Colorado Custody Forms & Guides

Statutes

• C.R.S. § 14-10-115 — Child Support Guidelines; Determination of Income

  The guidelines and schedule are a rebuttable presumption in any action to establish or modify child support; a court may deviate where applying them would be inequitable, unjust, or inappropriate, but must make findings giving the reasons and the presumed guideline amount. Support is based on the parents' combined adjusted gross income, the basic obligation is divided between the parents in proportion to each parent's adjusted gross income, and income means actual gross income if employed to full capacity or potential income if unemployed or underemployed; potential income must be used for a voluntarily unemployed or underemployed parent, except a parent who is incapacitated, caring for a joint child under 24 months, or incarcerated for 180 days or more. HB 25-1159 replaced the schedule of basic obligations (now running to $40,000 combined monthly adjusted gross income) and added a parenting time table, effective March 1, 2026: each parent's shared parenting credit is the basic obligation times the credit percentage for that parent's number of overnights, and support ordered may not exceed what the parent would owe with no overnights. An obligor with monthly adjusted gross income of $650 or less owes a $10 minimum order, and an obligor above the self-support reserve but at or below full-time minimum wage cannot be ordered to pay more than 20 percent of adjusted gross income. For an obligor whose adjusted gross income is above $650 but at or below the self-support reserve, the basic obligation is reduced to $50 a month for one child, rising to $150 for six or more children, and the total with add-ons is capped at 10 percent of adjusted gross income (§ 14-10-115(7)(a)(III)(B)-(C)). Under the 2026 parenting time table, the shared parenting credit starts at the first overnight; there is no 93-overnight threshold (§ 14-10-115(8)(h)). The $10 minimum order does not apply if shared parenting time brings the presumptive obligation below $10 (§ 14-10-115(7)(a)(III)(A)).

• C.R.S. § 14-10-124 — Best Interests of the Child

  The court allocates parental responsibilities, including parenting time and decision-making, in accordance with the best interests of the child, giving paramount consideration to the child's safety and physical, mental, and emotional conditions and needs, and must consider all relevant factors, including the parents' wishes, the wishes of a sufficiently mature child, the child's relationships, adjustment to home, school, and community, the mental and physical health of all involved, each party's ability to encourage the child's contact with the other party, the past pattern of involvement, physical proximity, and each party's ability to put the child's needs ahead of their own. The court may restrict parenting time only if it finds, after a hearing, that parenting time would endanger the child's physical health or significantly impair the child's emotional development; it may not consider conduct that does not affect a party's relationship to the child, and may not presume a person is better able to serve the child's interests because of that person's sex. Under HB 26-1309 (effective May 27, 2026), the court must make findings by a preponderance of the evidence whether a party committed domestic violence, child abuse or neglect, or sexual assault that resulted in conception of a child; if so, the safety and well-being of the child and abused party is the primary concern, the court must impose parenting time conditions that ensure their safety, and mutual decision-making over the other party's objection is not in the child's best interests unless the court specifically finds it can occur without coercion, intimidation, retaliation, or risk of harm. A party's actions to protect the child from witnessing domestic violence or from abuse or neglect are not counted against that party on the encourage-contact factor. This findings duty arises when evidence of domestic violence, child abuse or neglect, or sexual assault resulting in conception is submitted by a party, a child and family investigator, a parental responsibilities evaluator, or the child's legal representative. If a party is absent or leaves home because of the other party's domestic violence, child abuse or neglect, or sexual assault resulting in conception, that absence is not a factor against them (§ 14-10-124(1.6)(d)), and the court must consider whether to prohibit or restrict the offending party's parenting time (§ 14-10-124(1.6)(c)). When the court orders unsupervised parenting time despite information or a child's accusation of domestic violence, child abuse, child sexual abuse, child emotional abuse, or coercive control, it must state on the record why unsupervised time is in the child's best interests (§ 14-10-124(9)).

