Nevada Home State and Initial Custody Jurisdiction (UCCJEA)

Part of my Nevada Custody Jurisdiction (UCCJEA) Overview.

By Ronald W. Brilliant, Attorney at Law · Licensed in Idaho, Nevada & California · Last reviewed: September 2026 against Nevada Revised Statutes chapter 125A (current through the 2025 legislative session)

In This TopicNevada Custody Jurisdiction (UCCJEA)Topic 1 of 6: Home State Jurisdiction

Before a Nevada court can make the first custody order for a child, it must have initial child custody jurisdiction under Nevada’s Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA). The rules are in NRS 125A.305, and they are the exclusive basis for a Nevada court to make a child custody determination (NRS 125A.305(2)).

This page matters to any parent or caregiver starting a custody case when the child has lived in, or has ties to, more than one state. The one exception to these rules is temporary emergency jurisdiction, covered on the Temporary Emergency Jurisdiction page (NRS 125A.305(1)).

Key Definitions

• Child: a person who has not reached 18 years of age (NRS 125A.035).
• Initial determination: the first child custody determination concerning a particular child (NRS 125A.095).
• Child custody determination: a judgment, decree or other court order providing for legal custody, physical custody or visitation. It includes permanent, temporary, initial and modification orders, but not child support or other money orders (NRS 125A.045).
• Child custody proceeding: any proceeding in which legal custody, physical custody or visitation is an issue, including divorce, separation, neglect, abuse, dependency, guardianship, paternity, termination of parental rights and protection from domestic violence cases in which the issue may appear (NRS 125A.055(1)-(2)).
• Commencement: the filing of the first pleading in a proceeding (NRS 125A.065).
• Physical custody: the physical care and supervision of a child (NRS 125A.145).
• Person acting as a parent: someone other than a parent who (1) has physical custody of the child, or had it for 6 consecutive months (counting temporary absences) within 1 year before the case began, and (2) has been awarded legal custody by a court or claims a right to legal custody under Nevada law (NRS 125A.135).
• State: a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or any U.S. territory or insular possession (NRS 125A.155).

What Is a Child’s “Home State”?

A child’s home state is the state where the child lived with a parent or a person acting as a parent for at least 6 consecutive months, including any temporary absence from the state, immediately before the custody proceeding was commenced (NRS 125A.085(1)).

For a child less than 6 months old, the home state is the state where the child has lived from birth with a parent or a person acting as a parent, including any temporary absence (NRS 125A.085(2)).

Because the time is measured back from “commencement,” the key date is the day the first pleading is filed (NRS 125A.065; NRS 125A.085).

The Four Grounds for Initial Jurisdiction

Except for temporary emergency orders, a Nevada court may make an initial child custody determination only if one of the following applies (NRS 125A.305(1)). The grounds work in order: the later grounds are generally available only when the earlier ones do not give another state’s court jurisdiction or that court has declined it.

Ground	When Nevada has jurisdiction	Statute
1. Home state	Nevada is the child’s home state on the date the case begins, or was the home state within 6 months before the case began, the child is now absent from Nevada, and a parent or person acting as a parent continues to live in Nevada	NRS 125A.305(1)(a)
2. Significant connection	No other state’s court has home state jurisdiction, or the home state court has declined because Nevada is the more appropriate forum; and the child and at least one parent or person acting as a parent have a significant connection with Nevada beyond mere physical presence; and substantial evidence about the child is available in Nevada	NRS 125A.305(1)(b)
3. More appropriate forum	All courts with jurisdiction under ground 1 or 2 have declined because a Nevada court is the more appropriate forum	NRS 125A.305(1)(c)
4. No other state	No court of any other state would have jurisdiction under ground 1, 2 or 3	NRS 125A.305(1)(d)

1. Home State Jurisdiction

Nevada has jurisdiction if it is the child’s home state on the date the proceeding is commenced (NRS 125A.305(1)(a)). This is the first ground listed in the statute.

Nevada also has jurisdiction if it was the child’s home state within 6 months before the case began, the child is now absent from Nevada, and a parent or person acting as a parent continues to live in Nevada (NRS 125A.305(1)(a)). So a parent or person acting as a parent who still lives in Nevada may rely on Nevada’s former home state status for up to 6 months after it ended, even though the child is no longer here.

