Makeup Visitation in Texas: How to Get Missed Time Back

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If you missed court-ordered time with your child, or the other parent kept it from you, Texas gives you two routes to get it back. You can agree on replacement time with the other parent, or you can ask a judge to order it in an enforcement case. Which route fits depends on why the time was missed, what your order says, and what records you have.

This guide walks through both routes step by step. It covers the notice you owe, how to write an agreement, how to document a denied visit, and what Texas Family Code Section 157.168 allows a court to award.

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TL;DR

Makeup visitation is replacement time for scheduled periods of possession that were missed. Parents can agree to it, or a court can order it in an enforcement case.
If you cannot use your time, most possession schedules require at least 24 hours of written notice. Ask for makeup time in that same message.
A court-ordered makeup period must be the same type and duration as the time denied, and it must happen within two years of the court’s finding of denial.
To enforce, you generally need to have appeared at the pickup location named in your order, and you need a record of the date, time and place.
A 2025 amendment changed the default in Section 157.168 from “may” to “shall” in many situations. Ask an attorney how it applies to your order.

What makeup visitation means in Texas
Step 1: Give written notice when you cannot use your time
Step 2: Put any agreement in writing
Step 3: When the other parent denied your time
How Section 157.168 works
How to file a motion to enforce
What a judge can do beyond makeup time
Our perspective
Get help with a missed or denied visit
Common mistakes that cost parents time
FAQ
Sources

What makeup visitation means in Texas

Texas courts use the terms conservatorship, possession and access. Many parents still say custody and visitation. Makeup visitation is the everyday name for replacing time a parent lost under the possession schedule.

Texas Law Help describes makeup visitation as parents or conservators agreeing to make up or reschedule visits that were missed during scheduled visitation. The same resource explains that a court can also order makeup visitation as additional periods of possession or access, as compensation, in an enforcement lawsuit.

That gives you two distinct situations:

Cooperative makeup time. A work trip, illness or travel problem got in the way, and both parents are willing to reschedule.
Compensatory makeup time. The other parent did not follow the order, and you need a judge to award replacement time.

The steps below are different for each. Start by working out which one you are in. If you want a refresher on how the baseline schedule works, our guide to the Standard Possession Order in Texas explains the weekends, Thursdays, holidays and summer periods that makeup time is measured against.

Step 1: Give written notice when you cannot use your time

When you are the parent who cannot make a scheduled visit, the first move is notice. Texas Law Help explains that most possession schedules require at least 24 hours of prior written notice if you cannot exercise your visitation, and that you should ask for makeup time when you give it. Read your own order, because the notice terms in your order control.

A good notice message:

Is in writing (text, email or a co-parenting app), not just a phone call.
Names the specific weekend, holiday or Thursday you cannot use.
Says why, briefly and without argument.
Proposes one or two replacement dates and times.
Is sent as early as you can, and at least within the notice period in your order.

Here is a plain example: “I am traveling for work the weekend of the 14th and cannot pick up on Friday. Could I have the following weekend, Friday at 6:00 pm to Sunday at 6:00 pm, as makeup time? I will handle both exchanges.”

Keep a record of every exchange

Written notice only helps if you can show it later. Save screenshots and keep the original messages. A dedicated journal for exchanges, messages and parenting time keeps all of it in one place. A guide to proving parenting time shows how a timeline of handovers and messages can be assembled into evidence you can hand to a judge or attorney.

Step 2: Put any agreement in writing

If the other parent says yes, do not leave it as a verbal understanding. Texas Law Help says the written agreement should specify the days and times, who handles pickup and drop-off, and other details. It also notes that the agreement can be filed as a Rule 11 Agreement if the case is ongoing or if the schedule is meant to be officially changed.

A workable agreement includes:

The date and time of the missed possession it replaces
The exact start and end of the makeup period
Who picks up and who drops off, and where
A statement that the makeup time does not change the regular schedule
Signatures or written acceptance from both parents

Two cautions. First, a one-time swap of weekends is different from changing the schedule going forward. If you want a lasting change, talk to an attorney about a modification rather than stacking informal swaps. Second, an informal agreement does not give you the same protection as a court order if the other parent later backs out.

Step 3: When the other parent denied your time

Sometimes the missed visit was not your choice. The other parent refused the exchange, was not home, or kept the child. This is where records matter most.

Show up and document the attempt

Texas Law Help’s enforcement guide says that a parent is not technically denied visitation unless they actually appear in person at the pickup location in the court order, even if the other parent said in advance that no one would be there. Many parents are surprised by this. A text saying “don’t come” does not replace going to the exchange point.

The same resource advises getting evidence that you were at the right place, date and time. Examples it lists are a witness, receipts from a nearby store, or a police report. It also recommends keeping a visitation journal.

For each attempted pickup, record:

The date, the time you arrived and the time you left
The exact address and whether it matches your order
Names of anyone who was with you or saw you
Receipts, photos with timestamps or other proof of presence
Every call and message you sent, and any reply

If you are enforcing a holiday period, our article on documenting holiday visitation denials breaks the process into five steps. Summer periods have their own deadlines, covered in our summer possession checklist.

Testifying under oath

Texas Law Help notes that to enforce a visitation order, you need evidence to testify under oath that you were at the right place, time and day stated in the order and that the other parent did not allow visitation. Your journal is what lets you answer those questions precisely rather than from memory.

How Section 157.168 works

The statute that governs court-ordered makeup time is Texas Family Code Section 157.168. According to the Texas Children’s Commission benchbook version, the court may order additional possession or access to compensate for a denial. The additional periods must be the same type and duration as those denied, may include weekend, holiday and summer periods, and must occur by the second anniversary of the court’s finding of denial. The person denied possession chooses the time, subject to the same type and duration requirement.

