Writing a Mobility Clause Into Your Ontario Parenting Plan

Most parenting plans are written for life as it looks today — the same city, the same schools, the same drive-time between two homes. Life doesn't always cooperate. A job offer, a new relationship, or a need to be closer to family can put relocation on the table years after your plan was signed.

A well-drafted mobility clause doesn't stop a parent from ever moving. What it does is set expectations up front, so that if a move becomes real, you're negotiating from a plan instead of starting from scratch in a moment of conflict.

Here's what the law already requires around relocation, and what a thoughtful mobility clause can add on top of that baseline.

What the Law Already Requires, With or Without a Clause

Even if your parenting plan says nothing about moving, Ontario and federal family law already impose a baseline notice obligation. A parent (or anyone with parenting time, decision-making responsibility, or a contact order) who plans to relocate a child generally must give written notice, in the prescribed form, to everyone else who has parenting time, decision-making responsibility, or contact with that child.

A few things worth knowing about that baseline:

• For parents divorcing under the federal Divorce Act, the minimum notice period is currently 60 days before the move (Divorce Act, s. 16.9(1)) — as of mid-2026; verify the current requirement before relying on it, since notice periods and forms can change.
• Parents who were never married and fall under Ontario's Children's Law Reform Act are subject to a comparable notice framework, though the exact form and timeline should be confirmed separately — don't assume the two statutes work identically in every detail.
• A court can exempt someone from giving notice at all where there's reason to believe that notice would create a significant risk of family violence.

A mobility clause sits on top of this legal floor — it can't lower it, but it can raise it or add structure the statute doesn't provide.

What a Good Mobility Clause Should Cover

• [ ] A clear definition of what counts as a "relocation" for your family (a move within the same city may not trigger the clause the way a move to another province would)
• [ ] A notice period at least as long as the legal minimum — many parents choose a longer window than the law requires, to leave time for negotiation
• [ ] What information the moving parent will provide (new address, reasons for the move, a proposed revised parenting schedule)
• [ ] How you'll try to resolve a disagreement before going to court (e.g., mediation first)
• [ ] How parenting time and travel costs will be handled if the move goes ahead and increases the distance between homes
• [ ] Whether certain major moves (e.g., outside Ontario or outside Canada) trigger extra steps beyond your day-to-day notice process

What a Mobility Clause Cannot Do

• It cannot override the best-interests-of-the-child test. If a relocation dispute ends up before a judge, the court decides based on the child's best interests at that time — not solely on what the clause says.
• It cannot eliminate the statutory notice obligation, even if both parents would prefer a shorter or informal process.
• It cannot bind a court to approve, or block, a future move automatically. It can guide the process and reduce ambiguity, but a genuinely contested relocation may still need to go before a judge.

If a Move Is Contested

Even with a strong mobility clause, some relocations end up disputed — usually because the receiving parent believes the move will meaningfully disrupt their relationship with the child. Where parents can't agree, a court weighs the best interests of the child, considering factors like the reasons for the move, the existing parenting arrangement, and the impact on the child's relationships with each parent and with siblings. Family violence and its effect on safe co-parenting is an express factor a court must weigh in this analysis.

Frequently asked questions