MOVING WITHIN AUSTRALIA OR RELOCATION OVERSEAS
A parent wishing to move, relocate or travel overseas with a child away from the other parent is one of the common reasons that parents end up in court.
The law says that if a parent wants to move or relocate with the Children to another city, state or even another country they will need the consent of the other parent or the permission of the Court.
The difficulty is that the legislation does not specifically say when relocation should be allowed. Each case must therefore be decided on its individual circumstances making it often very difficult to predict the outcome of making or resisting such an application.
While the bests interests of the Child are of paramount consideration for any Court they are not the sole consideration. The Court will consider the benefit of the Child having a meaningful relationship with both is parents along with the need to protect the child from harm and will balance these interests with the parents’ right to have freedom of movement.
If you are planning to move or relocate or you believe the other parent is considering a move, then [contact us] to speak to an experienced family lawyer about your options.
It is important to know that if the other parent does not consent to the move the Court will normally require the parent and child that moved away to return, until the move can be properly considered by the courts and the police can be used by the courts to enforce such an order if necessary.
If a parent relocates overseas without the other parent or the courts’ permission, then there may be in certain circumstances, an order for the Child to be returned.
Contact us to speak to an experienced family lawyer about your individual circumstances.