Taking Your Children Abroad
If you are thinking about taking your children abroad, somewhere outside of England and Wales (the jurisdiction), then you need the consent of everyone who shares parental responsibility for that child. However, if there is a child arrangement order in place, then the parent whom the child lives with, can take the child out of the jurisdiction for up to 28 days. If the child does not reside with you, then you will need to seek consent from the other parent before you take your child out of the jurisdiction on holiday. You will ideally need this consent in writing.
If your child resides with you then it would still be a good idea to tell the other parent of your plans to take your child away. This is not only the courteous thing to do, but it also gives the other parent the opportunity to potentially arrange virtual contact whilst you are away. If you are planning to take your child away on holiday, and the contact arrangement order sets out when the other parent spends time with their child, then you should seek their agreement to temporarily vary the arrangement, to avoid being in breach of the order.
What Tools Can Help Me With Co-Parenting?
An app called AppClose may be a good solution if you find yourself in a similar situation. The app is fairly new to the United Kingdom, and after being extremely popular in the United States it is now one of the most popular co-parenting apps on the market. The app allows for parents to amicably co-parent and allows for communication with the other parent. It also has helpful features such as a multi-functional calendar and the ability to share important information and keep records.
What Do I Do If The Other Parent Will Not Give Permission?
If you are in a situation where there is no court order, and the other parent with parental responsibility will not agree to the holiday then it is always best to speak to the other parent directly to try and find out what is preventing them from agreeing to the trip. For example, it may be that the time your child is out of the country is too long so it may be worth seeing whether they will agree to a shorter time away and reaching a compromise. If speaking to the other parent does not work, then the next step would be to consider mediating with them.
If mediating does not work, or you are uncomfortable with engaging in mediation, then the next option could be to instruct a Solicitor to write to the other parent to try and reach an agreement.
If none of the above options are successful, then you may have no other option than to make an application to the Court. It will then be for the Court to decide whether you should be allowed to temporarily remove your child from the jurisdiction for a holiday. The Judge making the decision will consider what is known as the welfare checklist, which includes the wishes and feelings of the child, their physical, emotional and educational needs, and any other concerns.
How Can Timms Help?
If you are a parent that relates to this blog, Timms can help in a variety of ways:
- We can contact the other parent to attempt to reach an agreement.
- We can advise on the merits of making an application to the court to seek permission to take a child on holiday.
- We an issue an application to the court for permission to take your child on holiday, and also to prevent a parent taking a certain action.
Please contact a member of the family team on freephone 0800 011 6666 for further information.
