How to File for Custody in PA Online: PACFile, Forms, and Fees

To file for custody in PA online, you use PACFile, the Unified Judicial System’s electronic filing portal, but only if the Court of Common Pleas in your county participates. Many Pennsylvania counties still require custody complaints to be filed in person at the prothonotary’s office, so the first practical step is confirming which system your county uses. Either way, you complete the same standardized forms, pay a county-set filing fee, and arrange service on the other party after the court accepts your filing.¹

Confirm Your County Accepts PACFile Custody Filings

PACFile is available at the Common Pleas level in some counties and not others. The Pennsylvania courts’ self-represented litigant page specifically directs filers to print the forms and take them to the courthouse, which tells you not to assume electronic filing is an option until you’ve checked.²

Before you spend time preparing PDFs and creating an account, call your county prothonotary or check the county Court of Common Pleas website and confirm two things: that custody complaints are accepted through PACFile, and that any local rules or cover sheets are downloaded and included.

Prepare the Forms Before You Log In

The forms are the same whether you file online or in person, and they come from the Unified Judicial System’s forms page. Filling them out correctly before you start uploading saves you from a rejection.³

Complaint for Custody

The Complaint for Custody is the main document. Under Rule 1915.3, it must follow the standard format in Rule 1915.15(a) and include identifying information for both parties and the children, along with the specific custody arrangement you want. The complaint is verified, meaning you sign under penalty of perjury that the facts are true. If you’re a putative father who isn’t yet legally established as the child’s father, you must also file a paternity claim and attach a copy to the complaint.⁴

The complaint asks for the child’s address history over the past five years and the adults at each address. This is jurisdictional information the court uses to confirm no other state has a competing claim under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. Pennsylvania has jurisdiction if the child has lived in the state for at least six consecutive months before filing.⁵

Criminal Record and Abuse History Verification

Rule 1915.3-2 requires this form to be filed at the same time as the complaint. You must disclose criminal convictions, guilty pleas, and no-contest pleas for a specified list of offenses, plus any child abuse history, for yourself and every member of your household. Skipping this form or leaving it incomplete can result in sanctions. If something in your background is unfavorable, disclose it — the court will react far worse to an omission discovered later than to the fact itself.⁶

Confidential Information Form

Pennsylvania courts require a separate Confidential Information Form to keep Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, and similar sensitive data out of the public record. It’s available on the Unified Judicial System website with the other custody forms.²

Save each completed form as a separate PDF. PACFile expects individual attachments so the clerk can identify each document.

Step-by-Step: Filing Through PACFile

Once your county is confirmed and your PDFs are ready, the online filing itself follows a fairly consistent flow.¹

Create a PACFile account on the UJS Web Portal using a valid email address and the required authentication credentials.
From your dashboard, select the option to initiate a new case and choose the Court of Common Pleas level for your county.
Enter the parties and case information the system prompts for, matching what appears on your complaint exactly.
Upload each form as its own PDF and label it (Complaint for Custody, Criminal Record/Abuse History Verification, Confidential Information Form, and any local forms your county requires).
Review the filing fee the system calculates and pay by credit card or electronic check through the secure payment gateway.
Save the preliminary confirmation number and watch your email for the clerk’s acceptance or rejection notice.

Payment produces a preliminary confirmation, not final acceptance. A clerk reviews the submission for procedural compliance and either accepts it or rejects it with a note about what to fix. Rejections often come from small issues like mismatched names between forms or a missing signature, so double-check the packet before you submit.

Filing Fees and Fee Waivers

Filing fees are set by each county and vary widely. Westmoreland County charges $176.50 for a custody complaint; Allegheny County charges $345.75. A petition to modify an existing custody order in Allegheny County costs $250. Fees change periodically, so check your county prothonotary’s current fee schedule before you pay.⁷

If you cannot afford the fee, petition to proceed In Forma Pauperis. If you receive public assistance from the Department of Human Services or SSI, file the IFP petition with proof of those benefits. If you don’t receive public assistance but still can’t pay, file the IFP petition together with a Poverty Affidavit describing your finances. If the court denies IFP, you have ten days to pay the filing fee or the complaint will be rejected.⁸

If Your County Doesn’t Accept Online Custody Filings

If PACFile isn’t an option in your county, print the completed forms and take them to the prothonotary’s office at your county courthouse. Bring the original plus at least two copies. The prothonotary stamps and files the original, returns a stamped copy to you, and you use the remaining copy for service on the other party.²

Serving the Other Party

Filing online doesn’t complete your obligation to notify the other parent. Nothing gets scheduled until service is completed and proof is on file.

Rule 1930.4 gives you 30 days to serve someone within Pennsylvania and 90 days to serve someone outside the state. If you can’t meet the deadline, file a request for an extension before it expires.⁹

You have two main options. You can send the complaint by both first-class regular mail and certified mail to the other party’s last known address, with delivery restricted to the addressee only and a return receipt requested. Or you can arrange personal service through a sheriff’s deputy or any competent adult who is not a party to the case. Sheriff’s fees vary by county; Adams County charges $150 and Lawrence County charges $100 per defendant, so confirm the cost in your area before requesting service.¹⁰

After service, file a Certificate of Service with the court. If you used certified mail, attach the signed return receipt or the electronic proof of delivery. Without proof of service, the court has no record that the other party was notified, and the case stops moving.⁹

What Happens After the Court Accepts Your Filing

Once the complaint is accepted and the other party has been served, Pennsylvania uses a tiered process that tries to resolve disputes without a full trial.

For cases involving partial or supervised custody, the court schedules an office conference with a conference officer. Both parties attend, and the conference can go forward without the respondent if they don’t show. If the parties agree, the officer drafts a proposed order, both sides sign, and it goes to a judge for approval, often without a hearing.¹¹

If no agreement is reached, the case moves to a hearing before a hearing officer, who must be a lawyer. That hearing is scheduled no more than 45 days after the conference. The hearing officer issues a written recommendation with a proposed order within ten days of the hearing. You have 20 days after receiving the report to file exceptions — specific, separately identified objections — or the recommended order becomes final.¹¹

A Note on Who Can File

Online filing helps only if you have standing. Either parent can file for any form of custody, and so can a person who stands in loco parentis to the child, meaning someone who has assumed a parental role in the child’s daily life. If you file as an in loco parentis party, the facts establishing that role belong in paragraph 9(a) of the complaint.⁴

Grandparents and great-grandparents can file in specific circumstances defined by statute, and other third parties face a higher bar that generally requires proving neither parent has any form of care and control of the child. If you fall outside the parent or in loco parentis categories, review the statute carefully before assuming you can proceed.¹²

1
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. PACFile
2
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Custody Proceedings
3
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Forms
4
Pennsylvania Code. Pennsylvania Code Rule 1915.3 – Commencement of Action
5
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes Title 23 Chapter 54 – Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement
6
Pennsylvania Code. Pennsylvania Code Rule 1915.3-2 – Criminal Record or Abuse History
7
Allegheny County. Family Division Fees
8
First Judicial District of Pennsylvania. Petition to Proceed In Forma Pauperis
9
Fifth Judicial District of Pennsylvania. Service of Court Documents
10
Pennsylvania Code. Pennsylvania Code Rule 1930.4 – Service of Original Process in Domestic Relations Matters
11
Pennsylvania Code. Pennsylvania Code Rule 1915.4-2 – Partial Custody Office Conference Hearing Record Exceptions Order
12
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes Title 23 Chapter 53 – Custody