How do I change a custody or child support order in Pennsylvania?

Last updated October 4, 2026.

You file a petition with the court that entered the order. A custody order may be modified whenever the change serves the child's best interest (23 Pa.C.S. 5338(a)). A child support order may be modified when the petitioner shows a material and substantial change in circumstances, such as a job loss, a raise or a new custody schedule (23 Pa.C.S. 4352(a); Pa.R.C.P. 1910.19(a)). Until the court changes it, the existing order stays in force and must be followed.

In Delaware County, custody petitions go first to a Custody Conciliator, and support petitions go to Domestic Relations, usually straight to a hearing officer. For our custody and support work in Media, see our child custody and child support page.

How do the two kinds of modification compare?

How do I change a custody order, step by step?

1. Decide what should change. The schedule, the type of custody, holidays, transportation or decision-making.
2. File a petition for modification. An order directing the other party to appear at a set time and place is attached to the petition (Pa.R.C.P. 1915.3(b)), and the confidential Criminal Record/Abuse History Verification is filed and served with it (Rule 1915.3-2(a)(2)).
3. Serve the other parent. In Delaware County, the filer serves the conciliation notice and petition and proves service, according to the county's family court handbook.
4. Conciliation. All custody proceedings are listed for a conference before the Custody Conciliator before going to a judge (Local Rule 1915.4-1(d)).
5. Agreement or hearing. An agreement becomes a stipulated order; otherwise a recommendation and, if a parent asks, a de novo trial before a judge.
6. Decision. The judge weighs the 5328 factors, with substantial weight on safety, and modifies the order if that serves the child's best interest (5338(a)).

A move that would significantly impair the other parent's time is handled under the relocation statute, with 60 days' notice and a 30-day objection period; see moving away with your child. The factors themselves are explained in how judges decide custody after Kayden's Law.

How do I change a child support order, step by step?

1. Identify the change. The petition must state the material and substantial change it relies on (Rule 1910.19(a)). A new guideline amount from revised guidelines, or newly discovered income or assets, can qualify.
2. File with Domestic Relations. In Delaware County, Local Rule 1910.19(b) sends a modification petition directly to a hearing before a hearing officer unless the petition asks for a conference.
3. Bring documents. Tax returns, six months of pay stubs, child care and insurance costs and an income statement, as at any support proceeding (Rule 1910.11(c)).
4. The hearing. The hearing officer applies the guidelines to current incomes, and the order may be raised or lowered no matter who filed (Rule 1910.19(c)).
5. Appeal window. A party who disagrees has 20 days to ask for a judge, according to the county; payments continue under the existing or recommended order in the meantime.

The conference and hearing process is described in what happens at a support conference in Delaware County. The formula is in how child support is calculated.

What counts as a substantial change for support?

The support rules separate voluntary from involuntary changes. A voluntary drop in income, such as quitting, taking a lower-paying job, changing careers or going back to school, is not used to lower an existing order (Rule 1910.16-2(d)(1)). A substantial, continuing, involuntary drop, such as illness, layoff, termination, incarceration or job elimination, is adjusted for (1910.16-2(d)(2)). Normal or temporary swings in earnings are not (1910.16-2(d)(2)(iii)).

Other common changes include a new custody schedule that moves the paying parent to 40 percent or more of overnights, which triggers the shared custody reduction (Rule 1910.16-4(c)), a child's new child care or medical costs, and a child nearing the end of support; see when child support ends. Incarceration for reasons other than nonpayment is a material and substantial change that may warrant modification or termination when the obligor has no verifiable income or assets (4352(a.2)).

What changes the answer?

• An agreement. Child support and custody terms in an agreement are modifiable on changed circumstances, but property, alimony and fee terms generally are not unless the agreement allows it (23 Pa.C.S. 3105(b) and (c)).
• Safety. Abuse, a protection order or new criminal charges can support a custody change, including an expedited temporary order for listed charges (5330); see how a PFA affects custody.
• Who filed. In support, the order can move in either direction regardless of which parent filed (Rule 1910.19(c)).
• Withdrawing a petition. A child support modification petition cannot be withdrawn without the other parent's consent or leave of court (Rule 1910.19(b)).
• Out-of-state orders. The custody modification section applies to orders from Pennsylvania or another state, subject to the interstate jurisdiction rules (5338(b), as amended by Act 40 of 2025).
• The three-year review. Support can be adjusted on review without proving a change (4352(a.1)).

For example: a new job schedule and a new custody plan

Here is a hypothetical. A father in Prospect Park has his children every other weekend under a Delaware County order. He changes to a job with weekdays off and asks for two midweek overnights, which would bring him to about 40 percent of overnights. He files a custody modification petition at the Office of Judicial Support, serves the mother and attends conciliation, where the parents agree to the new schedule and the conciliator sends a stipulated order to the judge.

With the new order in hand, he files a support modification petition at Domestic Relations, stating the change in overnights. Under Local Rule 1910.19(b), the petition goes to a hearing officer, who recalculates support with the shared custody adjustment. Until that order is entered, he keeps paying under the old one. This example only illustrates the steps; it does not predict any result.

What mistakes do parents make when changing orders?

• Changing things informally. A handshake change does not modify a court order, and willful violation can bring contempt (5323(g)).
• Stopping or reducing payments on your own. Only the court changes support.
• Quitting a job to lower support. Voluntary reductions are not counted (Rule 1910.16-2(d)(1)).
• Waiting too long. The old order keeps running until a petition is decided.
• Moving without the relocation notice. It can lead to an order to return the child and fees (5337(j)).
• Filing without proof. Bring documents showing the change.

What should I do this week?

1. Read your current order and write down exactly what you want changed.
2. Gather proof of the change: a new work schedule, pay records, medical records or school information.
3. Keep following the current order.
4. Talk with the other parent if it is safe; an agreement can be written into a stipulated order.
5. File the custody petition and the support petition in the right offices.
6. Book a consultation before filing.

Frequently asked questions

How often can I ask to change custody?

The statute sets no waiting period; a court may modify a custody order whenever that serves the child's best interest (5338(a)). The petition should explain what has changed and why the change helps the child.

Does a new custody schedule automatically change support?

No. Support is a separate order; file a support modification petition after the custody change.

Can a child choose to live with the other parent?

A well-reasoned preference, based on the child's maturity and judgment, is one factor (5328(a)(7)); it is weighed with the others.

What if the other parent will not follow the order?

A custody contempt petition can be filed; in Delaware County contempt hearings are held at the main Courthouse, and sanctions can include jail, fines and fees (5323(g); Rule 1915.12).

Where are these heard in Delaware County?

In Media; see what to expect in Delaware County family court. Our family law page covers related questions.

Call Giribaldi Law at (610) 891-8303 or contact us online for a free consultation about changing a custody or support order. Evening and weekend appointments are available.