• C.R.S. § 14-10-129 — Modification of Parenting Time

  The court may make or modify a parenting time order whenever it would serve the best interests of the child, but may not restrict a parent's parenting time unless it finds the parenting time would endanger the child's physical health or significantly impair the child's emotional development. A modification that substantially changes parenting time and also changes the party with whom the child resides a majority of the time requires facts arising since (or unknown at) the prior decree showing a change in circumstances and that the modification is necessary to serve the child's best interests, and the court must retain the prior schedule unless the parties agree, the child has been integrated into the moving party's family with consent, the majority-time parent intends to relocate, or the child's present environment endangers the child and the advantage of a change outweighs the harm. A majority-time parent intending to relocate in a way that substantially changes the child's geographical ties to the other party must give written notice as soon as practicable of the intent, the new location, the reason, and a proposed revised parenting time plan; the hearing gets docket priority, and the court weighs all relevant factors, including domestic violence proven by a preponderance of the evidence whether before or after the prior decree, the section 14-10-124(1.5)(a) factors, and nine relocation factors such as the reasons for and against the move, educational opportunities, extended family, the impact of the move, and whether a reasonable parenting time schedule can be fashioned. After a motion for a substantial modification that changes the majority-time parent, no new such motion may be filed for two years unless affidavits show the child's present environment may endanger the child or the majority-time parent intends such a relocation. The rule that parenting time may not be restricted without an endangerment finding does not apply when the majority-time parent intends a relocation that substantially changes the child's geographical ties to the other party (§ 14-10-129(1)(b)(II)), and any order restricting parenting time must state the specific factual findings supporting it. A motion alleging the child is in imminent physical or emotional danger must be heard and ruled on within 14 days of filing, and any parenting time during that period must be supervised (§ 14-10-129(4)).

• C.R.S. § 14-10-129 — Parenting Time; Modification

  The court may make or modify a parenting-time order whenever it would serve the child's best interests, but it shall not modify a prior order in a way that substantially changes parenting time and also changes the parent with whom the child lives most of the time unless it finds, based on facts that arose after the prior decree or were unknown to the court then, that the circumstances of the child or that parent have changed and that the modification is necessary to serve the child's best interests; the prior schedule is kept unless the parties agree, the child has been integrated into the moving party's family with the other party's consent, the majority-time parent intends to relocate in a way that substantially changes geographical ties, or the child's present environment endangers the child's physical health or significantly impairs emotional development and the harm of a change is outweighed by its advantage. After a motion for that kind of substantial change is filed, no further such motion may be filed within two years after the prior one is decided, unless affidavits show the child's present environment may endanger physical health or significantly impair emotional development, or the majority-time parent intends such a relocation. Restricting a parent's time requires a finding that it would endanger the child's physical health or significantly impair emotional development, with specific factual findings, and a motion alleging imminent physical or emotional danger must be heard and ruled on within 14 days, with any parenting time in the meantime supervised by a suitable unrelated third party or a licensed mental health professional. If a parent has been convicted of a listed crime (such as murder, sexual assault, sexual assault on a child, incest or specified child abuse, or an equivalent out-of-state offense) or of a crime the court found on the record involved domestic violence that is a potential threat or endangerment to the child, the other parent or a person with court-ordered custody or parental responsibility may file an objection to parenting time; if the convicted parent does not respond within 21 days after notice, parenting time is suspended until further order, if the parent responds and objects a hearing must be held within 35 days after the response, and at the hearing the convicted parent has the burden to prove parenting time is in the child's best interests.

• C.R.S. § 14-10-129.5 — Disputes Concerning Parenting Time

  Within 35 days after a verified motion (or the court's own motion) alleging a parent is not complying with a parenting time order and setting forth possible sanctions, the court must determine whether there has been or is likely to be substantial or continuing noncompliance and either deny the motion for an inadequate allegation, set a hearing as expeditiously as possible, or require mediation with a report back within 63 days. If after the hearing the court finds a violation, it shall, in the child's best interests, issue an order that may include additional terms, modification of the order, a parenting education program or family counseling at the noncomplying parent's expense, a bond or security, makeup parenting time of the same type and duration made up within six months (or within one year if it cannot be made up in six months) at the time and in the manner chosen by the aggrieved parent if in the child's best interests, contempt with a fine or jail sentence, a civil fine of up to $100 per incident of denied parenting time, or a hearing to modify custody or the allocation of parental responsibilities; child support may not be conditioned on parenting time. The court shall also order a parent who failed to provide or exercise court-ordered parenting time to pay the aggrieved party's attorney fees, court costs, and expenses, and may order the moving parent to pay the responding parent's fees and costs if no violation is found.

