Relocation Support Unmarried Spouse

by Destiny from Florida

If I was never married to my son's father and he is throwing me out of the house that we share together, does he have to provide financial relocation assistance?

Answer to Florida Child Custody Question

Dear Destiny,

Unfortunately, there is no law in Florida I am aware of stating that your son's father has to pay for relocation expenses.

However, you do have a few options available to you for compensation to help get you on your feet.

The first option is child support as long as you have custody of your son.

You should speak to a legal aid office or an attorney in order to establish paternity, a custody agreement (parenting plan) and child support.

The amount of child support that one parent pays another in the state of Florida is determined by the Child Support Guidelines outlined in the Florida statutes.

If you currently do not have child support set up, you can contact the Florida Department of Revenue for their assistance.

Child support and child custody are two distinctly different matters, and the Department of Revenue (DOR) only helps you to establish child support amounts, medical insurance, and paternity if you were unmarried at the time of your son’s birth and the father did not sign the birth certificate.

The DOR will work with you and the son’s father to work out an agreement between the two of you, or it will set up a hearing where a judge will review all financial information and decide the amount and type of support necessary for your son.

Another very rare option that might be available to you, is commonly called "palimony" and is much harder to obtain. While there is a basis for palimony, it is not tried under family law, but under civil contract law.

While there is a basis in case law for palimony in Florida, unless you can prove there was a written or verbal contract between you and your ex, you will probably not have much of a case. If you seek this option, it is highly recommended to consult a Florida attorney to go over the options and possibility of winning a case.

My suggestion is to contact the DOR to set up child support and/or file a Petition for Paternity to establish custody, visitation, time-sharing, paternity, and child support. Have a look at the following pages on our site for more information about paternity, child support, child custody and time-sharing in Florida...

Florida Child Custody Forms

Petition To Determine Paternity Form 12.983(a)

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