Extended Parent Time Schedule

For many years, the minimum parent time schedule for children over the age of 5 remained the same. Unless the parents agreed otherwise, the non-custodial parent was entitled to parent time one weekday evening each week beginning either when the child was dismissed from school or at 5:30 p.m. and ending at 8:30 and every other weekend beginning either when the child was dismissed from school on Friday or at 6:00 p.m. and ending at 7:00 p.m. on Sunday. This is a bit of an oversimplification because the law accounts for differences in the schedule for holidays, snow days, and other days school is not in session, but you get the general idea.

The non-custodial parent is also entitled to parent time in odd-numbered years on the following holidays:

The child’s birthday on the day before or after the actual birthdate from 3:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Martin Luther King Day from 6:00 p.m. on Friday to 7:00 p.m. on Monday
Spring break from 6:00 p.m. on the day school lets out for the holiday to 7:00 p.m. on the Sunday before school resumes
July 4th from 6:00 p.m. the day before the holiday to no later than 6:00 p.m. the day after the holiday
Labor Day from 6:00 p.m. on Friday to 7:00 p.m. on Monday
Fall break from 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday to 7:00 p.m. on Sunday
Veteran’s Day from 6:00 p.m. the day before the holiday to 7:00 p.m. on the holiday, and
The first portion of Christmas break including Christmas Eve and Christmas Day until 1:00 p.m. on the day halfway through the break if there are an odd number of days or until 7:00 p.m. that day if there are an even number of days.

In even-numbered years, the non-custodial parent is entitled to parent-time on these holidays:

The child’s birthday on the actual birthdate from 3:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
President’s Day from 6:00 p.m. on Friday to 7:00 p.m. on Monday
Memorial Day from 6:00 p.m. on Friday to 7:00 p.m. on Monday
July 24th from 6:00 p.m. the day before the holiday to no later than 6:00 p.m. the day after the holiday
Columbus Day from 6:00 p.m. the day before the holiday to 7:00 p.m. on the holiday
Halloween from after school (or 4:00 p.m. if it’s a weekend) to 9:00 p.m.
Thanksgiving from 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday to 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, and
The second portion of Christmas break.

The non-custodial parent is also entitled to four consecutive weeks of parent time during the summer. Two of those weeks are non-interrupted, while the other two are subject to weekday parent time for the custodial parent.

Last year, the Utah legislature passed a new law which allows the non-custodial parent to have extended parent time beyond this minimum parent time schedule. The optional schedule allows a non-custodial parent who is actively involved in his or her children’s lives and who is able to facilitate increased parent time to have more overnight visits. Essentially, the difference between the optional extended parent time and the standard parent time is that any visitation that would end at or after 6:00 p.m. is extended so that the non-custodial parent either drops the child off at school the following day or returns the child to the custodial parent at 8:00 a.m. the following day when school is not in session. There are a few other minor differences, but that is the big one.

If you have a parent time schedule under the standard parent time law and would like to find out if you qualify to have your parent time modified to the extended parent time schedule, please contact an experienced Provo family law attorney at Howard Lewis & Petersen.