• C.R.S. § 14-10-129(1)(b) — Restriction of Parenting Time

  The court shall not restrict a parent's parenting time unless it finds that the parenting time would endanger the child's physical health or significantly impair the child's emotional development, and any order imposing or continuing a restriction must enumerate the specific factual findings supporting it. This standard does not apply when the parent with whom the child lives most of the time intends to relocate with the child in a way that substantially changes the child's geographical ties with the other parent. Separately, under § 14-10-129(4), a motion to restrict parenting time alleging that the child is in imminent physical or emotional danger must be heard and ruled on within 14 days after filing, and any parenting time in that period must be supervised by a suitable unrelated third party or a licensed mental health professional; a motion found substantially frivolous, groundless or vexatious requires the moving party to pay the other side's reasonable fees and costs. The statute does not say which party bears the burden of proof on a restriction. The 14-day rule in subsection (4) does not apply to an objection filed under subsection (3) based on a parent's conviction of a listed crime.

• C.R.S. § 14-10-131 — Modification of Custody or Decision-Making Responsibility

  After a motion to modify a custody decree or decision-making allocation is filed, whether or not it was granted, no further motion may be filed within two years after disposition unless the court decides, on affidavits, that there is reason to believe continuing the prior order may endanger the child's physical health or significantly impair the child's emotional development. The court may modify decision-making responsibility only if, based on facts that arose since the prior decree or were unknown to the court at that time, a change has occurred in the circumstances of the child or the party allocated decision-making and the modification is necessary to serve the child's best interests. Even then, the court must retain the prior allocation unless the parties agree; the child has been integrated into the petitioner's family with the other party's consent and that warrants modification; a parenting time modification under section 14-10-129 warrants it; a party has consistently consented to the other party making decisions that party was to make individually or the parties were to make mutually; or retaining the allocation would endanger the child's physical health or significantly impair the child's emotional development and the harm of a change is outweighed by its advantage.

• C.R.S. § 14-13-204 — Temporary Emergency Jurisdiction

  A Colorado court has temporary emergency jurisdiction if the child is present in Colorado and either the child has been abandoned or it is necessary in an emergency to protect the child because the child, or a sibling or parent of the child, is subjected to or threatened with mistreatment or abuse, and it may exercise that jurisdiction while an appeal of a custody determination is pending. If there is no enforceable prior custody determination and no case has been started in a state with jurisdiction, the emergency order stays in effect until a court with jurisdiction rules, and it becomes final if it so provides and Colorado becomes the child's home state. If there is an enforceable prior determination or a case pending in a state with jurisdiction, the Colorado order must specify a period adequate for the person seeking it to obtain an order from that state, and it lasts only until that order is obtained or the period expires. A Colorado court asked to act under this section must immediately communicate with the court of the other state once it learns of a proceeding or determination there.

• C.R.S. § 18-3-304 - Violation of Custody Order or Order Relating to Parental Responsibilities

  Any parent or other person who violates a Colorado district or juvenile court order granting custody of, or parental responsibilities for, a child under 18, with the intent to deprive the lawful custodian or person with parental responsibilities of the child's custody or care, commits a class 5 felony; so does any person, including a parent, who takes or entices a child under 18 from the custody or care of a parent or other lawful custodian knowing he or she has no privilege to do so or heedless in that regard. Removing the child from the country in the course of either offense is a class 4 felony. It is an affirmative defense that the offender reasonably believed the conduct was necessary to preserve the child from danger to the child's welfare, or that a child more than fourteen years old was taken away at the child's own instigation without enticement and without a criminal purpose. The charge may be tried in the county where the act occurred or in the county of the court that issued the custody or parental-responsibilities order; this is a criminal offense prosecuted by the state, and the statute itself gives the other parent no make-up time, fee award or other civil remedy.