Texas Restraining Orders

Laws current as of November 3, 2025

What is the legal definition of "family violence" in Texas?

For the purposes of getting a protective order, family violence happens when the abuser does any of the following against a family or household member:

any act that is intended to cause, or any threat that reasonably makes the victim fear immediate (imminent):
- physical harm;
- bodily injury, which is defined as physical pain, illness, or damage to your body;
- assault; or
- sexual assault;¹
any of the following acts committed against the abuser’s child:
- physical injury that causes or has a real risk of causing serious (substantial) harm to the child;
- sexual conduct harmful to a child’s mental, emotional, or physical welfare, including:
- forcing or encouraging the child to engage in:
  - sexual conduct;
  - trafficking (under sections (a)(7) or (8) of the law);
  - solicitation of prostitution; or
  - compelling prostitution (under section (a)(2) of the law);
- causing, encouraging, engaging in, or allowing pornographic or obscene photographing, filming, or depicting of the child;
- use of a drug (controlled substance) that causes physical, mental, or emotional injury to a child;
- causing, encouraging, or specifically (expressly) allowing a child to use a drug;
- causing, encouraging, engaging in, or allowing sexual performance by a child;
- forcing or pressuring (coercing) a child to get married;² or
dating violence.³

Note: It is not family violence if you act violently to protect yourself or your children and the court believes you acted in self-defense.⁴

¹ Tex. Penal Code § 1.07(a)(8); Tex. Fam. Code § 71.004(1)
² Tex. Fam. Code §§ 71.004(2); 261.001(1)(C), (1)(E), (1)(G)-(K)
³ Tex. Fam. Code § 71.004(3)
⁴ Tex. Fam. Code § 71.004(1)

What is the legal definition of "dating violence" in Texas?

Dating violence is when an abuser commits an act that is:

intended to result in physical harm, bodily injury (physical pain, illness, or damage to your physical condition)¹, assault, or sexual assault; or
a threat that reasonably places you in fear of immediate physical harm, bodily injury (physical pain, illness, or damage to your physical condition),¹ assault, or sexual assault.²

The act must be committed against:

someone with whom s/he has or had a “dating relationship;” or
the new spouse or intimate partner of someone the abuser is/was married to or in a “dating relationship” with.²

A dating relationship is defined as a relationship between people who have or had a continuing romantic or intimate relationship. To determine if a dating relationship exists, the judge will consider:

the length of the relationship;
the nature of the relationship; and
the frequency and type of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship.²

If you meet the definition of dating violence, as explained above, continue reading this section for more information about applying for a family violence protective order.³

Note: If you commit violence to protect yourself or your children and the court believes you acted in self-defense, then this is not dating violence.²

¹ Tex. Penal Code § 1.07(a)(8)
² Tex. Fam. Code § 71.0021
³ Tex. Fam. Code § 71.004(3)

Can the abuser be removed from the home?

A judge can consider excluding the abuser from the home and allow you to stay in the home (grant you “exclusive possession”) if the home is:

jointly owned or leased by you and the abuser;
owned or leased by you; or
owned or leased by the abuser and s/he has an obligation to support you or to support your child.¹

If you are asking that the abuser be excluded as part of a temporary ex parte protection order, you must prove all of the following through your affidavit and testimony:

you currently live in the residence or you have lived there within the 30 days before you filed the application;
the abuser has committed family violence against you or a member of the household within the 30 days before you filed the application; and
there is a clear and present danger that the abuser is likely to commit family violence against you or a member of the household again.²

Note: If you are asking for exclusion as part of a temporary ex parte order, the judge can postpone the hearing until the end of the same day in order to call the respondent and give him/her the opportunity to be present in court when the court resumes the hearing.²

¹ Tex. Fam. Code § 85.021(2)
² Tex. Fam. Code § 83.006

What protections can I get in a protective order?

A protective order can order the abuser to:

stop committing acts of family violence or dating violence or any acts that are reasonably likely to harass, annoy, alarm, abuse, torment, or embarrass you or your family or household member;
stop communicating with you or a family member, directly or through a third party, or stop communicating in a threatening or harassing way;
stay away from your home or workplace or those of your family or household members;
stay away from a school or daycare center attended by a child protected by the order;
complete a battering intervention and prevention program or attend counseling with someone who specializes in family violence;
follow any custody or visitation terms that the judge puts into the order;
not remove your child from your possession or from the “jurisdiction of the court”;
stop any transfer or sale of property that you own or lease with the abuser;
pay child support or spousal support for the time you have the protective order;
leave your home or other specified property and allow you to stay there if certain conditions are met;
not possess any firearms, unless the person is a peace officer actively working as a full-time paid employee of a state agency; Note: The judge is supposed to suspend the abuser’s license to carry a handgun if they have been found to have committed family violence;
not harm, threaten, or interfere with the care, custody, or control of your pet, companion animal, or assistance animal, or that of your family or household member;
not track or monitor your personal property or motor vehicle without your permission, by using either a tracking application or device, or by physically following you; and
do anything else that is necessary to prevent or reduce the likelihood of family or dating violence.¹

