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The Florida Parenting Plan: Everything the Court Requires

Reviewed by the Amicably document team · Updated August 6, 2026

If your Florida divorce involves a minor or dependent child, or you are pregnant when you file, the court requires a Parenting Plan, Florida Family Law Form 12.995(a), before it will enter a final judgment. It is the document that spells out parental responsibility, the time-sharing schedule, and who decides what for your child, and both parents sign it under oath.

This guide walks through what the form has to cover, who actually needs one, and how it gets completed, signed, and filed as part of an uncontested Florida case.

What the Parenting Plan form is

The Parenting Plan is Florida Family Law Form 12.995(a), the standard, court-approved plan every case with a minor or dependent child needs on file before a judge signs a final judgment. It opens by identifying whether the plan is agreed, proposed, or court-established, and whether it is a final plan, a temporary one, or a modification of an existing plan.

Two related versions exist for situations this plan is not built for: Form 12.995(b), a supervised or safety-focused plan for cases where time-sharing needs restriction, and Form 12.995(c), for cases involving a parent relocating. This guide covers the standard 12.995(a) used in agreed, uncontested cases.

Who actually needs one

A parenting plan is required only when a case involves a minor or dependent child, including when the wife is pregnant at filing even though the child is not yet born. It is not part of every Florida divorce.

Simplified Dissolution, Amicably's fastest package, is only available when there are no minor or dependent children and no pregnancy involved, so it never includes a parenting plan. The standard Uncontested package for couples without children does not need one either. A parenting plan applies to Amicably's Uncontested-with-Children package, where it is filed alongside the petition, the UCCJEA affidavit, the financial affidavits, the child support worksheet, and the marital settlement agreement.

That package also runs on a slightly longer clock than a childless case: where an uncontested divorce without children typically finishes 5 to 8 weeks after filing, a case with children typically takes 6 to 10 weeks, largely because the parenting plan, the support worksheet, and both parents' course certificates all need to be in the file before a judge will finalize it.

What the plan has to cover

The form is built around six areas the court expects every plan to address, whether your family's answers are simple or detailed:

The instructions on the form itself tell you to delete or strike through any paragraph that does not apply to your family rather than leaving it blank, so a finished plan should read as specific to your situation, not as a generic template. It opens with checkboxes marking whether the plan is agreed, proposed, or established by the court, and whether it is final, temporary, or a modification of an existing order, so the reader knows the plan's status before reaching the substance.

Shared or sole parental responsibility

Florida law recognizes two ways to share parental responsibility. Shared parental responsibility means both parents confer and agree on major decisions together, such as education, health care, and religious upbringing. Sole parental responsibility gives one parent authority to decide without needing the other parent's agreement, and it is reserved for situations where shared decision-making genuinely is not workable.

A middle option lets a plan keep shared responsibility overall but give one parent final say over a specific category, like school choice, without moving the whole plan to sole responsibility. Whichever fits your family, it is a choice the two of you make, not a default Amicably fills in: a parenting plan records customer elections, not boilerplate.

How it gets completed, signed, and filed

1. Each parent answers the same set of questions about responsibility, schedule, and decision-making, so the plan reflects what you have already agreed.
2. Amicably merges both parents' answers into one completed Form 12.995(a), formatted the way the court expects.
3. A specialist reviews the plan for completeness before it goes to signing.
4. Both parents sign the plan under oath in Amicably's guided video notarization session.
5. The signed plan becomes part of your complete packet, ready for you to file yourself through Florida's e-filing portal with step-by-step guidance.

Where it fits in your case timeline

The parenting plan does not sit on its own separate schedule; it moves through the same case as everything else, alongside two deadlines specific to cases with children.

1. Day 0The petition and the proposed parenting plan are filed together, opening the case.
2. Day 0 to 45Each parent completes the required Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course: the petitioner within 45 days of filing, the other parent within 45 days of being served.
3. Day 20+Florida's 20-day waiting period passes before a final judgment can be entered.
4. Final hearingThe plan is confirmed at the short final hearing and becomes part of the final judgment, Form 12.990(b)(1).

The course itself is not part of Amicably's fee: it is set by the provider, typically $15 to $40 per parent, paid directly to them. Every county except Duval accepts an online course from a DCF-approved provider; Duval requires its own in-person, circuit-approved course instead.

Common mistakes that cause delays

• Signing before the schedule is final. The plan you notarize should be the plan you intend to file. Changes after notarization mean signing again.
• Vague schedule language. "Every other weekend" without dates or a fixed starting point invites disputes later and can read as incomplete to the court.
• Leaving the parenting course until the last minute. Both parents must finish it before final judgment, so starting late is a common cause of a delayed hearing.
• A missing signature or notarization. Both parents' signatures must be sworn before a notary or deputy clerk; a plan filed with one blank is not complete.

Frequently asked questions