Ch. 822: Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act · Last amended 2005 · Last verified July 15, 2026
In one sentenceSection 822.02 defines the terms -- including home state, child custody determination, and person acting as a parent -- that chapter 822’s jurisdiction and enforcement rules turn on.
In this chapter: (1) “Abandoned” means left without provision for reasonable and necessary care or supervision. (2) “Child” means an individual who has not attained 18 years of age. (3) “Child custody determination” means a judgment, decree, or other order of a court providing for legal custody, physical custody, or visitation with respect to a child. The term includes a permanent, temporary, initial, and modification order. The term does not include an order relating to child support or other monetary obligation of an individual. (4) “Child custody proceeding” means a proceeding in which legal custody, physical custody, or visitation with respect to a child is an issue. The term includes a proceeding for divorce, legal separation, neglect, abuse, dependency, guardianship, paternity, termination of parental rights, and protection from domestic violence, in which the issue may appear. “Child custody proceeding” does not include a proceeding involving juvenile delinquency, contractual emancipation, or enforcement under subch. III. (5) “Commencement” means the filing of the first pleading in a proceeding, provided that service is completed in accordance with the applicable provisions of ch. 801. (6) “Court” means an entity authorized under the law of a state to establish, enforce, or modify a child custody determination. (7) “Home state” means the state in which a child lived with a parent or a person acting as a parent for at least 6 consecutive months immediately before the commencement of a child custody proceeding. In the case of a child less than 6 months of age, the term means the state in which the child lived from birth with any of the persons mentioned in this subsection. A period of temporary absence of any of the persons mentioned in this subsection is part of the period. (8) “Initial determination” means the first child custody determination concerning a particular child. (9) “Issuing court” means the court that makes a child custody determination for which enforcement is sought under this chapter. (10) “Issuing state” means the state in which a child custody determination is made. (11) “Modification” means a child custody determination that changes, replaces, supersedes, or is otherwise made after a previous determination concerning the same child, whether or not it is made by the court that made the previous determination. (12) “Person” means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, or government; governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality; public corporation; or any other legal or commercial entity.
(13) “Person acting as a parent” means a person, other than a parent, to whom all of the following apply:
(a)He or she has physical custody of the child or has had physical custody for a period of 6 consecutive months, including any temporary absence, within one year immediately before the commencement of a child custody proceeding.
(b)He or she has been awarded legal custody by a court or claims a right to legal custody under the law of this state. (14) “Physical custody” means the physical care and supervision of a child and, unless the context otherwise requires, includes physical placement. (14c) “Physical placement” has the meaning given in s. 767.001 (5). (15) “State” means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. (16) “Tribe” means an American Indian tribe or band, or Alaskan Native village, that is recognized by federal law or formally acknowledged by a state. (17) “Warrant” means an order issued by a court authorizing law enforcement officers to take physical custody of a child.
Plain-English Summary
Section 822.02 supplies the vocabulary the rest of chapter 822 relies on. Its definitions control throughout the chapter, and the most important one for jurisdiction purposes is home state: the state where a child lived with a parent or a person acting as a parent for at least six consecutive months right before a custody proceeding started. For a child under six months old, it is the state where the child has lived from birth. A temporary absence from that state still counts as part of the period.
The section also separates two terms that are easy to confuse. A child custody determination is a judgment, decree, or order that provides for legal custody, physical custody, or visitation, including permanent, temporary, initial, and modification orders, but it does not include an order for child support or another monetary obligation. A child custody proceeding is broader: it covers any proceeding where custody or visitation is an issue, including divorce, legal separation, neglect, abuse, dependency, guardianship, paternity, termination of parental rights, and protection from domestic violence, but it excludes juvenile delinquency, contractual emancipation, and enforcement proceedings under subchapter III.
A separate definition, person acting as a parent, sets a two-part test for someone who is not a parent but who wants to be treated like one for jurisdictional purposes: that person must presently have physical custody of the child, or have had physical custody for six consecutive months within the year before the proceeding started, and must have been awarded legal custody or claim a right to it under Wisconsin law. Section 822.21’s jurisdiction rules turn on whether a person meets that test.
Other definitions round out the framework: commencement means filing the first pleading with service completed under chapter 801; issuing court and issuing state identify where a determination was made; and modification means a later determination that changes, replaces, or supersedes an earlier one for the same child, whether or not the same court made both.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as the child’s home state under Wisconsin law?
Section 822.02(7) defines home state as the state where the child lived with a parent or a person acting as a parent for at least six consecutive months right before the custody proceeding started, or, for a child under six months old, the state where the child has lived from birth. A temporary absence still counts toward that period.
What is the difference between a child custody determination and a child custody proceeding?
A child custody determination is the actual judgment, decree, or order deciding legal custody, physical custody, or visitation. A child custody proceeding is the broader case in which that issue arises, covering divorce, guardianship, paternity, and several other kinds of cases listed in section 822.02(4).
Who qualifies as a person acting as a parent under chapter 822?
Section 822.02(13) requires two things: either present physical custody of the child or physical custody for six consecutive months within the year before the proceeding started, and either an award of legal custody by a court or a claimed right to legal custody under Wisconsin law.
Does a child custody determination include a child support order?
No. Section 822.02(3) expressly excludes an order relating to child support or another monetary obligation from the definition of a child custody determination.
When does a child custody proceeding commence under this chapter?
Section 822.02(5) defines commencement as the filing of the first pleading, provided that service is completed under the applicable provisions of chapter 801.
Amendment History
History: 2005 a. 130.
Source & verification. Section text and official notes are
reproduced verbatim from the Wisconsin Statutes, published by the
Wisconsin Legislature (Legislative Reference Bureau). Last verified July 15, 2026.
· Official source
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