# How to change or end a California domestic violence restraining order: DV-300, DV-310 and the hearing > How to ask a California court to change or end (modify or terminate) a domestic violence restraining order after hearing: who can ask, forms DV-300, DV-310 and DV-305, filing with no fee, service, the hearing, the DV-330 order, and what happens to custody and support orders. **Direct answer.** File form DV-300 (Request to Change or End Restraining Order) and items 1 and 2 of form DV-310 (Notice of Court Hearing and Temporary Order to Change or End Restraining Order) with the court that made the order. California Courts states there is no fee and that only the protected person or the restrained person can ask. Have the other side served, go to the hearing, and the judge decides. The restraining order remains in effect and must be followed until a judge changes or ends it, so it cannot simply be dropped. To extend an order instead, use the renewal process (DV-700). ## Who can ask, and why the order cannot just be dropped California Courts states that the protected person or the restrained person can ask the judge to change or end a domestic violence restraining order. Other people protected by the order (the people listed in item 3 of DV-130 or JV-255) cannot make the request themselves. People often search for how to drop a restraining order in California. Form DV-300-INFO answers that directly: only the court has the power to change or end the restraining order, and the order remains in effect and must be followed until a judge changes or ends it. A protected person who wants the order gone files DV-300 like anyone else; agreeing with the other side, or not calling the police, does not end it. The same request covers modifying some orders (for example, changing the stay-away distance, or adding or removing protected people) and terminating all of them. DV-300 item 3a asks the judge to end all orders; item 3b asks to change or end some of them. ## Before you start: change, renew, or something else This process is for a restraining order after hearing that is still active. California Courts lists a few situations that use different steps. - Want more time, not a change? Renewal uses DV-700 and DV-710, filed before the order expires (see the DV-700 guide). - Temporary restraining order (DV-110 or DV-116)? DV-300-INFO states not to use this process; the court’s self-help center may be able to help. - Order already expired? DV-300-INFO states not to use these steps. If custody, visitation or support orders are still in effect, California Courts points to the Request for Order process (FL-300) to change them. - Juvenile order on JV-255? You can use these steps if the juvenile case has been closed; if it is still open, talk to your lawyer in that case. - Firearms, ammunition and body armor: DV-300-INFO states the judge cannot remove those restrictions, though a limited exception for someone who must carry a firearm for work may be possible under strict requirements. ## The forms, and who fills in what DV-300 (Rev. July 1, 2026) tells the judge what you want changed and why. On DV-310 (new January 1, 2025) you fill in items 1 and 2 only; the court completes the rest, including the hearing date and any temporary orders. California Courts also states you need a copy of your current order, which DV-300 item 7 asks you to attach. ## Filing DV-300: copies, no fee, and asking for immediate changes California Courts states to make at least 3 copies of all your forms: the original is for the court, two copies are for you, and one is for the other person. Take them to the court clerk, who keeps the original and returns the copies with a court date stamped on them. There is no fee to file these forms. You can also e-file through your court’s website, mail the original and 2 copies with a self-addressed stamped envelope, or use the courthouse drop box. If you asked to change custody or visitation, you may need to go to mediation or child custody recommending counseling before you see the judge. DV-300 item 3b(4) asks whether you want the order changed immediately. The form explains that a judge usually decides at the hearing, but may make orders right away if you are the protected party and need more protection, to prevent immediate harm to a child, or if there is an immediate risk a child will be taken out of California. If you are the restrained party, the judge cannot end or change the order before the protected party has been served and there has been a hearing. ## Serving the other side Look at DV-310 item 5 to see whether the papers must be served in person or can be served by mail. Under DV-310, a request from the protected person with no temporary orders may be served by mail; a request from the restrained person, or one where the judge granted temporary orders, must be served in person. California Courts notes that serving in person is always allowed and usually best. You cannot serve the papers yourself. The server must be 18 or older and not involved in the case; DV-300-INFO adds that it cannot be anyone listed on the restraining order. California Courts states the sheriff can serve for free if you have an address (use form SER-001). Serve a copy of everything you filed together with a blank DV-320. DV-300 item 5 explains the judge usually gives about three weeks to serve and lets you ask for more time. If service fails, California Courts states you can reschedule with DV-315, and if the other side is avoiding service after at least 3 attempts you can ask the judge to allow another method. Your server completes DV-200 (in person) or DV-250 (by mail), and you file it with the clerk unless the sheriff files its own proof. ## At the hearing Bring copies of all your papers, the proof of service, and notes of what you want to say. California Courts states to print photos, texts or emails and bring 3 copies of each: one for you, one for the judge, one for the other side. If you are the protected person you can bring a support person, who can sit with you but cannot speak for you. Usually the person who made the request speaks first, and both sides get a chance to speak. California Courts states the judge usually decides that day, or may ask you to come back if more information is needed. Interpreters (form INT-300) and disability accommodations are available on request. ## After the judge