FL-105 UCCJEA Declaration: When You Need It and How to Complete It

If you have minor children and you're filing for divorce in California, there's a form you can't skip: the FL-105. Its full name is the Declaration Under Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, and every family law filing that involves children requires it. The clerk will not accept your FL-100 Petition without it.

The FL-105 exists because custody disputes can involve more than one state. If parents live in different states, or if the children have moved recently, the court needs to determine whether California is the right place to make custody decisions. The UCCJEA is the law that answers that question, and the FL-105 is the form that provides the court with the information it needs.

Most people filing for divorce in California will find this form straightforward, especially if the children have lived in California for their entire lives. But even in simple cases, small errors or missing information can result in a deficiency notice from the clerk, sending you back to fix and refile the form. This guide walks you through each section so you can get it right the first time.

What Is the FL-105 and Why Does It Exist?

The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA) is a law adopted by every state, including California. Its purpose is to prevent conflicting custody orders from being issued by courts in different states. Without it, one parent could file for custody in California while the other files in a different state, resulting in two competing orders.

The FL-105 collects the information the court needs to apply the UCCJEA. Specifically, it asks where the children have lived for the past five years, whether any other custody proceedings exist anywhere in the country (or the world), and whether anyone else claims custody of the children.

Even if your situation seems simple, the court still needs this form on file before it can make any custody orders. It's not a formality that gets waived because both parents live in California. It's a jurisdictional requirement.

Who Needs to File the FL-105?

Both parties. The petitioner files their FL-105 alongside the FL-100 Petition and FL-110 Summons. The respondent files their own FL-105 alongside their FL-120 Response.

The fact that your spouse already filed an FL-105 does not excuse you from filing your own. The court wants to hear from both parents independently about the children's living history and any other custody proceedings.

If you are not the biological or adoptive parent of the children but have a custody claim (for example, a grandparent or stepparent), you may also need to file this form. The specific requirements depend on the type of case.

How to Fill Out the FL-105: Section by Section

Caption Block

The top of the form is the standard caption block. Fill in the court name and address, your name (as petitioner or respondent), the other party's name, and the case number. If you are the petitioner filing alongside the FL-100, you won't have a case number yet. Leave that blank and the clerk will assign one at filing.

Important: Use the exact same spelling of names across all forms. If your FL-105 has a different name spelling than your FL-100 or FL-110, the clerk may flag the inconsistency and require corrections before accepting your filing.

Children's Information

List each minor child's full legal name, current age, date of birth, and current place of residence (city, state, and county). This should match the children's information on your FL-100.

Five-Year Residence History

This is the core of the form. For each child, you must provide a history of where the child has lived for the past five years, along with the names and current addresses of the people the child lived with during each period.

If the children have lived at the same address in California for the past five years with both parents, this section is straightforward. You list the address, both parents' names, and the dates (from five years ago to the present).

If the children have moved, lived with different people, or spent time in another state, provide each period separately. Be as accurate as possible with dates. The court uses this information to determine whether California qualifies as the children's "home state" under the UCCJEA, which generally means the children have lived in California for at least six consecutive months before the filing.

Common situations that require more detail: the family relocated to California from another state within the past five years; the children spent extended time (more than a temporary visit) living with a grandparent or other relative; one parent lived out of state for a period; or the parents separated and the children alternated between two addresses.

Other Custody Proceedings

The form asks whether you know of any other custody or visitation proceedings involving the children, in any state. This includes pending cases, prior orders, and cases that have been dismissed. If any exist, provide the case details: the state, the court, the case number, and the nature of the proceeding.

This section also asks whether you know of any person who is not a party to this case but claims custody of or visitation rights with the children. If a grandparent, stepparent, or other individual has made such a claim, disclose it here.

Be honest and thorough. If the court later discovers undisclosed custody proceedings in another state, it can affect the court's jurisdiction over your case and undermine your credibility.

Declaration and Signature

Like the FL-100, the FL-105 includes a declaration under penalty of perjury. You are certifying that the information on the form is true and correct to the best of your knowledge. Sign, date, and print your name.

How Jurisdiction Works Under the UCCJEA

The UCCJEA establishes a clear hierarchy for determining which state has jurisdiction over custody matters. The primary basis is "home state" jurisdiction.

Home state means the state where the child has lived with a parent for at least six consecutive months immediately before the filing. If the child is less than six months old, the home state is the state where the child has lived since birth. If a parent has been absent from the state but the child remained, the six-month period still counts.

In most California divorces where both parents and children live in California and have for at least six months, jurisdiction is clear. California is the home state, and the FL-105 confirms that.

Jurisdiction becomes more complex when the family has recently moved, when the parents live in different states, or when custody orders already exist from another state. In these situations, the information on the FL-105 is especially important because the court will rely on it to determine whether it can proceed.

