Your Parenting Plan Sorted, Without the Legal Fog
You're separated. The kids need a schedule. And between the Commonwealth Courts Portal, FDR intake forms, and three different government agencies, the system feels designed to confuse you into paying a lawyer $400 an hour just to explain what happens next.
The Tasmania Child Custody & Parenting Plan Guide is a Court-Filing Navigation System — a step-by-step process map that takes you from "we just separated" through to a legally binding Consent Order sealed by the FCFCOA, without the guesswork that burns thousands in billable hours.
What's Inside
- The Tasmanian System Decoded — which agency does what, which court handles your application, what "custody" actually means under Australian law (hint: the word doesn't exist in the Family Law Act), and exactly what changed in the May 2024 reforms.
- FDR Preparation Framework — mandatory mediation trips up most parents because they walk in without a proposal. This chapter walks you through what to prepare, how to choose between subsidised FDR providers (Relationships Australia, CatholicCare) and private mediators, and what the Section 60I certificate actually means for your next steps.
- Age-Appropriate Schedule Builder — sample parenting schedules for infants, toddlers, primary-school children, and teenagers, with Tasmania-specific school term dates, public holidays, and long-distance arrangements for regional parents across the North-West coast, Burnie, and Devonport.
- Consent Order Filing Walkthrough — the FCFCOA requires your proposed orders in two formats: an official PDF application and an unlocked Word document with no tracked changes. This chapter shows you how to structure your proposed orders so the registrar approves them on the first pass, avoiding the rejection loop that delays families for months.
- Child Support & Care-Time Calculator — how your parenting schedule directly affects child support payments through Services Australia, including the 14%, 35%, 48%, and 52% care thresholds that shift payment obligations.
- Family Violence Chapter — how to apply for a Family Violence Order through the Magistrates Court, how FVOs interact with parenting orders, and how to claim an exemption from mandatory FDR when safety is at risk.
- Eight Standalone Printable PDFs — Separation Documentation Checklist, Parenting Schedule Planner, Holiday Rotation Schedule, Major Long-Term Decisions Agreement, Child Support Estimation, Court Filing Cost Calculator, FDR Preparation Guide, and Contact Directory — all designed to be printed individually and completed before your first mediation session or lawyer consultation.
Who This Is For
- Parents who have just separated and need a clear first step — not another government website with 47 links and no sequence
- Couples who agree on most things but need to make it legally binding without hiring two lawyers
- Parents outside Hobart and Launceston who need to manage the process remotely
- Anyone about to sit down with a lawyer and wanting to arrive prepared — so the $400/hour goes to strategy, not basic explanations
Why Not Just Use the Free Court Forms?
The FCFCOA provides blank forms for free — but the registry staff are legally prohibited from telling you how to fill them in. The Commonwealth Courts Portal has no explanatory notes. There is no checklist that tells you what order things happen in.
The government tool amica generates informal parenting agreements — but it cannot produce legally binding Consent Orders, and it charges $297 for a document that has no legal weight. AussieLegal sells template kits starting at $85.50, but they're generic across all of Australia with no guidance on Tasmanian registry practices or the Commonwealth Courts Portal filing rules.
This guide bridges the gap: for , you get the process sequence, the filing requirements, the schedule templates, and the worksheets — everything the court expects you to know but nobody explains in plain language.
Satisfaction Guarantee
If you don't find the guide useful, email us within 30 days for a full refund. No forms. No questions.
Get Started Today
Download the free Parenting Plan Starter Checklist to see the 19-step process at a glance. When you're ready for the full system — schedules, worksheets, filing walkthroughs, and the FDR preparation framework — the complete guide is .