On September 1, 2025, several changes to the Texas Family Code went into effect. The changes will affect many aspects of divorce and child custody cases, including child support, who has standing to file a family lawsuit, protective orders, new requirements parties need to meet when filing suit (certified birth certificates, affidavits) and more.
We cover some of the Texas Family Code changes here but encourage you to contact your family law attorney to find out how these changes may affect you.
Need to speak with a divorce or child custody attorney now? Contact the Sisemore Law Firm in Fort Worth to review your case.
What the 2025 Texas Family Code changes mean for Texas families
If you have a divorce or child custody case pending, are planning to file or you have existing orders in place, the 2025 TFC changes may have a significant impact on you and your family. The new laws:
- May impact anyone paying or receiving child support, as the child support cap increased;
- Further limit the ability of third parties (step parents, non-biological same-sex parents, foster parents) to have standing to file for custody, visitation or access;
- Require certain parties to provide more information at case inception when filing a law suit in the family courts, bringing more clarity up front and stalling meritless cases early on;
- Make it easier for non-custodial parents to get more visitation time (ESPOs are now standard);
- Streamline the protective order process during divorce and child custody cases in an effort to enhance protection of parties subject to family violence;
- And more.
Since the changes are extensive and affect a wide variety of cases, our firm strongly encourages anyone with a past or pending case in the Texas family courts to contact their family law attorney for guidance.
Texas’ new child support laws 2025: What changed?
There is one pretty big change of note that took effect under the new child support law. Texas legislators increased the child support cap on net monthly resources from $9,200 to $11,700, effective September 1, 2025. This means that any case pending as of September 1, 2025, or filed on or after that date, would likely be subject to that cap. That amounts to a monthly increase in child support of $500 to $1,000 per month, depending on net income and the number of children.
| Number of Children | Old Cap: $9,200 | New Cap: $11,700 | Increase |
| 1 child (20%) | $1,840 | $2,340 | $500 |
| 2 children (25%) | $2,300 | $2,925 | $625 |
| 3 children (30%) | $2,760 | $3,510 | $750 |
| 4 children (35%) | $3,220 | $4,095 | $875 |
| 5+ children (40%) | $3,680 | $4,680 | $1,000 |
The timing isn’t exactly a surprise, as the Texas Attorney General generally reevaluates the child support cap every six years. The goal of these increases is to ensure that cost of living adjustments are addressed and child support obligations better align with current economic conditions.
How will Texas’ new laws starting September 1st affect Texas families with child support orders?
On the one hand, the Texas child support cap increase from 1999 to 2025 (27%) is significant. On the other hand, six years is a long time between increases—our world has changed a lot in that time. So, what does the increase mean for Texas children and their parents?
Many children will benefit due to the additional financial support
In light of the staggering inflation and high interest rates of recent years, many parents who receive child support will breathe a sigh of relief upon hearing this news. Most important, the increase will help provide more financial resources that will directly benefit children, because it should help compensate for skyrocketing child rearing costs.
Parents who earn a net monthly income close to the cap may struggle
For parents ordered to pay child support, Texas’ new law will have a bigger impact on higher wage earners, especially those who actually earn a monthly income that runs close to the new cap ($140,400 annually). While an increase of up to $1,000 per month may not be an issue for a multi-million-dollar professional athlete, the increase might be tough to manage for a senior manager earning a salary right around $140,000.00 a year.
That’s not to say lower income earners won’t struggle with the increase but I’ve always questioned the cap, especially for some wealthy individuals who don’t feel obligated to pay more. Ultimately, Texas child support guidelines serve as a starting point, and the Court with jurisdiction over the family law matter still has final say on child support orders.
IMPORTANT: Existing child support orders won’t automatically change under the new law
For parents who currently pay child support, Texas’ new law won’t automatically trigger an increase in monthly child support. In order to modify child support, a parent would need to petition the court for a modification and meet statutory grounds required to do so. That includes showing that a material and substantial change has occurred and/or three years have passed since child support orders were last modified.
What does this mean for Texas parents? The parent receiving the support (obligee) could file if they believe the other parent makes more than the previous net cap at $9,200 a month. Conversely, the parent paying the support (obligor) should anticipate a filing if they make more than the previous net cap at $9,200 a month. For more details on modifications, read our blog on grounds for modification of custody in Texas.
If you have questions about new Texas child support laws and you live in the Dallas / Fort Worth metroplex, contact the Sisemore Law Firm in Fort Worth to get answers.
Some third parties will face more roadblocks after the Texas family code changes
When biological parents are unable or willing to care for a child, third parties often step up to provide the emotional and financial support a child needs. Due to a series of changes to Texas family laws, some third parties will find it more difficult to show they have a legal standing to file a law suit seeking access, possession or custody of a child. Parties affected may include:
- Step parents
- Non-biological parent in a same-sex marriage or relationship
- Foster parents
Some of the key changes involving standing to file, include:
“Actual” care, control and possession changed to “exclusive”
In the past, interested third parties who had “actual care, control, and possession” of a child for six months and no more than 90 days prior to filing suit, generally had standing to file. Texas Family Code 102.003(a)(9) now states that a party—other than a party who had a child placed with them by Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS)—would generally have standing to file if they had “exclusive care, control, and possession of the child for at least six months ending not more than 90 days preceding the date of the filing of the petition.”
