Considerations in International Child Custody

As discussed in previous posts, the number of marriages between U.S. citizens and citizens of foreign nations is steadily rising. Increased foreign travel (often for business purposes), military operations abroad and immigration to the United States are just a few of the reasons behind this growing trend. However, with this steady rise in the number of marriages between people of differing nationalities has come an accompanying rise in the number of divorces and, more importantly, international child custody disputes.

Today's post will briefly discuss several issues that divorcing parents who plan on living in separate countries will likely want to consider. By acting both carefully and proactively, divorcing parents can prevent child custody battles, avoid subjecting their children to unnecessary trauma and facilitate harmonious parent-child relationships.  

(Please see "A Closer Look at International Child Custody" for more information.)

Some of the issues that divorcing parents who plan on living in separate international locations may want to consider include:

(Please note, these are only considerations that parents may wish to discuss among themselves and do not account for how a court is likely to decide child custody/visitation matters.)

Education:  First and foremost, parents will likely want to discuss their respective educational concerns and where they believe the child will obtain the best education. (This may not necessarily be the United States).

An equally important consideration in the context of education is the school schedule. For example, children in the United States receive a summer vacation of three months, a lengthy period of time often relied upon by non-custodial parents. However, schools in other countries may have schedules where such a large block of vacation time is unavailable and the visitation/parenting time plans of non-custodial parents may therefore be frustrated. Accommodations may need to be made.

Holidays:  Divorcing couples who plan on residing in separate countries will likely want to consider that their respective countries may observe different religious and secular holidays. Why is this important? Holidays are an important opportunity for parent-child bonding and creating/maintaining traditions. Consequently, parents will likely need to consider if, when and how these holidays can be observed.

Travel: In most situations, divorcing couples with children will maintain separate residences that are still relatively close to one another (i.e., in the same city, county, state, etc.). What happens when one parent lives in the United States and another lives in a foreign country?

In these situations, parents will likely want to consider the following issues when discussing child custody/visitation.

• Is the child capable of traveling on their own?
• If the child is incapable of traveling on their own, will the non-custodial parent travel to his or her location? If so, will they be reimbursed for their travel expenses?
• If the child is capable of traveling on their own, who will cover the travel costs of the child?

If you are currently involved in a child custody dispute or have questions regarding international child custody, you should strongly consider speaking with an experienced legal professional. 

This post is provided for informational purposes only and is not to be construed as legal advice.

Stay tuned for more from our Denver divorce blog ...

Related Resources:
  
• Special Considerations in International Custody Situations (The Center for International Child Custody and Relocation)