If you are unsure whether California has jurisdiction over your custody matter, consider consulting with an attorney before filing. Jurisdiction issues can significantly complicate and delay a case if they are not addressed correctly at the outset.

Common Mistakes That Cause Deficiency Notices

The FL-105 is not complicated, but mistakes happen frequently enough that it's worth calling out the most common ones.

Not filing the FL-105 at all. This is the most common reason people get turned away at the clerk's window. If you have minor children and you're filing for divorce, the clerk will not accept your FL-100 without the FL-105. Don't assume it's optional or that you can file it later.

Incomplete residence history. The form asks for five years of living history. If you leave gaps, or if you only provide the current address without covering the full five-year period, the court may issue a deficiency notice requiring you to supplement the form.

Name or date inconsistencies. The children's names and dates of birth on the FL-105 must match what you listed on the FL-100. Discrepancies, even minor ones like a middle name on one form but not the other, can trigger a clerk's rejection.

Failing to disclose other proceedings. If there has been any prior custody case involving these children in any state, and you don't disclose it, the court may discover it on its own. This creates credibility problems and potential jurisdictional complications.

Forgetting that the respondent must also file one. The petitioner's FL-105 does not cover both parties. The respondent needs to file their own FL-105 when they file their FL-120 Response.

Special Situations

You Recently Moved to California

If you moved to California within the past six months, the children may not yet meet the home state requirement. In this situation, California may not have jurisdiction over custody, even though it has jurisdiction over the divorce itself (which requires six months of residency in the state and three months in the county).

The divorce can proceed, but custody orders may need to be deferred until California becomes the home state, or the case may need to be coordinated with the previous state's courts.

Military Families

Military families often move frequently, which can make the five-year residence history and home state determination more complex. If you are a military family, pay extra attention to the residence history section and be prepared to provide documentation of each move.

International Situations

If the children have lived outside the United States at any point during the past five years, disclose this on the form. International custody jurisdiction involves additional considerations beyond the UCCJEA, and the court needs to be aware of any foreign residence history.

How CourtLoom Handles the FL-105

When you use CourtLoom to prepare your divorce filing, the platform automatically determines whether you need the FL-105 based on your answers about children. If you do, CourtLoom walks you through the residence history and jurisdiction questions in plain English, then generates the completed FL-105 alongside your FL-100 and FL-110.

You don't need to figure out which forms to file or whether the UCCJEA applies to your situation. CourtLoom handles the form logic so you can focus on providing accurate information about your children.

Prepare your FL-105 and filing packet with CourtLoom →

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to file the FL-105 if I don't have children?

No. The FL-105 is only required in cases involving minor children. If you and your spouse have no minor children together, you do not need this form.

What if my children have always lived in California?

The form is still required. Even if the answer to every question is straightforward, the court needs the FL-105 on file to confirm jurisdiction. The good news is that in this situation, filling it out is quick. You list the California address, both parents' names, and the five-year date range.

Does the respondent need to file a separate FL-105?

Yes. Both the petitioner and the respondent must file their own FL-105. The respondent files theirs alongside their FL-120 Response.

What happens if I don't file the FL-105 with my petition?

The clerk will not accept your filing. You will need to complete the FL-105 and return to file both forms together. This is one of the most common reasons people are turned away at the filing window.

What if there's a custody order from another state?

Disclose it on the form. The court needs to know about any existing custody orders from any state. In some cases, another state may retain jurisdiction over custody even though you are filing for divorce in California. The court will sort out jurisdiction based on the information you provide.

Practical Takeaways

Don't skip it. If you have minor children, the FL-105 is not optional. File it with your FL-100 or your FL-120.

Be thorough with the five-year history. Account for every address where the children have lived and every person they've lived with. Gaps or omissions trigger deficiency notices.

Match your information across forms. Children's names, dates of birth, and other details should be identical on the FL-105, FL-100, and any other forms you file.

Disclose everything. Prior custody cases, pending proceedings, and non-parent custody claims all need to be reported. The court will find out eventually, and failing to disclose creates more problems than it solves.

Both sides file. Remind your spouse (or your spouse's attorney) that the respondent needs their own FL-105. One filing does not cover both parties.

Moving Forward

The FL-105 is one of those forms that feels like a bureaucratic hurdle until you understand its purpose. It protects your children by making sure the right court, in the right state, is making custody decisions. That matters.

Take a few minutes to gather the children's residence history before you sit down with the form. If you have the information ready, you can complete the FL-105 quickly and avoid the common mistakes that send people back to the clerk's window.

For the full picture of what you need to file when starting a California divorce, see our FL-100 Petition guide and our step-by-step overview of the California divorce process.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every situation is different, and you should consult with a qualified attorney if you have questions about your specific circumstances. CourtLoom is a document preparation service, not a law firm, and does not provide legal representation.