New Hampshire Stalking Petition: The Civil Protective Order That Reaches Harassment Only When It Frightens You
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team · New Hampshire · Last updated October 22, 2026
New Hampshire's civil protective order for someone you are not related to is the Stalking Petition under RSA 633:3-a, III-a, and it reaches harassment only when the harassment makes you afraid for your personal safety. It is a court order, filed in the Circuit Court, District Division, directing a person who is not a spouse, partner or relative to stop contacting you and to stay away. The predicate is a course of conduct, which the statute defines as 2 or more acts over a period of time, however short, which evidences a continuity of purpose, so a harassment pattern can reach it. The limit is the fear element. That conduct must be the kind that would cause a reasonable person to fear for personal safety, or the safety of an immediate family member, and you must actually be placed in that fear (RSA 633:3-a, I(a)). Annoyance or distress alone is outside it. If the person harassing you is a spouse, ex, someone you live or lived with, a relative, or a current or former intimate partner, this is the wrong order and you want a domestic violence petition under RSA 173-B instead. The standard is a preponderance of the evidence. A final order runs a fixed period of up to one year, the first extension is for one year, and each extension after that may be for up to five years, with no cap on how many (RSA 633:3-a, III-c). The petition is form NHJB-2051-D. This page is document preparation information, not legal advice, and no order can guarantee your safety. Attorney review is available through DocDraft.
Find out where you stand in New Hampshire
Who is harassing you?
DocDraft provides document preparation, not legal advice.
Does New Hampshire have a civil harassment restraining order?
Not under that name. The statutory civil order open to someone with no domestic relationship to the other person is the Stalking Petition under RSA 633:3-a, III-a. Harassment itself is a misdemeanor under RSA 644:4 that the state prosecutes, and that statute attaches no civil petition.
How long does a New Hampshire stalking protective order last?
A final order is for a fixed period not to exceed one year. It may be extended for one year after the first order expires, and each extension after that may be for up to five years, at the court's discretion. The statute sets no cap on the number of extensions (RSA 633:3-a, III-c).
What proof standard applies to a New Hampshire Stalking Petition?
A preponderance of the evidence. The petitioner must show stalking, meaning a course of conduct that would cause a reasonable person to fear for personal safety and that actually places the petitioner in that fear. Fear for personal safety is part of what must be shown, so annoyance alone is not enough.
Is there a filing fee for a New Hampshire Stalking Petition?
No. The statutory rule imported into the stalking petition provides that no filing fee or fee for service of process is charged, and the petitioner may proceed without a lawyer. A peace officer or the sheriff's department serves the papers on the person named in the petition (RSA 173-B:3, III).
New Hampshire stalking protective order rules at a glance
New Hampshire asks a different question from most states. Its Stalking Petition under RSA 633:3-a, III-a does not ask whether the conduct was harassing. It asks whether a course of conduct, two or more acts evidencing a continuity of purpose, would make a reasonable person fear for personal safety and actually did. The judiciary describes a ladder: a domestic violence petition if a qualifying relationship exists, the stalking petition if it does not but safety is in fear, and only then a Superior Court civil restraining order, which is a general equity action with a filing fee and no dedicated protective-order statute. The stalking petition borrows its procedures, relief and renewal ladder from RSA 173-B, so it is free to file and extends on the same terms as the domestic violence order.
A Keene bakery owner and a customer who learned her route home
A Cheshire County bakery owner refuses further credit to a regular customer. Within a month he is waiting beside her car at closing on three evenings, and then he sends messages naming the streets she takes home. He is not a relative, a partner or a housemate, so the domestic violence route is closed, and what frightens her is the pattern, not any single message. She files form NHJB-2051-D in the Circuit Court, District Division, ticks Other for the relationship, and pays no fee. She asks for a temporary order on the immediate danger. A final hearing is set within 30 days, and the order she may then receive runs up to one year. Whether the court finds the stalking proven by a preponderance of the evidence is for the court.
Relevant Laws
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. 633:3-a (stalking, and the civil petition at III-a)
Paragraphs I and II define stalking as a course of conduct targeted at a specific person which would cause a reasonable person to fear for personal safety or the safety of an immediate family member, and in which the person is actually placed in such fear. A course of conduct is 2 or more acts over a period of time, however short, which evidences a continuity of purpose. Paragraph III-a lets a victim of stalking file a civil petition and requires a showing by a preponderance of the evidence. Paragraph III-b says a plaintiff or defendant's minority does not preclude an order.
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. 633:3-a, III-c (duration and extension)
Provides that any order is for a fixed period of time not to exceed one year, and may be extended on the plaintiff's motion, showing good cause, with notice to the defendant, for one year after the first order expires. Thereafter each extension may be for up to 5 years, on the plaintiff's request and at the court's discretion. The court reviews the order and each renewal, and the defendant has a right to a hearing within 30 days of the extension.
