If you and your child’s other parent are going your separate ways, you are likely both concerned about being able to maintain – and possibly even strengthen – the bonds that each of you has with your child as you navigate this major family transition. One approach that could potentially facilitate this aim involves including virtual visitation terms within the text of your parenting plan.
Virtual visitation is a catchall term that refers to methods of communication that parents use to remain connected when their child is residing with their other parent. Common methods of virtual visitation include:
- Video chats
- Phone calls
- Texts
- Postal mail
- Audio recordings
- Social media
Both you and your co-parent can potentially benefit from any virtual visitation terms that you negotiate or litigate as part of your parenting plan arrangements.
The benefits of virtual visitation
It is no secret that children – regardless of their age – crave stability. By allowing the parent with whom they are not currently residing to communicate with them, they will likely feel as if their relationships with both parents are more stable. Virtual visitation can also allow the parent at a distance to remain more invested and present than they otherwise might be able to do.
The benefits of virtual visitation can be heightened when the age, communication style and unique needs of the affected child are taken into account. For example, reading a small child a bedtime story and texting with a teen after practice might be age-appropriate ways to make the most of the situation at hand.
With that being said if you have any questions about how best to address virtual visitation, legal guidance can help you understand more about your options at any time.
