How to Enforce a Custody Order in Texas

What if my ex refuses to follow the custody agreement?

Start a record and follow the order yourself. Write down each violation with the date, time and what happened, and keep the related texts and emails. Do not retaliate by withholding the child or support; that only creates violations on your side.

If the problem continues, you can file a motion for enforcement. Before that, many families resolve repeated friction with a parenting facilitator or by returning to mediation, especially when the violations come from a vague order rather than bad faith.

Can I take my ex to court for denying visitation?

Yes. You file a motion for enforcement in the court with continuing jurisdiction over your case (§ 157.001). The motion must identify the provision violated, describe how the other parent failed to comply, and state the relief you want (§ 157.002).

The court has several remedies:

• Contempt, which can bring fines or jail time.
• Additional periods of possession to make up the denied time, of the same type and length, scheduled by the parent who was denied, and taken within two years (§ 157.168).
• Attorney's fees and costs, which the court must order against the violating parent unless it finds good cause to waive them (§ 157.167).

A hearing that requests jail must be recorded by a court reporter (§ 157.161). Bring your log, the messages and any witnesses.

How do I enforce a custody order in Texas, step by step?

You enforce a custody order by proving each violation to the court that made the order. The usual sequence looks like this:

1. Read the exact wording of your order, including exchange times, places and notice rules, so you know what was violated.
2. Build a dated record of each violation with the supporting texts, emails and witnesses.
3. Check whether your decree requires mediation or another dispute resolution step before enforcement.
4. File a motion for enforcement listing each violation and the relief requested, and have the other parent served.
5. Attend the hearing, where the judge decides contempt, make-up time, fees and any other relief, and signs an enforcement order that states the violations and the relief granted (§ 157.166).

Precise records are what make contempt possible: the court must identify each violation by date. A lawyer can draft the motion so that every violation you can prove is included.

What happens if my ex keeps the children longer than allowed?

Keeping a child beyond the end of a period of possession is a violation you can enforce with contempt and make-up time. If the child is not returned at all, a petition for a writ of habeas corpus asks the court to order the child's return to the parent entitled to possession under the order (§ 157.372).

In serious cases, keeping a child in violation of a court order can also be a crime under Texas Penal Code § 25.03, interference with child custody. If you believe the child will be taken out of state or out of the country, act immediately; see interstate and foreign orders.

What if my ex moved without telling me?

A move without notice violates your order. Texas custody orders require each parent to give notice of a new address at least 60 days before the move, or within five days of learning of it if earlier notice was not possible (§ 105.006).

If the move took the child outside a geographic restriction, you can ask the court to enforce the restriction and to modify the order, for example by naming you as the parent who sets the primary residence. If the move makes the current schedule unworkable, a modification can set a long-distance schedule.

Can a parent lose custody for repeatedly violating court orders?

Yes. Courts value a parent who supports the child's relationship with the other parent, and a pattern of violations can be a material change that supports modification.

Texas made this explicit in 2025. Since September 1, 2025, when a court finds a parent in contempt for denying court-ordered possession and that parent has already been held in contempt at least three times for failing to follow the possession order, the finding is a material and substantial change sufficient to justify modifying custody (§ 156.107). In that situation, the make-up time must also total twice the time denied (§ 157.168).

What if we have been following a different schedule than the court order?

The written order still controls. Most orders let parents share time as mutually agreed in advance (§ 153.311), but an informal schedule does not change the order, and either parent can return to the written terms.

This cuts both ways in enforcement. A parent accused of denying possession can defend by showing the other parent voluntarily gave up possession for the time in question (§ 157.007). A long-standing informal schedule can also be evidence of a material change supporting a modification. If the new schedule works, put it into an agreed modified order so it can be enforced.

Can old custody orders be enforced after several years?

Yes. A Texas court keeps the power to hold a parent in contempt for violating a possession order if the enforcement motion is filed no later than six months after the child turns 18 or the right of possession ends (§ 157.004).

Older violations are harder to prove, because memories fade and messages get lost, and make-up time must be taken within two years of the court's finding (§ 157.168). Waiting can also look like acceptance of a different schedule. If violations are piling up, talk to a lawyer while the evidence is fresh.