UCCJEA and Interstate Guardianship in New York

When More Than One State Is Involved

Kinship care situations don't always stay neatly within New York's borders. The child might have been born in New Jersey and moved to your home in Queens six months ago. A parent might be incarcerated in Pennsylvania. The other parent might live in Connecticut. When more than one state has a connection to the child, you need to understand the UCCJEA — the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act — before you file anything.

The UCCJEA (codified in New York under DRL Article 5-A) determines which state has the authority to make custody and guardianship decisions. File in the wrong state and your entire case can be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction — even if you've already been through hearings and background checks.

The Home State Rule

The UCCJEA's primary test is home state jurisdiction. A state is the child's "home state" if the child lived there with a parent or person acting as a parent for at least six consecutive months immediately before the court case was filed. For children under six months old, the home state is where the child has lived with a parent or person acting as a parent since birth.

If New York is the child's home state, New York courts have jurisdiction. If the child just moved to New York from Florida three months ago, Florida may still be the home state — even though the child currently lives with you in New York.

Counting the six months includes temporary absences. If the child spent two weeks visiting a parent in New Jersey during those six months, that doesn't break the chain — New York is still the home state as long as the child's primary residence remained here.

What Happens When New York Isn't the Home State

If the child hasn't lived in New York for six consecutive months, you generally can't file a guardianship or custody petition here. You'd need to file in the home state.

There are narrow exceptions:

• No other state qualifies as the home state. If the child has moved between states so frequently that no single state meets the six-month threshold, New York may have jurisdiction if the child and at least one parent (or person acting as parent) have a significant connection to New York and there's substantial evidence available here.
• Emergency jurisdiction. If the child is present in New York and has been abandoned, or is threatened with mistreatment or abuse, New York can exercise temporary emergency jurisdiction to protect the child — even if it's not the home state. Emergency orders are temporary and must eventually be resolved in the home state.

When New York Already Has an Order

Once a New York court makes a custody determination consistent with DRL § 76 or § 76-b, it has exclusive, continuing jurisdiction until a New York or another state's court determines that the statutory conditions have ended. Under DRL § 76-a, those conditions include a finding that there is no longer a significant connection to New York and substantial evidence about the child's care and relationships is no longer available here, or that the child, the child's parents, and any person acting as a parent no longer reside in New York. This means:

• While New York retains exclusive, continuing jurisdiction, only a New York court can modify the order.
• Moving to another state does not automatically transfer jurisdiction. A court must determine whether New York's continuing-jurisdiction conditions still apply.
• A parent in another state who wants to modify the order generally must seek relief in New York while New York retains exclusive, continuing jurisdiction.

Registering Out-of-State Orders in New York

If a custody or guardianship order was issued by a court in another state and you've now moved to New York, you can register that order in New York for enforcement using UCCJEA Form UCCJEA-14 under DRL § 77-d.

Registration makes the out-of-state order enforceable in New York — police and institutions will honor it the same way they would a New York-issued order. But registration alone doesn't give New York jurisdiction to modify the order. To change the terms, you'd need either to file a modification in the original state or wait until the original state loses jurisdiction (no parties remaining there).

Serving Parents in Other States

If you're filing in New York and the respondent parent lives in another state, service of process must comply with interstate service rules under CPLR § 313. This typically means:

• Personal service in the other state by a process server authorized to serve in that jurisdiction
• Service by mail with an acknowledgment of receipt, if the other state's rules allow it

The UCCJEA also requires that you include a sworn statement in your petition disclosing where the child has lived for the past five years and identifying every custody-related proceeding involving the child in any state.

Practical Implications for Kinship Caregivers

The UCCJEA creates two common situations for kinship caregivers:

You took in the child recently. If the child moved to your home less than six months ago from another state, you may need to either wait until the six-month mark to establish New York as the home state, or file in the other state. If the child is in immediate danger, file for emergency jurisdiction in New York and get temporary protection while sorting out the longer-term filing.

A parent in another state objects. If a non-consenting parent lives outside New York and challenges jurisdiction, the judge may need to contact the other state's court to determine which state should hear the case. This is done through a formal communication between the two courts under UCCJEA procedures.

Interstate cases are among the most procedurally complex kinship scenarios. If you're dealing with a multi-state situation, consulting with an attorney experienced in interstate custody law is strongly recommended.

Our Guardianship and Custody Court Process Guide covers the UCCJEA's jurisdictional framework and explains when New York courts have authority to hear your case — so you can assess whether you're filing in the right state before investing time and effort.

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