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Relocating With Children

There are lots of reasons why a parent might want to move to another city, state or country when a relationship breaks down. This might be to secure family support, pursue a new relationship or to take up a job opportunity. The reasons are endless.

While you are free to move, you are generally required to obtain the permission of the court or other parent. If you seek to relocate with a child. If you move with a child without permission or court order, the other parent may be successful in getting a recovery order from the Court which provides for the child’s return to where they had been living.

The laws are more complicated if you wrongfully remove a child from Australia.

Attempting to flee overseas with the child or children is not recommended because:

The other parent can arrange to have your name and/or the child’s name placed on a Federal Police watch list, maintained at every international port and airport in Australia. Once listed, you will be unable to leave Australia.
It would be contrary to an order of the Family Court and the court does not take kindly to a party who breaches an order.
The child or children may be ordered to be returned to Australia (at your expense) under an international Child Abduction Convention (the Hague Convention), an international agreement that applies in over 85 countries including Australia.

When determining the merits of a relocation application, the court applies the following principles:

The welfare or best interests of the child remains the paramount consideration.
The court cannot require the parent wishing to relocate with the children to demonstrate compelling reasons for the relocation of the child’s residence.
It is necessary for the court to evaluate each of the proposals of the children’s living arrangements advanced by each parent.
The evaluation of the competing proposals must weigh the evidence and submissions as to how each proposal would hold advantages and disadvantages for the child’s best interests.
A court cannot proceed to determine the issues in a way which separates the issue of relocation from that of residence and the best interests of the child.

Ultimately, it will come down the specific facts and circumstances of your case. You should obtain qualifies legal advice at the earliest possible stage of any relocation related issue. Contact our trusted family lawyers in Sydney today for a free consultation.

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