Family law changes can affect where your children live, how support is calculated, what happens to your property, and how court orders are enforced. For Texas families dealing with divorce, custody, child support, or protective orders in 2026, several updates from the 2025 legislative session may matter.
Some changes are procedural, such as the continued use of electronic filing in divorce cases. Others affect child support calculations, custody rights, school enrollment decisions, protective orders, and enforcement of possession and access orders. The right approach depends on the facts of each family’s situation, so it is important to talk with a Texas family law attorney about how these updates may apply to your case.
Electronic Filing Remains Common in Texas Divorce Cases
Texas courts continue to rely heavily on electronic filing. For many divorce cases, this means pleadings, motions, notices, and other court documents can be filed through the court’s online filing system rather than delivered in paper form.
Electronic filing does not make every divorce simple. It can make the paperwork process more efficient, but divorcing spouses still need to address the legal and practical issues that come with ending a marriage. Those issues may include property division, debt allocation, retirement accounts, child custody, visitation, child support, and the language used in the final decree.
Electronic filing may be especially helpful in uncontested divorces. An uncontested divorce is one where the spouses agree on the issues that must be resolved before the divorce is finalized. This is different from a no-fault divorce, which means neither spouse must prove misconduct, such as adultery, to obtain a divorce.
Uncontested divorces are more common when the spouses have limited property and either have no minor children or else agree on all matters relating to parenting time, support, and division of debts. Even then, the final documents still matter. A decree that does not clearly address retirement accounts, vehicles, debts, taxes, and parenting arrangements can create problems later.
What Has Not Changed About Texas Divorce in 2026
While some family law procedures and support calculations have changed, the basic requirements for divorce in Texas remain the same. Generally, at least one spouse must have lived in Texas for at least six months before filing. The filing spouse also typically must have lived in the county where the divorce is filed for at least 90 days.
Texas also still has a mandatory waiting period. In most cases, a divorce cannot be finalized until at least 60 days after the petition is filed, though limited exceptions may apply in cases involving family violence.
Texas remains a community property state, which means many assets and debts acquired during the marriage may be divided in the divorce. That can include the family home, retirement accounts, business interests, vehicles, credit card debt, mortgages, and tax obligations. The court’s job is to reach a division that is “just and right” based on the facts of the case.
Child Support Calculations Changed for Some Texas Families in 2026
One of the most significant family law updates from the 2025 legislative session involves child support calculations. Texas courts generally calculate child support using the paying parent’s monthly net resources and the number of children requiring support. Support payments are set at a percentage of the paying parent’s monthly net resources according to the following chart.
| Number of Children |
Guideline Percentage |
| 1 Child |
20% |
| 2 Children |
25% |
| 3 Children |
30% |
| 4 Children |
35% |
| 5 Children |
40% |
| 6 or More |
Not Less Than 40% |
For higher-earning parents, however, all of their income and other resources may not be used in the calculation. There’s a cap on the amount of net resources used to make the calculation.
Beginning September 1, 2025, Texas increased the maximum net monthly resources cap used to calculate guideline child support from $9,200 to $11,700. This means the standard guideline percentages continue to apply, but they now apply to a larger amount of a parent’s monthly net income. As a result, some higher-income parents may see different child support calculations than they would have under prior law.
Although the guideline percentages remain unchanged, the increase in the net monthly resources cap may affect the amount of child support calculated in some cases. For example, under the new cap, the maximum guideline child support amount for one child is $2,340 per month (20% of $11,700). Under the old cap, the maximum for one child was $1,840 per month.
The increase in the cap does not automatically change existing child support orders. A non-paying parent who wishes to increase the monthly support payments needs to ask the court to modify the existing child support order and update the calculated payments under the new law.
Note that child support payments are not always set at the exact calculated percentage under the law. Courts may also consider whether a child has demonstrated needs that support an amount above the guideline calculation. These issues can become more complicated when a parent has variable income, owns a business, receives bonuses, or supports children in more than one household.
