Long Distance Parenting Plans

A long distance parenting plan has all of the information of a standard parenting plan, plus specifics about the long distance situation.

Here are some extra things to include in your parenting plan if you and the other parent live a long way from each other.

Long distance visitation schedule

A long distance visitation schedule shows the primary residence of the child and when the child visits the other parent. The amount of visitation depends on the needs of your child and what works for the parents.

Your plan must describe your schedule in legal terms. Your schedule should include regular visits, holidays and vacation time.

Communication information

Because visitation may be infrequent when parents live a long distance from each other, your plan can include information about how your child will stay connected to the nonresidential parent.

Provisions about the child and parent relationship can include allowing the child to have unmonitored communication through email and electronic communication and scheduled times for phone and video calls.

Provisions about exchanges by flight

If your child has to fly to visit a parent, put airline transportation provisions in your plan.

These provisions could include:

• Having the child take direct flights until a certain age
• Having the child fly accompanied by an airline employee or someone else
• Naming the airports that the child can fly out of and into
• Having the parents notify each other when they purchase airline tickets, drop the child off at the airport, and pick up the child from the airport
• Explaining which parent is in charge of making the travel arrangements
• Designating how the parents will pay for airline tickets

Driving transportation provisions

If the parents drive a long distance for visitation, you may want to include provisions about transportation in your plan.

Provisions about driving could include:

• Who is responsible for driving the child for visitation
• Where parents meet for the exchange when they both drive halfway
• How parents divide and share the costs of driving
• Who is allowed to drive the child for the visit

Parent visitation provisions

Your plan can include rules and guidelines that both parents will follow when the parent who lives a long distance away comes to visit the child.

Parent visitation provisions could include:

• Where the visiting parent will stay
• Where the child will spend the night when the other parent comes to visit
• How many days in advance the visiting parent must notify the other parent of the visit
• How the parenting time works when the parent comes to visit
• How the parents divide and share the costs of travel for the visiting parent

The easiest way to make a long distance parenting plan

Creating a parenting plan can feel overwhelming, especially when parents live far apart.

Use technology to take guesswork out of the equation. The Custody X Change app walks you through each step of creating a comprehensive parenting plan.

In the app, choose from more than 140 popular parenting provisions in more than 25 categories.

For provisions specific to long distance parents, focus on these categories: "communication with children," "exchanges by flight," "expenses and money" and "transportation."

The result will be a professional-quality document that supports co-parenting at any distance.