2. Significant Connection Jurisdiction

If no court of another state has home state jurisdiction, or the home state court has declined to exercise jurisdiction on the ground that Nevada is the more appropriate forum under NRS 125A.365 or 125A.375, Nevada may have jurisdiction if both of these are true (NRS 125A.305(1)(b)):

• The child and the child’s parents, or the child and at least one parent or a person acting as a parent, have a significant connection with Nevada other than mere physical presence (NRS 125A.305(1)(b)(1)); and
• Substantial evidence is available in Nevada concerning the child’s care, protection, training and personal relationships (NRS 125A.305(1)(b)(2)).

NRS 125A.365 covers declining jurisdiction as an inconvenient forum, and NRS 125A.375 covers declining jurisdiction because of a party’s unjustifiable conduct. Both are explained on the Declining Jurisdiction page.

3. More Appropriate Forum Jurisdiction

Nevada has jurisdiction if all courts having jurisdiction under the home state or significant connection grounds have declined to exercise it on the ground that a Nevada court is the more appropriate forum to determine custody under NRS 125A.365 or 125A.375 (NRS 125A.305(1)(c)).

4. When No Other State Has Jurisdiction

Finally, Nevada has jurisdiction if no court of any other state would have jurisdiction under the first three grounds (NRS 125A.305(1)(d)).

Presence in Nevada Is Not Enough

The physical presence of a party or the child in Nevada, or personal jurisdiction over a party, is not necessary or sufficient to make a child custody determination (NRS 125A.305(3)). What counts is whether one of the four grounds above applies (NRS 125A.305(2)).

Taking part in a Nevada custody case also does not, by itself, make a party subject to personal jurisdiction in Nevada for another proceeding or purpose (NRS 125A.265(1)). There are limits: a person subject to personal jurisdiction in Nevada on a basis other than physical presence is not immune from service of process here, and the protection does not extend to civil suits based on unrelated acts a person commits while in Nevada (NRS 125A.265(2)-(3)).

Tribes and Foreign Countries

When applying these jurisdiction rules, a Nevada court must treat an Indian tribe as if it were a state of the United States (NRS 125A.215(1)). It must also treat a foreign country as if it were a state (NRS 125A.225(1)). See International and Tribal Custody Cases.

Other Requirements When Starting a Case

Information About the Child

Except as otherwise provided by state law, each party must give certain information under oath in its first pleading or an attached affidavit, if reasonably ascertainable. This includes the child’s present address or whereabouts, the places the child has lived during the last 5 years, and the names and present addresses of the persons the child lived with during that period (NRS 125A.385(1)).

The pleading or affidavit must also state whether the party has taken part in any other proceeding concerning custody of or visitation with the child, knows of any proceeding that could affect the case, and knows of any non-party who has physical custody of the child or claims custody or visitation rights (NRS 125A.385(1)(a)-(c)). If the information is not furnished, the court may stay the case until it is (NRS 125A.385(2)).

Notice and Opportunity to Be Heard

Before a custody determination is made, notice and an opportunity to be heard must be given to all persons entitled to notice under Nevada law as in custody cases between Nevada residents, to any parent whose parental rights have not been terminated, and to any person having physical custody of the child (NRS 125A.345(1)). Notice to a person outside Nevada may be given under Nevada law or the law of the state where service is made, and may be by publication if other means are not effective (NRS 125A.255(1)).

A Case Already Filed in Another State

Except for temporary emergency jurisdiction, a Nevada court may not exercise its jurisdiction if, when the Nevada case was commenced, a custody proceeding had already been commenced in another state having jurisdiction substantially in conformity with the chapter. This does not apply if that other proceeding has been terminated, or stayed because Nevada is a more convenient forum (NRS 125A.355(1)). The Declining Jurisdiction page explains simultaneous proceedings in more detail.

After the Initial Order

Once a Nevada court makes a custody determination consistent with NRS 125A.305, it has exclusive, continuing jurisdiction over that determination until certain events occur, except as provided for temporary emergency jurisdiction (NRS 125A.315(1)). How long that lasts, and when another state’s order can be changed in Nevada, is covered on the Continuing Jurisdiction and Modification page. For how Nevada courts decide custody itself, see our Nevada child custody overview.

How I Can Help

I help parents and caregivers work out whether Nevada is the right state to file a custody case, applying the home state and other grounds in NRS 125A.305 to the family’s actual moves and dates. I can also help prepare the information about the child that each party must give the court. Request a consultation to discuss your situation.

This page provides general information about Nevada’s Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, based on NRS chapter 125A as currently revised, and is not legal advice. Other states’ versions of the Act, court rules, treaties, and case law also affect interstate custody cases. Every case is different; consult an attorney about yours. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.