Texas courts may also consider a parent’s earning capacity in some support cases. That may happen when a parent is unemployed, underemployed, or has a work history showing the ability to earn more than current income suggests. Courts may look at education, job history, job opportunities, vocational training, and the parent’s ability to earn income.
Child Support Enforcement Remains a Serious Issue
Texas courts and the Texas Attorney General’s Child Support Division may take various actions when child support is not paid. Enforcement may involve withholding income or tax refunds, placing liens, suspending licenses, contempt proceedings, or other court action.
Enforcement cases can become serious quickly because unpaid support may continue to build over time. A parent who owes support may also face court findings that affect employment, licensing, and other parts of daily life. A parent who is owed support may need help from a family law attorney when documenting missed payments and understanding what enforcement options may be available.
Relatives May Have Expanded Rights in Certain Custody Cases
House Bill 2350 made it easier for some grandparents and other relatives to get involved in certain child custody cases. The law now lets more distant relatives ask a court for custody if a child’s parents have both died. Before the law, only closer relatives could do this. Now, more extended family members can step in, including great-aunts, great-uncles, and first cousins.
The bill also made it easier for grandparents and other relatives to ask a court for custody, known as “managing conservatorship,” in certain situations. And it created new rules for how relatives can join, or “intervene” in, a custody case that is already underway.
To understand these changes, it helps to know the term “standing.” Standing means having the legal right to bring a request before a court. In family law, standing often comes up for grandparents, adult siblings, aunts, uncles, and other relatives who want to be involved in a child’s life. Caring about a child is not enough on its own. The law sets specific rules about who can ask a court to get involved, and when.
These cases are often emotional. They may involve grief, family conflict, or worry about a child’s stability. If you are a relative who wants to seek custody, visitation, or some other form of court involvement, talk to an attorney. An attorney can explain whether the law allows your request and what the court will look at when deciding.
Protective Order Changes May Affect Divorce and Custody Cases
Several laws passed during the 2025 legislative session made changes to protective orders that may affect some divorce and custody cases in 2026. A protective order is a court order designed to help protect individuals from family violence, threats, harassment, or other harmful conduct. Because protective orders often involve parents and children, they can affect custody arrangements, visitation schedules, communication between parents, and child exchange locations.
House Bill 793 strengthened confidentiality protections for individuals seeking protective orders. Under the new law, courts must protect certain personal information, such as home addresses and contact information, when requested by an applicant. The law also requires courts to inform applicants of their right to keep certain information confidential.
Senate Bill 1559 clarified that protective orders generally take priority over conflicting divorce or child custody orders. For example, if a custody order requires parents to meet at a specific location for visitation exchanges but a protective order restricts contact at that location, the protective order generally controls.
Another change, Senate Bill 1120, extended the duration of certain protective orders. In qualifying situations, a protective order may remain in effect for up to two years after a final divorce decree, child custody order, or related criminal case is resolved. This may provide additional protection when family violence concerns continue after the underlying case has ended.
Because protective orders can affect parenting schedules, communication requirements, exchange locations, and other custody-related issues, parents involved in divorce or custody disputes should understand how these recent changes may apply to their situation. Understanding how protective orders interact with divorce and custody orders can help parents avoid conflicts and better protect their rights and their children’s safety.
School Enrollment and Educational Decisions May Need Clear Court Orders
House Bill 2495 expanded parental and conservator rights related to educational decisions. Before this law, custody orders typically granted a parent or conservator the broad right to make “educational decisions” for a child, but the law didn’t clearly say whether that general right included the specific authority to choose a school or complete enrollment. This ambiguity often led to disputes: a sole managing conservator might assume the broader right covered school choice, while the other parent disagreed, and courts were repeatedly asked to settle the question. Under the new law, courts may grant one parent or conservator the specific right to decide which school a child will attend and the authority to enroll the child, when appropriate under the circumstances.