What does this mean? In the past, a person who had care, control and possession of a child for the requisite time frame could have standing to get conservatorship or possession and access, meaning not just a biological or adoptive parent, but a relative, family friend or step-parent. Now, it requires “exclusive” care and control, meaning it narrows the pool of people who could theoretically have standing to get time with a child.
Step-parent standing to file upon parent’s death eliminated
Step-parent standing—formerly known as Sec. 102.003(a)(11)—was completely removed from the Texas Family Code. By eliminating the law, which allowed a party who resided with a child’s parent, guardian or managing conservator (P/G/MC) to file suit upon the P/G/MC’s death—step parents and same-sex partners no longer have a clear path to custody like they once did.
More restrictions for foster parents seeking custody
In the past, foster parents caring for a child placed with them by the DFPS had standing to file suit if the child resided with them for 12 months, ending not more than 90 days prior to filing. The new Texas Family Code Sec. 102.003(a)(11) (formerly (12)) now precludes foster parents from filing suit if the child has been returned to the parent for a monitored return during that time or placed with the parent and DFPS dismissed the lawsuit.
While frustrating for some foster parents, the revised law appears to reinforce the state’s commitment to reunite children in foster care with their biological parents.
Other notable reforms included in the 2025 Texas family law changes
Expanded Standard Possession Order (ESPO) is now standard
This change will afford more possession time to non-possessory conservators who live within 50 miles of their children. Compared to Standard Possession Orders (the “old” standard), ESPOs give non-custodial parents possession of children on Thursday nights and extend the child’s stay from Sunday evenings to Monday mornings on their assigned weekends.
While not the same as 50/50 custody in Texas, ESPOs do allow children to spend near equal time with both parents, something the state of Texas believes is generally better for children than spending the majority of time with one parent.
Effective Sept. 1, 2025 for new custody orders. Parents with existing custody orders would need to request a modification if they want to transition to an ESPO.
Courts required to be more proactive about protective orders, family violence
This new legislation puts family violence right in the state’s crosshairs. Judges handling divorce and custody cases will now be required to access and fully review any existing protective orders or acts of family violence involving parties named in those cases. (See Texas Family Code Chapter 85 (Protective Orders) and Chapter 153 (Conservatorship, Possession, and Access)).
The goal is to streamline the process for issuing protective orders at the inception of divorce and custody cases and enhance protections for spouses and children when threats of family violence are at issue.
Effective Sept. 1, 2025 for all cases pending or filed on or after Sept. 1, 2025.
Affidavits are now required for non-parents (new and existing cases)
Effective immediately, any non-parent (party who is not a biological or adoptive parent) who files a suit with a Texas family court, must now attach an affidavit to the case file. Affidavits must provide evidence to show the party meets standing requirements, as discussed above, and that denying relief would significantly impair the child in question’s physical health and/or emotional development.
This really is a win for the family court system because it requires that justification for filing is clearly stated up front, and hopefully, more cases without merit will be thrown out early on.
Effective Sept. 1, 2025 for all new and pending cases.
Certified copy of birth certificate must be attached to the petition (if available)
Texas Family Code 102.008 (c-1), states that petitioners must now attach a certified birth certificate along with their filings—if available—or include a statement explaining why they can’t produce a copy. If a copy is available from another party the court may request that party provide it. If no copy exists, the court will require parties to provide alternate proof of a child’s parentage.
Birth certificates include information (date of birth, identity, parents’ names, etc.) that is central to custody disputes. Having this document available at the inception of a case makes sense because it can provide more clarity in family court proceedings up front, but it can be difficult for some to ascertain.
Contact our law firm to clarify how Texas Family Code changes may affect you
If you live in the Dallas / Fort Worth area and have questions about Texas’ new child support laws, third-party standing, adoption or how other 2025 family law changes may impact your divorce or custody case, our divorce and child custody lawyers are here to help. Contact us to schedule a confidential consultation today.
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2025 Texas Family Code Updates FAQS
How will changes in the Texas child support new law affect my current child support order?
Your current Texas child support orders will remain valid until you or the other parent files a modification to change child support. In order to do so, parents will still need to show that a material and substantial change in circumstances has occurred and/or three years have passed since the child support orders were last modified in order to modify existing child support orders.
Do the 2025 changes to Texas family laws affect the percentage rates used for child support per child?
No, the percentage rates in the Texas child support guidelines remain the same following Texas new laws starting September 1st, 2025. The percentage of net monthly resources a parent will be obliged to pay remain 20% for one child, 25% for two children, 30% for three children, 35% for four children and 40% for five children or more, unless the court rules otherwise.
Are there any groups that gain standing to file under the new law?
Yes, more relatives now have standing to file a suit for visitation, access or custody under the revised laws. Texas Family Code Sec. 102.003(a)(12) (formerly (13)) expands the degree of consanguinity from three to four degrees, which means great grandparents, great aunts and uncles, second cousins, etc., now have a clearer path to file.
Who loses standing following 2025 Texas Family Code changes?
Step parents and non-biological same-sex parents “stand” to lose the most following the big Texas family law change of 2025. There is simply no clear path forward for them if they want to file suit for custody, visitation or access to their step children. The impact also rolls over to blended families who will face an uphill battle if one of the biological parents in that family dies. Since step parents likely won’t have standing, any children left behind may end up with biological family members who do have standing to file.
