Holiday checklist; luggage, passport, children…consent?
The children have now broken up from school for the summer and you may be busy running around making last minute preparations for your annual family holiday abroad. As well as making sure that emergency first aid kit is still in date and that the passports have not expired, make sure that you have obtained the appropriate consent for removing a child temporarily outside the UK.
It is a criminal offence to remove a child under the age of 16 from the UK without first obtaining the consent of each of the following:
The offence is punishable by imprisonment.
It is not necessary to obtain such consent if you are named in a CAO as a person with whom a child is to live and you take or send a child out of the UK for less than one month providing this is not in breach of any court order. This period is extended to three months if you are a special guardian of a child.
If you do unilaterally remove a child from the jurisdiction without first obtaining the appropriate consent, you may not have committed an offence if you do so in the belief that any relevant person has consented or would have consented if they were aware of all the relevant circumstances. The same is true if you have taken all reasonable steps to communicate with any other relevant person but have been unable to contact them or the other person has unreasonably refused to consent.
The defence on the grounds of unreasonable refusal to consent does not apply if the person refusing the consent is a person named in a CAO as a person with whom the child is to live, or is a special guardian, or if the person taking or sending the child out of the UK is acting in breach of a court order.
Where there is no CAO in force which regulates the living arrangements for a child, consent should be obtained from each person with parental responsibility before you take them out of the UK. In the absence of consent, permission should be obtained from the court.
Where there is a CAO in force that regulates the living arrangements for a child, no one can remove the child from the UK without either the written consent of every person who has parental responsibility for the child or the leave of the court. However, as mentioned above, the person (or persons) named in a CAO as someone with whom a child is to live is permitted to remove the child from the UK for a period of less than one month. This allows for holidays or other trips abroad without the need to seek the consent of any other person or permission of the court.
There are no limits to the number of temporary removals of less than one month.
Where the other parent (as is usually the case) does not consent to the holiday, it is open to them to apply for a prohibited steps order to prevent a child from being removed from the jurisdiction. In the alternative, the parent wishing to take the child on holiday may apply for a specific issue order from the court seeking permission to temporarily remove a child from the jurisdiction.
The destination and duration of the holiday will be significant factors.
In making a decision the courts paramount consideration is the welfare of the child and it will have regard to a range of other factors to ensure that everything is taken into account.
Where the destination of a holiday is to a country that is not a member of The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (where there are reciprocal arrangements in place for the return of abducted children), it may be appropriate to put in place certain safeguards to ensure a child is properly and promptly returned. For example, a child?s passports could be lodged with a lawyer of the destination country for the duration of the holiday and/or a ‘mirror order’ could be obtained in the destination country ordering a child to be returned to the UK by a certain date.
If your circumstances mean that you require consent before taking a child abroad, even if for a short summer holiday, make sure you provide all relevant parties with sufficient notice of the holiday along with flight, accommodation and emergency contact details.
If consent to the holiday is not forthcoming then consider making an application for a specific issue order to the court in good time.
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Hi, please can you advice. I am a mother of my 7 years old daughter which I would like to take for a holiday to Cyprus for 3 weeks. We live in Uk, I have CAO where it states she lives with me but only sees her father every other weekend. Can I take her abroad for 3 weeks even if he refuses me to take her and will be threatening to take me to court ? I am happy to offer him extra missed days before or after the holiday and be reasonable, but I worry he wont. There is already 5 years restraining order in place lasting until 2020.
Thank you
Jana
Many thanks for your comment Jana. If there is a Child Arrangements Order stating that your daughter lives with you and spends time with her father, then you are permitted to take your daughter out of the jurisdiction for the purpose of a holiday for up to one month; you do not need the father?s consent. The father should be provided with details for the holiday, such as flight information, address for where the child will be staying and emergency contact details. I hope that this assists.
Hello would concent be needed from both parents if there is a temporary CAO? Court asked me to write concent but she went anyways, without providing any details, now with a CAO in place goes abroad without informing me on travelling abroad or basic emergency contact details. For me I’m wondering if a temporary order holds the same power as a full time CAO
Many thanks for your comment. If the interim Child Arrangements Order states that a child lives with one parent and has contact with the other, then the parent with whom the child lives is able to remove the child from the jurisdiction for the purpose of a holiday for up to one month without the other parent?s consent, unless the interim Order states otherwise. As the child?s parent, you should still be provided with details for the holiday, such as flight information, address for where the child will be staying and emergency contact details. If the interim Child Arrangements Order states that a child lives with both parents, then both parents would need to consent to a holiday. I hope that this assists.
Hi, I have a CAO in place from Jan 2016. The CAO states that the Mother must make the children available for two periods of contact during the summer holidays, one period of 7days and one period of 14days. This year Mother has taken Weeks 1-2 and 4, leaving me with weeks 3, 5-6. However Mother is saying she is unable to make the children available for weeks 5-6 and refuses to provide any reason. I believe she is intending to take the children out of the country if so, would this be covered by the Child Abduction Act as the children should be with me?
Thank you for your comment Kenneth. If there is an CAO in place stipulating that the children are to live with their mother and spend time with you, then the mother is able to take the children out of the jurisdiction without your consent for up to a period of 28 days. If the mother refuses to make the children available during time that they are supposed to be with you, then she is in breach of the CAO – which you could seek to enforce. However, this would not constitute an unlawful act under the Child Abduction Act, even if she takes the children abroad during this time, providing the mother is not contravening the 28 day rule. If you require any further assistance, I suggest you consult a specialist family solicitor.
Hi, I have a CAO for daughter to live with me and contact with her father. Order includes summer holidays and father ability to take her abroad with 28 days prior written notice and to provide travel information and details when abroad. If the holiday is in the UK is father required to give at least 28 days notice and travel information? What happens if the notice is not given in time?
Thank you for your message. If the CAO does not stipulate that your daughter’s father must give 28 days’ notice and travel information for UK holidays, then the rules will not apply. This is not a requirement in law. If you are not provided with at least 28 days’ notice for foreign holidays, and if you believe it is not in your daughter’s best interest to go on the trip, you could refuse your consent to the holiday and bring an application for a Prohibited Steps Order.