Washington State Parenting Plan: Filing, Modifying, and Enforcing

A Washington State parenting plan has to meet requirements set by statute before a judge will sign it: six mandatory components on the form, a residential schedule that fits the criteria in RCW 26.09.187, proper filing with the Superior Court, and formal service on the other parent. Miss any of those pieces and the plan gets rejected or the case stalls. Once signed, the plan is a court order, and violating it can lead to contempt sanctions, fines, and jail time.¹

The Six Components Every Plan Must Contain

Washington law requires every permanent parenting plan to address six items:²

A residential schedule setting out the specific days and times the child spends with each parent, including school weeks, weekends, holidays, and summer breaks.
Decision-making authority for education, non-emergency healthcare, and religious upbringing, allocated to one parent, shared, or split by topic.
A dispute resolution process other than going straight to court. Options include mediation, arbitration, or a parenting coordinator. Court action remains available for emergencies and for enforcing or modifying the plan.
A statement confirming each parent can make routine daily decisions while the child is in their care.
A statement that each parent may make emergency health or safety decisions when the child is physically with them.
A statement that both parents have access to the child’s education and health care records.

The last three sound like common sense, and the form itself contains checkboxes for them, but a judge will reject a plan that leaves them out. The real drafting work is in the first three.

How the Residential Schedule Is Built

If the parents cannot agree on a residential schedule, the judge builds one using RCW 26.09.187. The statute directs courts to give the greatest weight to the strength, nature, and stability of the child’s relationship with each parent. After that primary factor, the court considers:³

Any arrangements the parents have already agreed to, provided they were made knowingly and voluntarily.
Each parent’s past performance of parenting functions and potential for future involvement.
The child’s emotional and developmental needs.
The child’s relationships with siblings, other important adults, school, and community.
The child’s own preferences, if the child is mature enough to express a reasoned, independent opinion.
Each parent’s employment schedule, with reasonable accommodations to fit those schedules.

Washington does not presume a 50/50 split. A parent who handled most of the daily caregiving before the separation often gets more residential time in the final order. Geography matters too, because frequent exchanges that disrupt school or activities weigh against equal-time arrangements.³

Allocating Decision-Making Authority

Decision-making authority covers three specific areas: education, non-emergency healthcare, and religious upbringing. The court can give sole authority to one parent, require joint authority, or split it by topic. In deciding, the judge looks at each parent’s history of involvement in those decisions, whether the parents can actually cooperate, and whether the distance between the parents makes joint decisions impractical.³

Joint decision-making only works when both parents can communicate without constant conflict. When a parent has engaged in domestic violence, child abuse, or abandonment, the court will not order mutual decision-making, and it will not require any dispute resolution process other than court action.⁴ Parents who do share authority should build a tiebreaker into the dispute resolution clause, because a deadlock over school enrollment or a medical procedure can stall a child’s life for months.

Restrictions on a Parent’s Residential Time

Washington splits restrictions into mandatory and discretionary categories. The distinction matters: mandatory findings leave the judge no choice, while discretionary ones give the court room to weigh evidence.⁴

Mandatory Restrictions

A parent’s residential time must be limited if the court finds any of the following:

Prolonged abandonment or a substantial refusal to perform parenting functions
Physical, sexual, or a pattern of emotional abuse of the child
A history of domestic violence, or an assault causing serious bodily harm or the fear of it
A conviction for a qualifying sex offense

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These restrictions also apply if the parent lives with someone who has engaged in abuse or domestic violence, or who has been convicted of a qualifying sex offense. A parent classified as a sexual predator faces an outright bar on contact.⁵

Discretionary Restrictions

The court may also limit time or decision-making authority based on neglect, long-term emotional or physical impairment that interferes with parenting, a persistent lack of involvement, or the potential for future abuse or domestic violence. Common outcomes include supervised visitation, limits on overnight stays, or a requirement that the parent complete treatment such as substance abuse counseling or a domestic violence intervention program before restrictions can be reconsidered.⁴

Temporary Parenting Plans While the Case Is Pending

A permanent plan is not entered until the divorce or separation case concludes, which can take months. Either parent can ask for a temporary plan in the meantime.⁶

The requesting parent files a proposed temporary plan and a sworn declaration covering:

Where and with whom the child has lived for the past twelve months
How each parent has handled daily caregiving during that period
Both parents’ current work and childcare schedules
Any safety concerns under the restriction statutes

The other parent may file a competing proposal. At the hearing, the judge enters a temporary order with a schedule, a temporary residence for the child, temporary decision-making authority, and provisions for temporary child support. If no decision-making authority is assigned in the temporary order, each parent handles only day-to-day and emergency decisions while the child is in their care.⁶

A temporary plan expires when the final plan is signed or the case is dismissed. It does not automatically become the permanent plan, but judges often look at how the temporary arrangement worked when crafting the final version.

The Form, and What to Have Ready Before You Fill It Out

Washington uses form FL All Family 140 for both temporary and permanent parenting plans. The current version (dated July 2025) is a free download from the Washington Courts website.⁷ The form requires at least one residential schedule attachment (labeled R, A, or B). A judge should not sign a plan that is missing this attachment.

