After a long and stressful divorce, finally receiving that piece of paper with the judge’s declaration that you are no longer married can be a sigh of relief. However, if you have children, you will never truly be able to be completely free from your ex-spouse. Even after you have settled everything, come up with your parenting plan, and received your divorce decree, you may still have to work out certain issues with your spouse in the future. For example, there are restrictions on where and how far a parent can move with their child without notifying the other parent and the court of the move. If you notify your child’s other parent of an impending move, and they object to your planned relocation, you will then have to take extra steps to ensure you comply with state laws.
Notify the Other Parent and Try to Work Out an Agreement
Before you do anything, you are required to notify the other parent if your move qualifies as a relocation. Your move will be considered a relocation if you are moving more than 25 miles away from your current home in Cook, Kane, Lake, DuPage, McHenry, or Will County, or if you are moving to a different state.
If you notify your ex-spouse, and they do not object to your relocation, you can then negotiate a new parenting plan that can be approved and put into place by the court. If you are having trouble coming to an agreement, you will be ordered to attend mediation to attempt to work this out, though an agreement cannot always be reached.
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