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. 173-B:1 (domestic violence abuse and the relationship test)
The domestic violence statute that the routing on this page relies on. It defines abuse as specified acts committed by a family or household member or by a current or former sexual or intimate partner, where the conduct constitutes a credible present threat to the petitioner's safety. A petitioner inside those relationships uses a domestic violence petition; one outside them uses the stalking petition.
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. 173-B:3, III (no filing or service fee)
Provides that no filing fee or fee for service of process is charged for a petition or response under the section, that the plaintiff or defendant may proceed without legal counsel, and that either a peace officer or the sheriff's department serves process. The stalking petition reaches this rule through 633:3-a, III-a, which makes notice, service and enforcement the same as under RSA 173-B.
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. 173-B:4, I (temporary orders)
Allows the court, on a showing of an immediate and present danger of abuse, to enter temporary orders to protect the plaintiff with or without actual notice to the defendant, including by telephone or facsimile. A telephonic order is effective until the close of the next regular court business day, and a defendant against whom an ex parte order issues may request a hearing within 3 to 5 business days.
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. 173-B:5, VI (the same duration rule for domestic violence orders)
States the one-year order, one-year first extension and extensions of up to 5 years thereafter in the same words as the stalking statute. It is cited here so that a reader can see the renewal structure is shared between the two orders and is not unique to stalking.
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. 644:4 (criminal harassment, no civil petition)
Makes it a misdemeanor to engage in specified conduct, such as a telephone call with no legitimate communicative purpose and with a purpose to annoy, abuse, threaten or alarm another. It is prosecuted by the state in the jurisdiction where the communication originated or was received, and it creates an offense without attaching a civil protective-order petition.
Judicial Branch form NHJB-2051-D, Stalking Petition
The petition under RSA 633:3-a, captioned for the NH Circuit Court and printed in a with-children and a without-children packet. The without-children packet comprises the petition, the defendant information sheet for law enforcement and the confidential information sheet. Extension of a final order uses the separate form NHJB-2360-DF.
Judicial Branch form NHJB-2960-Se, Complaint for Restraining Order (Superior Court)
The complaint used in Superior Court, a general civil action asking for a restraining order, with a relationship prompt that gives neighbor, co-worker, roommate and acquaintance as examples. The Judicial Branch names it for a plaintiff who qualifies for neither the domestic violence order nor the stalking order. It carries a filing fee and a sheriff service fee.
Regional Variances
New Hampshire civil harassment order rules at a glance
Instrument name
Stalking civil protective order, petitioned on the Stalking Petition under RSA 633:3-a, III-a. New Hampshire has no civil order for harassment as such, and RSA 644:4 harassment is a criminal offense only.
Who it covers, and the relationship test
Any victim of stalking, with no relationship requirement (RSA 633:3-a, III-a). The domestic violence order under RSA 173-B instead requires abuse by a family or household member or a current or former sexual or intimate partner, so those relationships belong on that petition.
The standard
Stalking proved by a preponderance of the evidence: a course of conduct of 2 or more acts evidencing a continuity of purpose, which would cause a reasonable person to fear for personal safety or that of an immediate family member, and actually places the petitioner in that fear (RSA 633:3-a, I(a), II(a), III-a). Constitutionally protected activity is excluded.
Temporary order
Available with or without notice on a showing of an immediate and present danger of abuse, and by telephone. A final hearing is set within 30 days of filing or 10 days of service, whichever is later (RSA 173-B:3, VII and 173-B:4, I, imported by RSA 633:3-a, III-a).
Duration
A final order is for a fixed period not to exceed one year (RSA 633:3-a, III-c).
Renewal
The first extension is for one year, on the plaintiff's motion showing good cause with notice to the defendant. Each later extension may be for up to 5 years, at the court's discretion, with no cap on the number. The defendant has a right to a hearing within 30 days (RSA 633:3-a, III-c).
Court and form
The Circuit Court, District Division, where either party resides, on form NHJB-2051-D, Stalking Petition. The statute's reference to the district court predates the Circuit Court. A Superior Court complaint on NHJB-2960-Se is a different, general civil route.
Filing fee
No filing fee and no fee for service of process, and the petitioner may proceed without a lawyer (RSA 173-B:3, III, imported by RSA 633:3-a, III-a). A Superior Court complaint carries a filing fee and a sheriff service fee.
Service
Either a peace officer or the sheriff's department serves process, at no charge to the petitioner (RSA 173-B:3, III).
Firearm provision
Not covered on this page. Ask the court clerk or an attorney whether any firearm-related relief is available on your facts.
Violation
The penalties for violating an order are the same as those set out in RSA 173-B (RSA 633:3-a, III-a). Report any violation to the police.
Frequently Asked Questions
Other New Hampshire guides
Adult Guardianship in New Hampshire
Adverse Possession in New Hampshire: Twenty Years and No Tax Element
Asset Protection Planning in New Hampshire (2026)
Dealing With Debt Collectors in New Hampshire (2026)
Delinquent Property Taxes in New Hampshire: The Rate Jumps to 14 Percent the Day the Lien Is Executed
Expunging a Criminal Record in New Hampshire (2026)
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