What Family Law Says About A Divorced Parent Travelling Abroad With Their Children

When couples with children divorce, normally most matters are settled amicably, and usually with the help of each parent’s family lawyer. However, a situation can arise which, to most people, would not normally seem like a problem, but for divorced parents with children, it can prove to be an issue.

Family lawyers advise that one such scenario is when one of the parents wishes to take their children overseas. Obviously, to do so, any child travelling to another country will need a passport, and this can often be the first hurdle if the other parent refuses to sanction the child being issued a passport.

This is a result of joint parental responsibility, which is the usual default position following a divorce where the couple has any children. This means that each parent has the right to be informed of and must agree to a passport being issued. Even if they already have a passport, taking children out of the country is another situation where joint parental responsibility applies.

Now there can be many reasons a parent would refuse permission, with some of them legitimate and some not so much. With the latter, it could be that the absent parent simply wants to make things difficult and refuses permission out of spite.

In this scenario, the other parent could apply to the court to have joint parental responsibility order amended so that matters like passports and overseas travel were excluded. They would certainly have a strong case as the Family Court does not look favourably upon parents with joint parental responsibility being belligerent, especially if their actions are not in the best interests of their children.