This change may become important when parents disagree about public school, private school, homeschooling, special education services, tutoring, or a move that would place the child in a different school district. By specifically separating out school designation and enrollment as their own identifiable rights, rather than leaving them folded into the general “educational decisions” language, the law may help reduce uncertainty about who has authority to make those decisions.
Educational decision-making can become one of the most important parts of a custody order. A school enrollment dispute may affect transportation, extracurricular activities, special services, and a child’s daily routine. If a court order does not clearly identify which parent has the authority to make educational decisions, including the specific rights to choose a school and complete enrollment, parents may find themselves returning to court to resolve disagreements.
Parents who are negotiating or modifying a parenting plan should pay close attention to educational rights and responsibilities. A clear court order that separately addresses general educational decision-making, school designation, and enrollment authority can help reduce confusion before the school year begins and provide schools with clear guidance regarding who has authority to make enrollment decisions for the child.
Texas Courts Have More Tools to Enforce Possession and Access Orders
House Bill 3181 gives Texas courts stronger tools for handling a parent who keeps breaking a custody order by denying the other parent’s court-ordered time with their child.
Here’s how it works. Say one parent is supposed to drop the child off every other weekend. Instead, that parent refuses to hand the child over, doesn’t show up at the pickup spot, or keeps the child past the agreed time without permission. The other parent goes to court. A judge finds the violating parent in contempt for breaking the order. That counts as one strike. Under the old law, even after several contempt findings, the penalties often stayed light. Judges could let the violating parent serve probation instead of real consequences. Judges could also waive that parent’s attorney’s fees. And the makeup time owed to the other parent was not always doubled.
The new law changes what happens once a parent reaches three contempt findings for denying possession or access. At that point, three things happen. First, the court can no longer let that parent serve probation instead of real consequences. Second, the court can no longer waive that parent’s attorney’s fees and court costs. Third, the court must order makeup time worth double what was missed. So if a parent missed an entire weekend, the other parent is now owed two weekends back.
There is also a bigger change. Three contempt findings now count, by themselves, as a “material change in circumstances.” That phrase matters a lot. Texas law normally requires a parent who wants to change custody to first prove that something significant has changed since the last order. Before this law, repeated violations of a possession order did not automatically meet that bar. Judges decided case by case. Now, three contempt findings are enough on their own. They let a parent ask the court to revisit conservatorship. This means a parent who keeps interfering with custody time could end up losing some of their rights as a result.
For families, this means visitation problems carry more weight than before. Say a parent keeps missing weekend visits or holiday time because the other parent will not cooperate. That parent now has a more direct legal path. Instead of just asking for makeup time, they can ask the court to revisit custody itself once a pattern is established.
If you are dealing with ongoing possession or visitation problems, keep detailed records. This matters more than ever. Useful records include a calendar marking missed or late exchanges, text messages or emails about scheduling, exchange logs, police reports if law enforcement got involved, school records showing pickup or drop-off issues, and notes about specific missed events like a birthday. These records help an attorney show a pattern, not just one incident. A pattern is what matters most under the new law.
Contact the Family Law Attorneys at Bailey & Galyen
Family law matters can affect nearly every aspect of your future, including your finances, your relationship with your children, and your long-term stability. Whether you are facing divorce, child custody issues, child support disputes, adoption concerns, or post-divorce modifications, understanding your rights under the latest Texas family law developments is essential.
At Bailey & Galyen, our experienced Texas family law attorneys have represented individuals and families across Texas for more than 40 years. We understand the complexities of divorce, conservatorship, possession and access, child support, adoption, and property division matters, and we are committed to helping clients pursue practical solutions tailored to their unique circumstances.
If you have questions about this Texas family law update or need guidance regarding a divorce, custody dispute, support modification, or other family law matter, contact Bailey & Galyen today.
Call Bailey & Galyen at 844-592-0436 or schedule a free consultation to discuss your case with an experienced Texas family law attorney.
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