decides: the order and serving it The judge signs an order. In some courts staff prepare it; in others one side does. California Courts states that if the judge changed the restraining order you use DV-130 with the “Amended” box checked, and if the judge ended it you use DV-400 (items 1 and 2 only), then give it to the clerk for signature and ask for two copies. The order on DV-330 records the judge’s decision on the request. If the other side was not in court, look at DV-330 item 6 to see whether the order must be served. The sheriff must serve it for free if you ask; otherwise use an adult who is not part of the case, then file DV-200 or DV-250. Keep a copy of the most recent order with you. ## What happens to custody, visitation and support orders DV-300-INFO states that if the judge ends the restraining order, any child custody, visitation (parenting time), child support, spousal support, domestic partner support, or property orders remain in effect unless the court also changes or ends them. Ending the restraining order does not by itself end those orders. To change custody or visitation that was granted through the restraining order, attach DV-305 to DV-300. To change child or spousal support, the next-steps page of DV-300 states you must also complete an Income and Expense Declaration (FL-150); if you are only asking about child support you may be able to use the simpler FL-155 (form DV-570 explains who qualifies). For orders made in a separate family law case, or after the restraining order has expired, use the Request for Order process (FL-300). The DV-105 guide covers how those custody orders were first requested. ## Questions people ask next ### How do I drop a restraining order in California? File form DV-300 and items 1 and 2 of DV-310 with the court and ask the judge to end the order (DV-300 item 3a). California Courts states only the court can change or end the order, and it stays in effect and must be followed until a judge does. ### What is the DV-310 form? DV-310 is the Notice of Court Hearing and Temporary Order to Change or End Restraining Order. You fill in items 1 and 2 and file it with DV-300; the court completes the rest, including the hearing date, any temporary orders, and item 5, which says whether the papers can be mailed or must be served in person. ### Can the restrained person ask to modify or terminate the restraining order? Yes. California Courts states the protected person or the restrained person can ask. If the restrained person asks, DV-300 states the judge cannot change or end the order until the protected party has been properly served and there has been a hearing. Under DV-310, a request from the restrained person must be served in person. ### Is there a fee to file DV-300? No. California Courts states there is no court fee to file DV-300 and the related forms, and the sheriff can serve the papers for free. ### If the restraining order ends, do the custody and support orders end too? No. DV-300-INFO states custody, visitation, child support, spousal support and property orders remain in effect unless the court also changes or ends them. Use DV-305 to change custody granted through the restraining order, or FL-300 for orders in a separate family law case. ### Is changing an order the same as renewing it? No. Renewing extends an order before it expires and uses DV-700 and DV-710. DV-300 asks the judge to change or end an order that is still in effect. ## Official sources - [California Courts: Ask to change or end a domestic violence restraining order](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/DV-restraining-order/change-end) - [California Courts: Fill out and file the forms to change or end a DVRO](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/DV-restraining-order/change-end/ask) - [California Courts: Serve your request to change or end a DVRO](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/DV-restraining-order/change-end/serve-request) - [California Courts: Prepare for and go to court](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/DV-restraining-order/change-end/court) - [California Courts: Serve the order](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/DV-restraining-order/change-end/serve-order) - [California Courts: DV-300 Request to Change or End Restraining Order](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/DV-300) - [California Courts: DV-300-INFO How do I Ask to Change or End a Domestic Violence Restraining Order?](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/DV-300-INFO) - [California Courts: DV-310 Notice of Court Hearing and Temporary Order to Change or End Restraining Order](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/DV-310) - [California Courts: DV-305 Request to Change Child Custody and Visitation Orders](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/DV-305) - [California Courts: DV-330 Order on Request to Change or End Restraining Order](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/DV-330) - [California Family Code § 6345](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=FAM§ionNum=6345) ## Related guides - [What happens at a California restraining order hearing: who speaks, what to bring, and what the judge decides](https://justiceos.ai/guides/dvro-hearing) - [Serving California DVRO papers: who can serve and what to file](https://justiceos.ai/guides/dvro-service) - [After a California DVRO hearing: serving DV-130, renewal, changes, violations, and firearms](https://justiceos.ai/guides/dvro-after-hearing) - [Renewing a California restraining order: DV-700, and the deadline that ends the option](https://justiceos.ai/guides/dv-700) - [DV-105 and the children forms: which one rides with the request, and which one rides with the order](https://justiceos.ai/guides/dv-105) - [DV-130: the judge granting your order is not the last step, and this form is the order](https://justiceos.ai/guides/dv-130) Published 2026-10-17. Reviewed against official California Courts guidance on 2026-10-17. --- JusticeOS is not a law firm, is not your lawyer, and does not give legal advice. It explains California court forms and procedure in plain language and cites official sources. In immediate danger call 911. National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233. Canonical HTML: https://justiceos.ai/guides/change-or-end-restraining-order-california