Restraining Order Laws by State (2026): How to Get a Protective Order

A restraining order is a civil court order that tells someone to stop contacting, threatening, or coming near you. Every state has at least one track for domestic violence victims and most also have a separate stalking or harassment track that requires no relationship to the respondent. Filing is free for domestic-violence orders under federal law, and courts can issue a temporary order the same day you file.

If you are in immediate danger, call 911. For confidential help 24/7, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (text START to 88788).

What is a restraining order?

A restraining order is a civil court order that legally prohibits a person (the respondent) from contacting, harassing, threatening, or coming near another person (the petitioner). The court can also order the respondent to stay away from the petitioner's home, workplace, or children's school. Courts can add provisions about child custody, firearms surrender, and housing.

The name of the order is a load-bearing fact because it tells you which court to go to and which forms to use. Common names include Protection From Abuse (PFA) in Pennsylvania, Alabama, and Maine; Order of Protection in New York, Illinois, Tennessee, Arizona, and Missouri; Domestic Violence Restraining Order (DVRO) in California; Civil Protection Order (CPO) in Ohio and Washington DC; FAPA Restraining Order in Oregon; injunction for protection in Florida; Relief From Abuse (RFA) in Vermont; and Victim Protective Order (VPO) in Oklahoma. Whatever the label, the legal effect is the same: a court command backed by the criminal law.

Restraining orders and orders of protection are the same thing in most states. The terms are used interchangeably in everyday speech, and both refer to a civil court order directing someone to stop certain behavior. In Maryland, however, a Protective Order (for domestic victims) and a Peace Order (for non-domestic victims) are distinct and governed by separate statutes.

Who can get a restraining order?

For the domestic-violence track, the relationship between you and the respondent is the key requirement. Most states require that the respondent is a current or former spouse, a current or former dating or intimate partner, a co-parent, or a household member or family member by blood or marriage. Ohio added dating partners to its Civil Protection Order statute in 2023. South Carolina's domestic statute does not yet cover dating-only relationships; victims in that situation must rely on criminal remedies.

Most states also have a separate stalking, harassment, or sexual-assault track that requires no qualifying relationship at all. Under that track, any victim of repeated threatening conduct, stalking, sexual assault, or the nonconsensual distribution of intimate images can petition regardless of whether they know the respondent — a protective order does not remove content already posted online, so victims of image-based abuse often pair it with a Take It Down Act request to the hosting platform. Alabama and South Carolina are among the few states that do not have a standalone civil harassment or stalking protective order; non-domestic victims there must work through criminal stalking statutes. Wyoming does have a separate civil stalking and sexual assault order of protection under WS 7-3-506 through 7-3-510, available to any victim regardless of relationship.

Washington state consolidated six separate order types into one unified statute, RCW 7.105, in 2022. Anyone in Washington can now seek a domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, anti-harassment, vulnerable adult, or extreme risk protection order through a single petition form. Massachusetts splits them cleanly: a 209A Abuse Prevention Order requires a domestic relationship, while a 258E Harassment Prevention Order is available to any victim of harassment.

How to get a restraining order: the basic steps

You begin by filing a petition with the appropriate court, which varies by state. Common choices are family court, district court, circuit court, or common pleas court. The petition asks you to describe the abuse or threats and explain why you need protection. You do not need a lawyer to file, and court self-help centers and domestic-violence advocates provide free help with the forms in most jurisdictions.

After you file, a judge reviews the petition and, if there is evidence of immediate danger, can issue a temporary ex parte order the same day without notifying the other person. That temporary order is served on the respondent by a law enforcement officer. A hearing is then scheduled, usually within 10 to 30 days, at which both sides can appear. If you have never been inside a courtroom before, our guide on what to wear to court covers practical dress and conduct tips for that hearing.

Under the federal Violence Against Women Act, courts cannot charge a filing fee or a service fee for a domestic-violence protective order. Filing is always free for DV orders. If the final hearing shows the petitioner's allegations are credible, the judge issues a final order, which can last from several months to several years depending on your state, and can include firearm surrender requirements.

Temporary vs. final orders

A temporary order, also called an ex parte order or emergency order, is issued the same day you file your petition. The respondent is not present and does not have advance notice. The purpose is to provide immediate protection while the court schedules a full hearing. Temporary orders are generally effective for 10 to 30 days; South Dakota allows up to 30 days and Hawaii allows up to 180 days on a temporary order.

A final order is issued after a hearing where both parties have notice and an opportunity to appear. If the judge finds by a preponderance of the evidence that abuse, threats, stalking, or harassment occurred, the court issues a final order. Final order durations vary significantly by state, as the table below shows. Most states allow the petitioner to request renewals before the order expires.

Restraining orders and firearms

A qualifying final protective order triggers the federal firearm prohibition in 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(8). Once a final order is entered after notice and a hearing, the respondent may not lawfully possess any firearm or ammunition anywhere in the United States, for the duration of the order. This is a federal criminal law and applies in every state regardless of whether the state has its own surrender statute. Important limit: the 922(g)(8) ban applies only when the protected person is a current or former spouse, a person who shares a child with the respondent, or a current or former cohabitant. It does not yet extend to non-cohabiting dating partners under a protective order. (The 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act extended a separate firearm bar to dating partners only for misdemeanor-conviction cases under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9), not for protective orders under (g)(8).) Many state DV orders cover dating partners, so the order itself may be valid while the federal firearms prohibition may not apply.

Many states go further and require mandatory physical surrender of firearms. Pennsylvania, Virginia, Tennessee, Texas, New Jersey, Illinois, Washington, North Carolina, New Hampshire, and several others require the respondent to hand over all firearms to law enforcement or a licensed dealer within 24 to 48 hours of service and to file proof of surrender with the court. A few states such as Ohio and Wyoming do not have a separate state surrender statute but include a federal-law warning in every order, and the federal prohibition still applies.

Violating the federal firearm ban while under a protective order is a federal felony carrying up to 10 years in prison, separate from any state violation charge.

What happens if someone violates a restraining order?

Violating a protective order is almost always a crime in addition to being contempt of court. A first violation is typically a misdemeanor. Penalties range from a few months to up to a year in jail and a fine. Repeat violations or violations that involve assault, stalking, or a deadly weapon are frequently charged as felonies in most states.

If the respondent contacts you, comes near you, or otherwise violates the terms of the order, call 911 immediately and report the violation. Police in most states are authorized to arrest the respondent without a warrant if they have probable cause to believe an order has been violated. Keep a copy of your order with you and report every violation.

Documenting violations, including screenshots of texts or social media messages, call logs, and photos of any damage, strengthens both emergency calls and any follow-up criminal or contempt proceeding. If the respondent is arrested, the prosecutor can charge them separately from any contempt proceeding the civil court may pursue.

Restraining order basics by state

Each row links to the detailed state page. The "Final order length" column reflects the statutory default; courts often can extend orders or make them permanent based on circumstances.

This article is general legal information, not legal advice, and it is not a safety plan. Protective-order rules vary by state and change over time. If you are in danger, call 911. For help with your specific situation, contact your local court self-help center, a domestic-violence advocate, or a licensed attorney.

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