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Legal Information: Puerto Rico

Restraining Orders

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Updated: 
November 25, 2023

What happens if I move?

Your protection order should be valid and can be enforced in all of Puerto Rico and the United States.  Federal law contains a provision called “full faith and credit” that mandates that if you have a criminal or civil protection order, it is valid in every US state, including US territories and tribal lands.  You can contact a local domestic violence program or a clerk of court to find the specific rules in your state.  If you move out of state you may want to call a domestic violence program in your new state to find out how that state treats orders from other states.  You can read more on our Moving to Another State with a Protection Order page. 

If you move to another state, you can also call the National Center on Protection Orders and Full Faith & Credit (1-800-903-0111) for more information about how to enforce your order.

Note: For information about how to enforce a military protection order (MPO) outside of a military base, or how to enforce a civil protection order (CPO) on a military base, please see our page Military Protective Orders