A move of more than 75 miles changes a custody case more than almost any other event, and Oklahoma’s relocation statute, 43 O.S. § 112.3, sets a strict procedure and a burden of proof that most parents get wrong. If the other parent wants to take your child to Dallas, Kansas City, or the other side of Oklahoma, you have 30 days from her notice to object, and the court will hold a hearing on good faith and the child’s best interests. If you are the father who needs to move for work or family, the same statute tells you what notice to give and what you have to prove. Dads.Law represents Tulsa fathers on both sides of relocation cases, and we treat every one as the custody trial it usually becomes.
Who the Relocation Statute Covers
Section 112.3 applies when a person entitled to custody proposes to change the child’s principal residence by more than 75 miles for at least 60 days. Moves shorter than that are governed by the older rule in 10 O.S. § 19 and the case law that followed it, under which a custodial parent may move unless the court restrains a relocation that would prejudice the child’s rights or welfare. The Oklahoma Supreme Court held in Boatman v. Boatman, 2017 OK 27, that only the primary physical custodian has the right to invoke the statute, so in a joint custody case the court first has to decide who the primary physical custodian is before anyone can relocate. For a father with an equal-time joint custody order, that threshold question is often where the case is won or lost.
Notice: 60 Days Before the Move
The relocating parent must give written notice to every person entitled to custody or visitation no later than 60 days before the intended move, or within 10 days after learning of the move if 60 days was not possible. The notice must be served in the manner required by 12 O.S. § 2004 and must state the new address, the telephone number, the date of the move, the reasons for it, and a proposal for a revised visitation schedule. A parent who moves without notice can be ordered to return the child, to pay the objecting parent’s expenses and attorney fees, and the failure itself is a factor the court weighs against the move.
The non-relocating parent has 30 days after receiving the notice to file an objection with the court. If no objection is filed in time, the relocation is permitted under the terms of the notice. That deadline is not flexible, and a father who waits to see whether the move is really happening can lose the right to be heard.
The Two-Step Test: Good Faith, Then Best Interests
Under § 112.3(K), the parent who wants to move has the burden to prove the relocation is proposed in good faith. If that burden is met, the burden shifts to the objecting parent to prove that the move is not in the child’s best interests. The Supreme Court in Scocos v. Scocos, 2016 OK 36, held that new employment, financial considerations, and proximity to family are legitimate reasons that establish good faith, and that a move motivated by a new relationship is not automatically bad faith. In Boatman, the court added that a parent has no duty to tell the other parent she is applying for out-of-state jobs, and that accepting a job days after disclosing the interview is not bad faith either. Good faith, in other words, is a low bar, and a father who objects should plan to win on the second step.
The best-interests step uses the factors in § 112.3(J)(1): the nature, quality, extent, and duration of the child’s relationship with each parent, siblings, and other significant people; the child’s age, developmental stage, and needs, and the likely impact of the move on the child’s development; the feasibility of preserving the relationship with the non-relocating parent through a substitute schedule; the child’s preference, considering age and maturity; whether there is an established pattern of conduct by the relocating parent to promote or thwart the other parent’s relationship with the child; whether the relocation will enhance the general quality of life for both the relocating parent and the child; the reasons each parent gives for seeking or opposing the move; and any other factor affecting the child’s best interests. The court may not consider whether the relocating parent has declared that she will not move if relocation of the child is denied, and it may not give undue weight to a temporary relocation it allowed before trial. In Harrison v. Morgan, 2008 OK CIV APP 68, the Court of Civil Appeals held that the trial court must weigh every factor, and that the objecting parent prevails only when the factors against relocation outweigh those in favor.
What a Father Should Prove
An objection built on the father’s inconvenience loses. An objection built on the child loses less often. The evidence that moves these cases is the record of the father’s actual involvement: the parenting-time log, school and medical records with his name on them, the coaching schedule, the extended family in Tulsa, the child’s counselor or teacher, and a concrete showing of what a long-distance schedule would cost the child in time with him. The father should also examine the relocating parent’s history of promoting or thwarting his relationship with the child, because that is one of the enumerated factors and it is often where a documented pattern of withheld visitation decides the case. When a father is the one moving, the same evidence is turned around: why the move is in good faith, how the child’s life improves, and a detailed proposed schedule that keeps the other parent in the child’s life.
Temporary Orders and the Custody Case Underneath
On an objection, the court can hold a hearing on a temporary order that allows or restrains the move pending trial, taking into account whether notice was timely, whether a revised schedule has been proposed, and which parent is likely to prevail on the merits. If the relocating parent has complied with the notice provisions, the court is to proceed under the relocation statute first; a change of custody is decided separately under the Gibbons standard, and the Court of Civil Appeals has held that the proposed move alone is not a change of circumstances that justifies transferring custody. Fathers who want custody rather than a long-distance schedule need evidence that supports a modification on its own terms. The statute also authorizes sanctions, including attorney fees, against a party whose relocation request or objection was made to harass, was unwarranted by law, or rested on allegations with no evidentiary support.
How Dads.Law Handles Relocation Cases in Tulsa
Relocation cases in Tulsa County move on two clocks, the 30-day objection deadline and the moving date in the notice, and the evidence has to be assembled before the temporary-order hearing, not the trial. We review the notice for defects, file the objection and any request for a temporary restraining order in time, and build the best-interests record around the eight statutory factors. When a father is the relocating parent, we draft a notice that satisfies the statute, document the good-faith reasons for the move, and propose a schedule the court can adopt. Fathers with joint custody get a plan for the primary-physical-custodian question Boatman requires before anything else is decided.
Frequently Asked Questions
How far can the other parent move with my child without permission?
The relocation statute applies to moves of more than 75 miles. Shorter moves are still subject to the court’s power to restrain a change of residence that would prejudice the child, but the notice-and-objection procedure applies only above 75 miles.
How long do I have to object to a relocation notice?
Thirty days from receiving the notice. If no objection is filed, the move is permitted.
Who has to prove what at the relocation hearing?
The relocating parent must prove the move is in good faith. The objecting parent must then prove the move is not in the child’s best interests under the factors in 43 O.S. § 112.3(J).
Can I get custody instead if she moves?
Only on evidence that supports a change of custody under the Gibbons standard. The move itself is a factor but, by itself, is not a substantial, permanent, and material change of circumstances.
Does joint custody stop the other parent from relocating?
Not by itself. Under Boatman, the court must first decide which joint custodian is the primary physical custodian; only that parent has standing to relocate under the statute.
Talk With a Tulsa Relocation Lawyer for Fathers
If you have received a relocation notice, the objection deadline is running. Call (918) 984-9424. Phones are answered 24 hours a day; office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, at 2226 S 92nd E Ave, Tulsa, OK 74129. You can also contact us online, and fathers in Oklahoma County can reach our Oklahoma City relocation attorneys. Our statewide custody guide for fathers covers the custody rules that run underneath every relocation case.
Sources: 43 O.S. § 112.3; 10 O.S. § 19; 12 O.S. § 2004; Boatman v. Boatman, 2017 OK 27; Scocos v. Scocos, 2016 OK 36; Mahmoodjanloo v. Mahmoodjanloo, 2007 OK 32; Harrison v. Morgan, 2008 OK CIV APP 68; Gibbons v. Gibbons, 1968 OK 77. This page is legal information for Oklahoma fathers, not legal advice about a specific case. Last reviewed September 2026.