In addition, if you and the abuser share a cell phone plan, you can ask the judge to separate it. The judge can order that your phone number and your child’s phone number be moved from the abuser’s account into your own separate account. You would then be responsible for paying for it and have the right to use each transferred wireless telephone number.² The Texas Council on Family Violence has an FAQ booklet about transferring your cell phone number.

If your protective order includes terms related to custody or divorce, these terms will take precedence over any order from your divorce or custody case. This means that whatever the judge includes here will be enforced instead of the existing orders. This will be true for as long as the protective order is in effect, even if it is a temporary ex parte order. The order should include language saying this, but it is true even if the language is not there.³

Note: Even if the order doesn’t specifically say that the abuser has to turn over their firearms, possession of a firearm by a non-police officer who is a respondent in a protective order case is illegal under Texas state law and federal law. Please see Texas State Gun Laws and Federal Gun Laws for more information.

¹ Tex. Fam. Code §§ 85.021; 85.022
² Tex. Fam. Code §85.0225(a), (d)(3)
³ Tex. Fam. Code §§ 81.012; 85.026(b)

In which county can I file for a protective order?

You can file a petition in the county where you live, the county where the abuser lives, or any county where the family violence took place.¹ However, if you have a divorce case pending or a pending case affecting the parent-child relationship, you must file for the protective order in the court in which that case is pending or in the court in the county in which you reside (and you must notify the clerk of the pending case).²

¹ Tex. Fam. Code § 82.003
² Tex. Fam. Code § 85.062(a), (b)

Can I keep my personal information confidential?

If you or your adult family or household member asks for it, the judge must remove the address and phone number of the following places from your protective order:

your home, including the county you live in, or the home of anyone protected by the order;
your workplace or the workplace of anyone protected by the order; and
the daycare center or school of any child protected by the order.¹

Remember, however, that if you file in the county where you live, the abuser will be aware of where the court case is happening and may conclude that is where you live. You may want to make a safety plan before filing.

The judge must also make sure to:

remove the address and phone number of the three places mentioned above from the public court records and keep a confidential record of them for court use only;
remove your mailing address and county of residence from the public records of the court if it’s different than your home address. The clerk must keep a confidential record of it for court use only and cannot show it to the abuser.²

The judge must tell you and any family and household members who appear in court with you about this option to keep your information confidential.³ If you choose to keep your mailing address confidential, you will have to include the mailing address of someone else, such as a family member or friend, who will receive the mail and notices related to the case on your behalf.⁴

If you do not want the abuser to know this information about you and your family, make sure to:

tell the clerk when filing your petition; and
check the box to keep this information confidential when filling out any court forms.

¹ Tex. Fam. Code §§ 82.011; 85.007(a)
² Tex. Fam. Code §§ 82.011; 85.007(b)
³ Tex. Fam. Code § 85.007(a-1)
⁴ Tex. Fam. Code § 82.011(1)(B), (C)

If the abuser lives in a different state, can I still get an order against him/her?

When you and the abuser live in different states, the judge in your state may not have legal power (personal jurisdiction) over an out-of-state abuser. This means that the judge may not be able to grant an order against him/her.

However, there are a few ways that a judge can get personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state abuser:

The abuser has a substantial connection to your state. Perhaps the abuser regularly travels to your state to visit you, to see extended family, or for business, or the abuser lived in your state and recently fled.
One of the acts of abuse “happened” in your state. Perhaps the abuser sends you threatening texts or harassing phone calls from another state but you read the messages or answer the calls while you are in your state. The judge could decide that the abuse “happened” to you while you were in your state. It may also be possible that the abuser was in your state when s/he abused you but s/he has since left the state.
If you file your petition and the abuser gets served with the court petition while s/he is in your state, this is another way for the court to get jurisdiction.

Even if none of the above apply to your situation, you may still be able to get an order. If you file, the abuser may agree to an order “on consent” or the judge may decide there are other reasons to grant the order.

You can read more about personal jurisdiction in our Court System Basics - Personal Jurisdiction section.

Note: If the judge in your state refuses to give you an order, you can file in the courthouse in the abuser’s state. However, you will likely need to file the petition in person and attend various court dates. This could be difficult if the abuser’s state is far away.

Legal Information: Texas