You are seeking to take your children on an overseas trip to see immediate or extended family, or simply on a holiday to explore a new country but unfortunately, your ex-spouse or ex-partner is refusing to consent to the proposed travel. What avenues are available to you to facilitate such travel, given that the travel is not consented to by both parents.
If you do not have a Court Order for sole parental responsibility in respect to travel arrangements, and the passport of your children, then you are able to make an application to the Family Court to temporarily remove the children from Australia.
Generally, the Family Court will take into account the following factors in determining whether to grant the Orders sought in your application:
- The length of the proposed stay out of the jurisdiction.
- The longer you are intending to stay away from the jurisdiction the less likely the Court will view the overseas travel to be temporary, and they will be less inclined to grant the Orders sought.
- The bona fides of the application and the effect on the child of any deprivation of time with the other parent.
- If you own property in Australia, you are an Australian citizen, the travel does not unnecessarily interfere with the schooling of the children, and does not deny the time of the children with the other parent during a special occasion in their family’s life which the children should not miss, then the more inclined the Court will be to grant the Orders sought.
- Any threat to the welfare of the child by the circumstances of the proposed environment.
- If the proposed country of travel is a high-risk country, or the environment the will be living in is unsafe, the Court will be less inclined to grant the Orders sought in your application.
These are just some of the pertinent factors the Family Court will weigh up and consider when presented with an application for overseas travel. We highly recommend that you receive tailored legal advice relevant to your circumstances when making such an application.
Whether it be representing you in the Family Court of Western Australia in respect to child custody, child support or property matters, or your divorce application, our Family Lawyers are here to help. Contact us on 08 6243 7544 for more information.
Disclaimer
General Advice Warning
The information contained on this brochure is general in nature and does not take into account your personal situation. You should consider whether the information is appropriate to your needs, and where appropriate, seek professional advice from a suitably qualified lawyer.
All legal and other matters referred to on this brochure are of a general nature only and are based on Affinitas Legal’s interpretation of laws existing at the time and should not be relied upon in place of appropriate professional advice. Those laws may change from time to time and the information contained herein may be out of date.
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