How to Get a Restraining Order in Minnesota: OFP or HRO Steps

To get a restraining order in Minnesota, you file a written petition in district court asking a judge to order someone to stop contacting or coming near you. The state uses two separate orders depending on your relationship with that person: an Order for Protection (OFP) if the person is a family or household member, and a Harassment Restraining Order (HRO) for anyone else. Both start with the same basic process, and both can produce a temporary order the same day you file if the judge finds you’re in immediate danger.

Which Order Applies to Your Situation

Filing under the wrong statute can get your petition dismissed, so this is the first decision to get right.

Order for Protection

An OFP is governed by the Domestic Abuse Act and is available when the person who harmed or threatened you is a spouse or former spouse, a parent or child, a blood relative, someone you live with or used to live with, someone you share a child with, an alleged father if you are pregnant, or a current or former romantic or sexual partner.¹

The conduct that qualifies as domestic abuse includes physical harm or assault, behavior that makes you fear imminent physical harm, terroristic threats, criminal sexual conduct, and interference with an emergency call.¹

Harassment Restraining Order

If the person has no domestic connection to you, an HRO is the right order. It covers neighbors, coworkers, acquaintances, strangers, and anyone else who doesn’t fit an OFP category. Harassment under the statute means a single incident of physical or sexual assault, a single incident of sharing someone’s private sexual images without consent, repeated unwanted acts that seriously affect your safety, security, or privacy (persistent phone calls, following, showing up after being told to stop), targeted residential picketing, or a pattern of attending public events after being told your presence is harassing.²

If you’re unsure which applies, the self-help center at any Minnesota courthouse can point you in the right direction before you file.

What to Put in the Petition

Petition forms are available on the Minnesota Judicial Branch website or at any district courthouse.³ The form asks for your information and the respondent’s full name, date of birth, and address. If you don’t have exact details, provide as much as you know.

The heart of the petition is the sworn affidavit describing what happened. Write in chronological order. For each incident, include the date, time, location, exactly what the respondent said or did, and how it affected you. Specifics beat characterizations. “On March 3, he came to my workplace and refused to leave after I asked him twice” gives a judge something concrete; “he keeps showing up places” does not. If you have text messages, photos of injuries, or police reports, mention them in the affidavit and plan to bring copies.

Where to File and What It Costs

You file the completed petition with the court administrator in the district court of the county where you live, where the respondent lives, or where the abuse or harassment happened. Minnesota accepts electronic filing through its eFile and eServe system, and self-represented filers can also file in person or by mail.⁴

An OFP has no filing fee, and the sheriff serves the papers at no cost.¹ An HRO carries a $310 filing fee that may be waived for certain types of harassment. If you can’t afford it, you can apply for a fee waiver (an In Forma Pauperis application), which asks the court to consider your financial situation.⁵

The Ex Parte Review and Temporary Order

Once you file, a judge reviews your petition without the respondent present. This is called an ex parte review. If the judge finds you’re in immediate danger, the court can issue a temporary order the same day. A temporary OFP can restrain the respondent from contacting you, exclude them from your shared home, and grant you temporary custody of your children.¹ A temporary HRO can prohibit contact and bar the respondent from specified locations.²

The temporary order takes effect once it has been legally served on the respondent, and it stays in place until the full hearing.

Getting the Respondent Served

The respondent must be formally notified through legal service. You cannot deliver the papers yourself since you are a party. For an OFP, the sheriff of any Minnesota county where the respondent lives or can be found serves the papers at no charge; other law enforcement or corrections officers can also serve at no cost.¹ For an HRO, service can be made by the sheriff or by any person at least 18 years old who is not a party to the case.⁶

If the respondent can’t be found despite reasonable efforts, the court can authorize alternative methods, including service by publication. If the hearing gets rescheduled because service wasn’t completed in time, any temporary order already in place stays active until the new hearing date.¹

What Happens at the Hearing

Timing depends on which order you filed and whether a temporary order issued.

For an OFP with no ex parte order, the court schedules a hearing within 14 days. If a temporary ex parte order was granted and you’re asking for additional relief beyond it, the hearing must happen within seven days. If the respondent requests a hearing after receiving the temporary order, the court schedules it within ten days of the request.¹ Either party can request a continuance of up to five days for good cause, and the temporary order remains in effect throughout.

