Georgia Divorce Parenting Plan and Parenting Class Requirements

Every Georgia divorce involving minor children requires two things before the judge will sign a final decree: a written Parenting Plan filed with the court, and proof that both parents completed a court-approved parenting seminar. Miss either one and your divorce cannot be finalized, no matter how clean the rest of your filing is.

What Goes in a Georgia Parenting Plan

A Georgia Parenting Plan is a detailed document that becomes a binding court order once incorporated into the final decree. It must address:

Legal custody — which parent has decision-making authority for major decisions about the child's education, healthcare, religious training, and extracurricular activities. Georgia allows sole legal custody (one parent decides) or joint legal custody (both parents share decisions).

Physical custody — where the child primarily lives. The Parenting Plan specifies the primary custodial parent and the other parent's parenting time schedule.

Regular parenting time schedule — the specific days and times each parent has the child during a normal week, including pickup/dropoff logistics.

Holiday and vacation schedule — how holidays, school breaks, and summer vacation are divided. Be specific: which parent has the child on Thanksgiving in even years vs. odd years, when spring break starts and ends, how summer vacation weeks are allocated.

Communication provisions — how the non-custodial parent communicates with the child (phone calls, video calls), and at what times.

Relocation provisions — what happens if either parent wants to move, including notice requirements and distance thresholds that trigger a modification hearing.

Decision-making in emergencies — who makes medical decisions if the child needs emergency care and the other parent is unreachable.

Common Parenting Plan Mistakes

• Too vague — "reasonable visitation" creates arguments. Judges prefer specific days, times, and handoff locations.
• No holiday schedule — if you don't address holidays, both parents show up expecting the child on Christmas morning.
• Ignoring school calendars — summer and holiday schedules should reference the actual school district calendar, not generic dates.
• No provisions for age changes — a schedule that works for a toddler may not work for a teenager. Consider including age-based transitions.

Child Support Worksheet

Alongside the Parenting Plan, you must file a Child Support Worksheet calculated through the Georgia Child Support Commission's online calculator. The worksheet uses both parents' gross monthly incomes to determine the presumptive child support obligation under Georgia's income-shares model.

You also need a Child Support Addendum that translates the worksheet numbers into enforceable court-order language — specifying who pays, how much, when payments are due, and how long the obligation lasts.

Mandatory Parenting Seminar

Georgia judicial circuits require both parents to attend a court-approved parenting seminar focused on:

• The psychological impact of divorce on children at different developmental stages
• Co-parenting communication strategies
• Keeping children out of parental conflict
• How to handle transitions between households

Key rules:

• Both parents must attend, but not together — you take the class separately
• Most seminars run 4 to 6 hours and are available online
• Cost is typically $30 to $50 per parent
• Each parent files their certificate of completion with the clerk of court
• The judge will not sign the final decree until both certificates are on file

Fulton County uses the "Families in Transition" program. Other counties have their own approved providers — check with your county clerk or the court's website for the list of accepted programs.

If you've been approved for a Pauper's Affidavit, the seminar fee may also be waived.

Timing Matters

The parenting seminar must be completed and certificates filed before the final decree, but there's no requirement to finish it before filing the divorce. Start the class early in the process — waiting until the end adds unnecessary delay when everything else is ready for the judge's signature.

Similarly, prepare the Parenting Plan during the initial filing stage (Phase 2 of the process). For uncontested cases, both parents negotiate and sign the plan before filing. For contested cases, each parent may submit competing proposed plans for the judge to evaluate.

Putting It All Together

The Parenting Plan, Child Support Worksheet, and seminar certificates are three of the documents that must be filed correctly for a divorce with children to finalize in Georgia. The Georgia Divorce Filing Process Guide includes the full document sequence and explains where each child-related form fits in the filing package.

See more Georgia guides →