How your military service could affect custody in a divorce

Military families often have to deal with substantially more stress than civilian families due to the unique demands of a military career such as unexpected travel or the need to move the whole family frequently. That stress might eventually contribute to the decline of your marriage and even a divorce.

Regardless of how you feel about the divorce itself, you likely want to preserve the relationship with your children. Unfortunately, active duty military service could make it more difficult for you to fully share custody.

Are you at risk of deployment?

The single most influential factor stemming from your military service when it comes to child custody will be whether or not you could get deployed in the near future. If deployment is a possibility, you will likely need to review the family care plan you already have on record to reflect your new situation as separated or divorced.

You may also have to accept that visitation is the only real option until your schedule becomes more stable. If you do wind up deployed, it is possible to include virtual visitation in your parenting plan to protect your bond with the children while you are away. 

You can get a modification when travel isn’t a risk

If your divorce was years ago or if you are finally done with your deployment, you can come back to the courts and request a modification that allocates more parenting time to you. Provided that you can meet the children’s needs, the courts will happily review the custody situation and potentially increase the amount of time you get to spend with your children.