As we approach the summer holiday season, you may be busy ensuring everything is in place for the perfect family get away. Once you have sorted out your passports (don’t forget the new rules about validity periods!) and packed your suitcases, you might be ready for the off.
But, if you are a single parent planning to travel abroad with your child, then there may be one other item of holiday admin that you need to plan ahead for.
If both parents are named on your child’s birth certificate, both will have Parental Responsibility. This means that you will each require the written consent of the other before traveling abroad with your child.
Anecdotally, we understand that boarder security is increasingly asking questions of lone parents traveling with children and even more so where parents and children do not share the same surname.
In order to avoid any hold ups on your holiday, best practice would be to get something in writing providing expressed permission for the trip from everyone who has Parental Responsibility for the child that you are traveling with. This might be relevant even if you are traveling with nieces and nephews or other extended family members.
When working with families who are separated, we encourage parents to email the other as early as they can, setting out their plans for the holiday, including flights, details of accommodation and the time of the planned return. Hopefully, a simple response indicating agreement will suffice and you can print a copy to take away with your other travel documents.
If a parent refuses to give permission to travel, then it will be necessary to obtain the permission of the court before you travel. This means that an application for an order called a Specific Issue Order will be required.
Given the current difficulties that we face with court listings and general delays, the earlier this application can be made, the better.
The court will list a hearing, perhaps ask a Cafcass officer to speak to both parents before the hearing and may require a short statement setting out the issues. The Judge will then look at each case on its merits and weigh up any risks to the child that are associated with the travel. In the vast majority of cases, for an annual week abroad in the sunshine with family and where there are no other issues, the court is likely to consider this to be a positive opportunity for the child and grant permission. They may even make a costs order against the other party for unreasonably withholding permission.
If you find yourself in this situation, it would be worth obtaining legal advice as early as possible. At Warners, we help families to resolve issues without the need to attend court if we can. Here, we would write to the other parent formally setting out the travel plans and hopefully we would be able to allay any concerns they may have and avoid a formal court application.
It is worth checking before you travel however what is required for the country you are travelling to. South Africa for example requires a specific form of consent to be signed by the non-travelling parent regardless of whether parents are separated or still married. Other non- European countries can be similar, so it is worth exploring at the time you are making your booking.
If you have plans to travel this summer, the best thing to do is make sure that you have all your paperwork lined up before you travel. One small extra bit of holiday admin, if undertaken early enough, can ensure that you have a smooth start to your family break.
For further information, please contact Julie Dann in the family law team on 01732 747900 or email [email protected].
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. Please note that the law may have changed since this article was published. We do not accept responsibility or liability for any actions taken based on the information in this article.