For an HRO, a temporary restraining order stays in effect until the hearing, and the statute does not set a fixed scheduling deadline. Either party can request a hearing, and that request must be made within 20 days of service.²

At an OFP hearing, the respondent has three choices: admit the abuse and agree to the order, deny the abuse but still agree to the order without a finding of domestic abuse, or deny the abuse and demand a full evidentiary hearing where both sides present evidence and testimony. If the respondent was properly served and doesn’t appear, the court can issue a permanent order by default. If you don’t appear, the temporary order gets dismissed. You can represent yourself or bring an attorney. Bring copies of any supporting evidence, such as text messages, photos, medical records, or police reports.

What the Court Can Order

If the court grants a full OFP, the available relief is broad. A judge can:¹

Prohibit all contact in person, by phone, mail, email, text, through a third party, or any other method
Exclude the respondent from a shared home and a surrounding area specified in the order
Award you temporary custody of your children, with safety as the primary consideration, and restrict or deny the respondent’s parenting time if needed
Order temporary child or spousal support
Bar the respondent from approaching your workplace
Award temporary use of property and prevent either party from hiding or disposing of assets
Require counseling or a domestic abuse program for the respondent

An HRO provides narrower relief focused on prohibiting contact and requiring the respondent to stay away from specific locations such as your home, workplace, or school.²

Firearms Surrender

When a court issues an OFP that includes a finding that the respondent is a credible threat to your physical safety, or that prohibits the respondent from using or threatening physical force against you, the order must also prohibit the respondent from possessing firearms for the entire time the order is in effect. The respondent has three business days to transfer any firearms to a licensed dealer, a law enforcement agency, or a third party who can legally receive them.¹ Failure to surrender firearms is itself a violation of the order.

How Long the Order Lasts

A final OFP lasts up to two years, though the court can set a longer period if it decides that’s appropriate. You can apply for an extension when it nears expiration. If the respondent has violated a prior or existing order at least twice, or if you’ve had two or more prior orders against the same person, the court can extend protection for up to 50 years.¹

An HRO follows the same structure: up to two years in most cases, and up to 50 years when there’s a history of repeated violations or multiple prior orders against the same respondent. A respondent subject to a 50-year HRO can petition to modify or remove it after five years, but only by proving that circumstances have materially changed and the original reasons no longer apply.²

Penalties if the Order Is Violated

A first violation of either order is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.¹ Penalties escalate with the respondent’s history. For HRO violations, a gross misdemeanor applies if the respondent has a prior domestic violence-related conviction within the past ten years. A felony charge, carrying up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine, applies when the respondent has three or more prior domestic violence convictions in ten years, or possesses a dangerous weapon during the violation.²

If someone violates your order, call 911. You can also file an affidavit with the court describing the violation, and the court can order the respondent to appear and show cause why they should not be held in contempt.

Keeping Your Address Confidential

Filing a protective order normally creates a public court record, which is a serious concern if you’re trying to keep someone from finding you. Minnesota’s Safe at Home program, run by the Secretary of State’s office, gives qualifying participants a substitute mailing address (a PO Box) they can use as their legal address for all purposes. All public and private entities in Minnesota must accept the substitute address, and participants cannot be required to disclose their actual home address.⁷ The Secretary of State forwards first-class mail to your real address, which stays sealed in their records.

To qualify, you must be a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, or reasonably fear for your safety. You must live in Minnesota or intend to move there within 60 days. Registered sex offenders are not eligible. The program is governed by Minnesota Statutes Chapter 5B.⁸

Free Legal Help

You do not need a lawyer to file for an OFP or HRO, and many people handle the process themselves. Free legal help is available if you want it. Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services (1-877-696-6529) assists with protection orders. Standpoint (1-800-313-2666) offers attorneys and advocates for domestic and sexual violence survivors statewide. In the Twin Cities metro, Tubman Legal Services covers Hennepin, Ramsey, and Washington counties. Many courthouses also have self-help centers where staff can help you understand the forms, though they cannot give legal advice or tell you what to write in your affidavit.

1
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 518B.01 – Domestic Abuse Act
2
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.748 – Harassment Restraining Order
3
Minnesota Judicial Branch. Domestic Abuse and Harassment
4
Minnesota Judicial Branch. File in a District Trial Court
5
Minnesota Judicial Branch. District Court Fees
6
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Court Rules – Civil Procedure – Rule 4 Service
7
Minnesota Secretary of State. About Safe at Home
8
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code Chapter 5B – Safe at Home Program