among other conduct.
- Contact after abuse: under 15 V.S.A. § 665a, a recent conviction or abuse finding limits contact. The court may allow it only if the child and abused parent can be kept safe.
- The time window: that rule covers a domestic assault conviction against the other parent, or an abuse finding, within the prior 10 years.
- Safety terms: the court can order supervised visits, protected exchanges, a treatment program, sobriety or no overnights.
- Conception by assault: a court can grant sole rights and deny all contact where the child was conceived through sexual assault. The standard is clear and convincing evidence.
Vermont also lets a court restrict abusive litigation. That covers repeat court filings an abuser uses to harass a former partner.
Relief from abuse orders
Vermont's protection orders are called relief from abuse orders. They come from 15 V.S.A. § 1103, and there is no filing fee.
- Who can file: a family or household member, for themselves or their children. That includes people who lived together, dated or had a sexual relationship.
- Emergency order: under 15 V.S.A. § 1104, a judge can act without notice on a sworn affidavit showing abuse.
- Temporary custody: if children face immediate danger of physical or emotional harm, the judge can award them temporarily to the filing parent or others.
- After hours: a request can be made at night, on weekends and on holidays.
- Hearing: the other side gets a hearing within 14 days of the emergency order.
- Standard: the filing parent must show abuse by a preponderance of the evidence, meaning more likely than not.
- Final order: it can award temporary parental rights and set contact with safety conditions. Child support can last up to three months.
- How long: the order runs for a fixed period. The court can extend it without new abuse.
Custody terms in an abuse order end when it expires. For lasting orders, you need a divorce or parentage case.
Emergency and temporary orders
Temporary custody orders usually come inside a pending case.
- Married parents: under 15 V.S.A. § 594a, either spouse can ask for temporary relief once a divorce is filed. The court must rule within 14 days of the hearing.
- Unmarried parents: in a parentage case, 15C V.S.A. § 111 lets the court make interim orders on parental rights.
- Urgent requests: the court's Motion for Emergency Relief (400-00845) goes with another motion. It asks the court to hear that motion quickly.
- Unsafe visits: the parent the child lives with can seek an ex parte order suspending visits. That needs domestic violence or a reasonable fear for safety. A hearing follows within 14 days.
- By agreement: at the case manager conference, parents can agree to temporary orders the court then signs.
When there is danger from abuse, a relief from abuse order is usually the fastest path. A Vermont court can also act briefly to protect a child present in the state.
Moving with your child
Vermont has no statute that sets a relocation notice period. A planned move is handled as a request to change the order under 15 V.S.A. § 668.
The Vermont Supreme Court set the test in Hawkes v. Spence (2005). Rogers v. Parrish (2007) restated it:
- Threshold: a move counts as a substantial change only if it significantly impairs either parent's ability to exercise their parenting role.
- What the judge weighs: how much care each parent has given, and for how long. Distance, the length of the move and other visit options count too.
- Real care counts: the court looks at care a parent actually gave, not just time the order allowed.
- Then best interests: if that threshold is met, the judge reconsiders parental rights under the section 665 factors.
Where parents truly shared care, a distant move often leads to a custody change. Read your order too, since many plans set their own notice terms. The court's self-help page notes that a judge may require mediation before a move.
Moving to a neighboring state? Its custody rules may differ. Read our guides for Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York.
Changing custody
Under 15 V.S.A. § 668, a parent can ask the court to change parental rights or contact.
- The test: a "real, substantial, and unanticipated change of circumstances," and a change that serves the child.
- Agreed orders too: the same test applies whether the order came from a trial or a signed agreement.
- No waiting period: the statute sets no minimum time before a request.
- The forms: file a Motion to Modify Parental Rights and Responsibilities and Parent-Child Contact (400-00843).
- Permanent orders: some orders based on conception through sexual assault cannot be changed at all.
If the other parent withholds court-ordered time, 15 V.S.A. § 668a applies. The court must hold a hearing within 30 days of service.
- Make-up time: enforcement includes restoring the time wrongly denied, unless that would harm the child.
- Other remedies: contempt, legal fees, or a change to the contact order.
- Support is separate: unpaid support does not justify refusing visits, and refused visits do not justify stopping support.
Parenting plans, classes and mediation
Parents who agree file a written parenting plan. Under 15 V.S.A. § 666, a complete agreement must cover at least:
- Living arrangements and parent-child contact
- Education, medical, dental and health care
- Travel arrangements
- How you will communicate about the child's welfare
- A way to settle disputes, if rights are shared or divided
The court's form for this is the Agreement on Parental Rights and Responsibilities (400-00825). We found no statewide default schedule in the statutes.
- Parenting course: in a divorce with minor children, both parents must attend Helping Children Cope With Separation and Divorce (COPE).
- Case manager conference: usually four to eight weeks after filing. A case manager, not a judge, helps you sort out what you agree on.
- Mediation: the statutes do not require it in every case, but a judge may ask you to try mediation. Some orders require it before any change.
- Help with the cost: the court's Family Mediation Program pays part of the fee for people earning up to $50,000 a year.
- Parent coordination: the court can refer high-conflict parents to a coordinator, who reports agreements or recommendations.
- For the child: the court may appoint a guardian ad litem or an attorney for the child.
Grandparents, other caregivers and an absent parent
Vermont gives grandparents limited visiting rights in 15 V.S.A. § 1011.
- Inside a custody case: a grandparent can ask in writing for visits. The court may grant them if they serve the child.
- Limits: the grandparent does not become a party and cannot appeal the decision.
- Their own case: a grandparent can sue for visits if a parent died, cannot decide, or abandoned the child.
- The factors: 15 V.S.A. § 1013 lists eight, including emotional ties and the child's reasonable preference.