Feature	What the statute says
Purpose	Compensate the parent who was denied court-ordered possession or access
Type and duration	Same type and same length as the denied time
Types of time	Can include weekend, holiday and summer periods
Deadline to use it	By the second anniversary of the court’s finding of denial
Who picks the time	The parent who was denied, within those limits

What “same duration” means

A State Bar of Texas practice resource states that the same type and duration means the same amount of time, and that awarding more makeup time than was denied is an abuse of discretion. If you lost one weekend, expect to ask for one weekend, not two.

The same resource confirms that makeup time must be ordered within the two-year limit in Section 157.168(a)(3). Do not wait to see whether the problem fixes itself.

The 2025 change from “may” to “shall”

The enrolled text of HB 3181, effective September 1, 2025, amends Section 157.168 so that, unless good cause exists, a court shall order additional periods of possession or access instead of only having the option to. The bill also adds a provision allowing a total of twice the duration of the denied periods after at least three prior contempt findings for denial of court-ordered possession or access.

HB 3181 makeup visitation provisions and conditions

There is also a specific rule for denials that result from a child protective services investigation. Section 157.168(a-1) requires a court, unless a party shows good cause, to order additional periods to compensate for a denial resulting from a DFPS investigation that did not result in a finding of abuse or neglect.

Because the statute has changed recently, how a judge applies it to your facts is a question for a family law attorney who works in your county’s courts.

How to file a motion to enforce

If the other parent will not agree to makeup time, or has repeatedly denied possession, the formal route is a motion to enforce. Texas Law Help says you can ask in that motion for additional parenting or makeup time. The motion must identify the order provision that was violated, state how the other parent failed to comply, specify the relief you want, and include the date, place and, where applicable, time of each failure.

The Family Code backs this up: a motion for enforcement of possession or access must include the date, place and time of each occasion of noncompliance.

A practical sequence:

Gather your order. Mark the exact provision that was violated, such as the Friday pickup or a holiday period.
Build a violation list. One line per incident with date, time, place and what happened.
Attach your proof. Messages, journal entries, receipts, witness names and any police report.
Decide what to ask for. Texas Law Help notes that courts are often limited to the relief requested in the motion, so list makeup time and any other remedies you want.
File and serve. Follow your county’s local procedures for setting a hearing.
Prepare to testify. Know your dates, times and locations cold.

Deadlines for enforcement matter too. Our article on court-ready custody enforcement in Texas covers timing, and our custody hearing checklist helps you get ready for the courtroom.

What a judge can do beyond makeup time

Makeup time is one remedy among several. Texas Law Help explains that a motion for enforcement can lead to contempt. Criminal contempt can result in jail, while civil contempt may include makeup visitation. It lists other possible relief, including fines, community supervision and reimbursement of visitation-related expenses. A judge generally works within what your motion asks for.

Under Texas Family Code Chapter 157, a motion for enforcement can be filed to enforce any provision of a temporary or final order, and the court may enforce by contempt.

Our perspective

In our practice, the parents who recover lost time most smoothly are the ones who treated the first missed visit as a documentation moment, not just a disappointment. They sent the written notice, kept the journal and showed up at the exchange point.

We also see parents wait because they do not want to escalate. We understand that. Makeup time is not about punishing the other parent. It is about protecting your relationship with your child and keeping the order meaningful. When a pattern forms, a clear, well-organized motion is often more calming than months of arguing over text.

Our approach is to explain exactly where your case stands, what your order allows and what a realistic request looks like, so you are never guessing. We prepare the violation list, the exhibits and the testimony with you, and we tell you plainly when an agreement will serve you better than a hearing.

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Get help with a missed or denied visit

If you are weighing a written agreement, a modification or a motion to enforce, we can review your order and your records and tell you what is realistic. Our child custody and support practice handles enforcement, modifications and paternity cases for families in The Woodlands, Houston and surrounding communities.

To talk through your situation, reach out through our main site and bring your current order, your calendar of missed visits and any messages.

Common mistakes that cost parents time

Relying on a phone call. If it is not written down, you cannot prove you gave notice or that the other parent agreed.
Skipping the exchange. If the other parent says no one will be there and you stay home, you may not have a denial you can enforce.
Vague dates. A motion needs the date, place and time of each incident.
Asking for too little. Because judges often stay within the relief requested, list the makeup time and other remedies you want.
Waiting too long. Makeup periods must occur within two years of the court’s finding, so delay can shrink your options.
Informal swaps that become a new schedule. Repeated informal changes can blur what your order actually requires. Consider formalizing lasting changes.

If your concern is a pattern across holidays, supervised time or a move out of state, these pages may help: supervised visitation orders and interstate custody issues.

FAQ

Can I get makeup visitation if I was the one who missed the visit?

Often yes, if the other parent agrees. Give written notice at least 24 hours ahead where your schedule requires it, and ask for makeup time in the same message. A court-ordered remedy under Section 157.168 is aimed at parents who were denied possession, so a voluntary written agreement is usually the route when you missed the time yourself.

How much makeup time can a court award?

The additional periods must be the same type and duration as the time that was denied. They may include weekend, holiday or summer periods and must occur by the second anniversary of the court’s finding of denial. The parent who was denied chooses the time, within those limits.

Do I have to show up if the other parent told me not to come?

Texas Law Help says a parent is not technically denied visitation unless they appear in person at the pickup location named in the order. Go to the exchange point, document your presence, and keep proof such as a witness, receipt or police report.

Is a text message agreement enough?

A written text agreement is far better than a verbal one, but it is not the same as a court order. If the change is ongoing or your case is open, a Rule 11 Agreement can be filed. Ask an attorney which option fits your order.

Sources

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