The perfecting of an appeal shall not stay proceedings as to those provisions of a judgment or order which award, change, or otherwise affect the custody, including the right of visitation, of a minor child in any civil action, in an action filed under the Juvenile Court Law, or in a special proceeding, or the provisions of a judgment or order for the temporary exclusion of a party from a dwelling, as provided in the Family Code. However, the trial court may in its discretion stay execution of these provisions pending review on appeal or for any other period or periods that it may deem appropriate. Further, in the absence of a writ or order of a reviewing court providing otherwise, the provisions of the judgment or order allowing, or eliminating restrictions against, removal of the minor child from the state are stayed by operation of law for a period of seven calendar days from the entry of the judgment or order by a juvenile court in a dependency hearing, or for a period of 30 calendar days from the entry of judgment or order by any other trial court. The periods during which these provisions allowing, or eliminating restrictions against, removal of the minor child from the state are stayed, are subject to further stays as ordered by the trial court or by the juvenile court pursuant to this section. An order directing the return of a child to a sister state or country, including any order effectuating that return, made in a proceeding brought pursuant to the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (Part 3 (commencing with Section 3400) of Division 8 of the Family Code), the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act of 1980 (28 U.S.C. Sec.1738A), or the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (implemented pursuant to the International Child Abduction Remedies Act (22 U.S.C. Secs.9001-9011)) is not a judgment or order which awards, changes, or otherwise affects the custody of a minor child within the meaning of this section, and therefore is not subject to the automatic stay provisions of this section.
§ 917.7.Judgment Or Order Awarding, Changing Or Affecting Custody of Minor Child
Title 13. Appeals In Civil Actions · Chapter 2. Stay of Enforcement and Other Proceedings · Last amended 2022 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 917.7 leaves child custody, visitation, and dwelling-exclusion orders unstayed by an appeal by default, though the trial court may stay them in its discretion, while provisions allowing removal of a minor child from the state are automatically stayed for seven or thirty days depending on the court, subject to statutory exceptions for interstate and international return orders.
Full Text of § 917.7
Plain-English Summary
Custody-related orders work differently from the money-and-property judgments covered earlier in this chapter. An appeal does not stay provisions of a judgment or order that award, change, or otherwise affect custody or visitation of a minor child, whether in a civil action, a juvenile court proceeding, or a special proceeding, nor provisions temporarily excluding a party from a dwelling under the Family Code. The trial court can still exercise discretion to stay these provisions pending appeal, or for whatever other period it thinks appropriate.
One piece gets special, automatic treatment: provisions allowing removal of the child from the state, or eliminating restrictions against removal, are stayed by operation of law — for seven calendar days if the order came from a juvenile court in a dependency hearing, or thirty calendar days from any other trial court. Those periods can be extended by further order of the trial court or juvenile court, and a reviewing court's own writ or order can supersede them.
The statute then draws a firm line around interstate and international child-return orders. An order directing a child's return to a sister state or country under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act, or the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction isn't treated as a custody judgment or order for purposes of this section — so it doesn't get the automatic removal-related stay described above.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does appealing a custody order automatically stop it from taking effect?
No. Section 917.7 does not stay provisions awarding, changing, or affecting custody or visitation, though the trial court may stay them in its discretion.
What about a provision allowing a child to be taken out of state?
That specific provision is stayed by operation of law for seven calendar days if issued by a juvenile court in a dependency hearing, or thirty calendar days if issued by any other trial court, absent a reviewing court's order.
Does an interstate or international child-return order get that automatic removal stay?
No. Orders directing a child's return under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act, or the Hague Convention aren't treated as custody orders under this section and aren't subject to its automatic stay provisions.
Can the trial court still stay a custody order pending appeal?
Yes. Section 917.7 expressly preserves the trial court's discretion to stay these provisions pending review or for any other period it deems appropriate.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats 2021 ch 124 (AB 938),s 13, eff. 1/1/2022. Amended by Stats 2001 ch 48 (SB 1151), s 1, eff. 1/1/2002. Previously Amended September 7, 1999 (Bill Number: SB 518) (Chapter 346).
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
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