Before starting the form, gather:

Your child’s legal name and date of birth
The school district calendar, including holidays, breaks, and teacher workdays
Each parent’s home address and work schedule
Specific exchange locations and transportation arrangements (who drives, who pays)
Your position on decision-making authority for education, healthcare, and religious upbringing
Your preferred dispute resolution method

Specificity saves fights later. Vague language like “reasonable visitation” invites conflict every holiday season. Spell out exact pickup and drop-off times, name the exchange location by street address, and assign Thanksgiving to one parent in even years and the other in odd years.

Filing and Serving the Other Parent

File the completed plan with the Superior Court clerk in the county where the case is pending. Washington’s statutory base filing fee for initiating a civil action is $200, but additional surcharges push the total higher, and the exact amount varies by county.⁸ If you cannot afford the fees, file a fee waiver motion under General Rule 34, supported by a financial statement showing that paying the fees would prevent you from meeting your household’s basic living expenses.⁹

After filing, you have to formally serve the other parent. Washington requires service by the county sheriff, a sheriff’s deputy, or any competent person over 18 who is not a party to the case.¹⁰ A professional process server or an eligible friend can handle it. File proof of service with the clerk once service is complete. Skipping or botching this step is one of the most common mistakes in family law filings and can delay a case by weeks or get a petition dismissed.

The clerk assigns a case number and the court sets a hearing. The judge reviews the proposed plan, asks about the residential schedule and decision-making provisions, and confirms compliance with Washington law. If both parents agree, the hearing is usually brief. Once the judge signs, the order is legally binding.

Modifying a Final Plan Later

Washington sets a high bar for modifying a permanent plan, on the theory that children need stability. To change one, you must show a substantial change in circumstances since the plan was entered and that the modification serves the child’s best interests.¹¹

Even meeting that standard is not enough on its own. The court will keep the existing residential schedule unless one of these applies:

Both parents agree to the change
The child has been living with the other parent with consent, in a significant departure from the current plan
The child’s current environment is harmful to their physical, mental, or emotional health, and the benefit of a change outweighs the disruption
The non-moving parent has been held in contempt at least twice within three years for failing to follow the residential schedule, or has been convicted of custodial interference

Not every adjustment clears the full modification hurdle. The court can grant a minor modification that does not shift which parent has majority time, as long as the change does not exceed 24 full days in a calendar year. An involuntary work schedule change or a move by the non-majority parent also qualifies for the lighter standard. A modification petition filed in bad faith exposes the moving parent to the other side’s attorney fees and court costs.¹¹

Enforcement and Contempt

A signed plan is a court order. Withholding time, conditioning one part of the plan on another, or tying child support to visitation all count as bad faith punishable by contempt.¹²

If the other parent is violating the plan, you file a motion for contempt. The court issues an order to show cause. If the judge finds a bad-faith violation, the penalties are mandatory: makeup residential time equal to what was missed, the other parent’s attorney fees and costs (plus any costs of locating or retrieving the child), a civil penalty of at least $100 for a first violation, and possible jail time up to 180 days (reserved for a parent who can comply but refuses). A second violation within three years doubles the makeup time and raises the minimum civil penalty to $250.¹² Two contempt findings within three years for schedule violations also give the other parent grounds to seek a full modification without meeting the usual high threshold.¹¹

Child support and residential time are separate obligations. If the other parent stops paying support, you still have to follow the residential schedule. If the other parent withholds visitation, you still have to pay support. Linking the two is itself grounds for contempt.¹²

Relocating With a Child After the Plan Is Signed

A move to a new city or state after the plan is in place triggers a separate procedure. The relocating parent must give written notice to the other parent at least 60 days before the intended move, delivered by personal service or mail requiring a return receipt.¹³

The notice must include the reasons for the move, the intended new address (or as much as is known), the new school and daycare information if applicable, and a proposed revised residential schedule. It must also contain a specific warning that the relocation will be permitted unless the other parent objects within 30 days.¹³

The non-relocating parent has 30 days from receiving the notice to file an objection with the court and serve it on the relocating parent. Missing that deadline is serious: the relocation can proceed and the court may confirm the revised schedule without a hearing.¹⁴ If a timely objection is filed, the relocating parent generally cannot move the child until after the hearing. A parent who relocates without proper notice faces serious credibility problems in court and may have the move reversed.

1
Washington State Legislature. RCW 26.09.160
2
Washington State Legislature. RCW 26.09.184 – Permanent Parenting Plan
3
Washington State Legislature. RCW 26.09.187 – Criteria for Establishing Permanent Parenting Plan
4
Washington State Legislature. RCW 26.09.191 – Restrictions in Parenting Plans
5
Washington State Legislature. Washington Code 26.09.191 – Restrictions in Temporary or Permanent Parenting Plans
6
Washington State Legislature. Washington Code 26.09.194 – Temporary Parenting Plan
7
Washington Courts. FL All Family 140 – Parenting Plan
8
Washington State Legislature. RCW 36.18.020 – Fees Applicable to Superior Court
9
Washington Courts. Motion and Declaration for Waiver of Civil Fees and Surcharges
10
Washington Courts. Superior Court Civil Rules CR 4 – Process
11
Washington State Legislature. RCW 26.09.260 – Modification of Custody Decree or Parenting Plan
12
Washington State Legislature. RCW 26.09.160 – Contempt for Noncompliance with Parenting Plan
13
Washington State Legislature. RCW 26.09.440 – Notice of Intended Relocation of a Child
14
Washington State Legislature. Washington Code 26.09.480 – Objection to Relocation