- Adoption: a visiting order ends on adoption, unless a stepparent, grandparent or other relative adopts.
A caregiver who raised a child may ask to be named a de facto parent. Under 15C V.S.A. § 501, that takes clear and convincing evidence of a parental bond.
No Vermont statute we found ends a parent's rights after a set time away. Only a court can terminate them. In an adoption, 15A V.S.A. § 3-504 allows termination after six months without exercising parental responsibility.
How to file for custody in Vermont
Vermont must usually be the child's home state. Under 15 V.S.A. § 1071, that means the child lived here with a parent for six months before filing.
- Choose the case. Married parents file for divorce or legal separation. Unmarried parents file a parentage case.
- Fill in the forms. Start with the Information Sheet (800) and Statement of Confidential Information (400-00849).
- Add the complaint. Use the Complaint for Divorce with children (400-00836) or the Complaint to Establish Parentage (400-00817).
- Self-represented? Add a Notice of Appearance for Self-Represented Litigant (400-00831). A divorce also needs the Department of Health record form.
- File with the Family Division of the Superior Court where you or the other parent lives. You can file in person, by mail or by email.
- Service. In cases with children, the court arranges service. You pay the service fee unless it is waived.
- The answer. The other parent has 21 days after service to respond.
If you agree on everything, add your signed agreement and a child support worksheet. The court's parentage page lists every form. Divorce also needs six months' residency to file and one year before the final hearing.
How much does it cost to file for custody in Vermont?
Fees are set by 32 V.S.A. § 1431.
| Filing | Fee |
|---|---|
| Divorce or legal separation, contested | $295 |
| Divorce with a full agreement, at least one resident | $90 |
| Parentage case, contested | $120 |
| Parentage case with a full agreement | $35 |
| Motion to modify parental rights or contact | $120, or $35 if agreed |
| Motion to enforce a final order | $90 |
| Registering an out-of-state custody order | $90 |
| Relief from abuse order | Free |
Motions filed before the final judgment carry no fee. The court's 2025 divorce checklist lists service fees of $3 by first-class mail or $18.50 by certified mail.
These are the listed fees, last checked October 29, 2026. Confirm them with the clerk before filing. If you cannot afford them, file an Application to Waive Filing Fees and Service Costs (600-00228).
What changed recently
- June 18, 2026: Act 165 broadened one ground for an abuse order. It now covers some convicted abusers under Corrections supervision, not only those in prison.
- 2026: S.304 proposed a presumption favoring shared parental rights. It stayed in the Senate Judiciary Committee and did not pass.
- July 1, 2025: Act 46 widened the stalking definition to cover tracking someone through a location device or app. Stalking counts as abuse for these orders.
- 2025: H.369 proposed a similar shared-rights presumption. It never left the House Judiciary Committee.
- July 1, 2024: coercive controlling behavior became a form of abuse under 15 V.S.A. § 1101.
- July 1, 2024: a parent can now cite abuse or coercion to contest some presumed or de facto parent claims.
The core custody section, 15 V.S.A. § 665, was last amended in 2018. Section 668 was last amended in 2014. Last checked October 29, 2026. Laws can change, so check before you rely on this.
Building the record
Vermont judges ask who has been the child's primary care provider, and whether each parent supports contact with the other. Both questions turn on dates and details.
Note each school morning, doctor visit and exchange as it happens. Casewell keeps those notes and the messages behind them together, so a lawyer can read a clear timeline. Before recording a call, read Vermont's rules on recording a co-parent.
Before you record a call or a handover, check whether you can record your co-parent in Vermont.
A Vermont custody record
Vermont judges weigh primary care, support for contact and the child's adjustment. Keep these items current so your facts are ready.
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Is Vermont a 50/50 custody state?
No. Vermont has no presumption of equal time or shared custody. A judge can order shared parental rights only when both parents agree to share.
Who has custody of a child if the parents are not married in Vermont?
Vermont statutes name no default custodian for unmarried parents. Once parentage is established, either parent can file a parentage case asking the court to set parental rights and contact.
What rights do fathers have in Vermont?
The same as mothers. Vermont law bars any preference based on a parent's sex. An unmarried father needs parentage established, by a signed acknowledgment or a court order.
How long does a father have to be absent to lose his rights in Vermont?
No set absence ends a parent's rights automatically. Only a court can terminate them. In an adoption, six months without exercising parental responsibility can be grounds.
At what age can a child choose which parent to live with in Vermont?
Vermont sets no age, and the child does not decide. A judge may hear a child's views through a guardian ad litem or an attorney for the child. If a child testifies, even in chambers, a court reporter records it.
How do I get an emergency custody order in Vermont?
If abuse puts a child in immediate danger, a relief from abuse order can award temporary custody without notice. It is free, and a hearing follows within 14 days.
Sources
This page summarizes Vermont statutes, 2024 to 2026 session laws, Vermont Supreme Court decisions and Judiciary guidance, as of October 2026. It explains the law in general terms and is not legal advice.
- 15 V.S.A. § 665 — rights and responsibilities order; best interests checked
- 15 V.S.A. § 664 — definitions of parental rights and parent-child contact checked
- 15 V.S.A. § 668 — modification of order checked
- 15 V.S.A. § 665a — parent-child contact where there is domestic violence checked
- 15 V.S.A. § 1104 — emergency relief from abuse checked
- 15C V.S.A. § 307 — rescinding an acknowledgment of parentage checked
- Rogers v. Parrish, 2007 VT 35 (applying Hawkes v. Spence) checked
- 32 V.S.A. § 1431 — Superior Court filing fees checked
- Vermont Judiciary — parental rights and responsibilities and parent-child contact checked
- Vermont Judiciary — parentage cases and forms checked