What Happens When Parents Live Internationally?
An important component of every divorce involving children is child custody, and making these arrangements is difficult enough when divorcing parents live across town from one another. When one of the parents lives internationally, things become that much more complicated. If you have child custody concerns related to your divorcing spouse living internationally, you need a dedicated Forsyth County child custody attorney with a solid working knowledge of how international treaties intersect with Georgia’s jurisdiction on your side.
Living Abroad Complicates the Matter
There is nothing easy about hammering out child custody arrangements in the best of situations, but if your spouse is planning on living abroad, it is an extremely complicated matter that you need to take seriously from the outset. Sometimes, a divorcing parent will move out-of-country post-divorce, and this must be carefully addressed in your child custody arrangements. If the country in question is a third-world country, it adds an additional layer of problems, which can include:
- Unhygienic and/or otherwise inadequate living conditions
- Inferior medical care
- Inferior education
- Inadequate recognition of human rights
These are important reasons why you might not want your children to live even part of the time internationally with their other parent. Even if the country in question, however, does not pose any safety or health concerns, one parent living abroad can lead to serious issues.
Child Abduction and the Hague Convention
Sometimes, one parent living internationally can lead to circumstances so serious that child abduction becomes an issue. In a situation of this magnitude, it is important to understand how The Hague Convention on International Child Abduction – which is an international treaty that’s been ratified in many nations throughout the world – addresses the issue.
This treaty provides the guidelines that courts must use when determining cases where one parent contends international abduction. Due to the seriousness of the matter, each parent’s motives and actions will be carefully investigated. Ultimately, the court will issue its decision, and the future of the parent who brings the case and the child in question hangs in the balance.
The Warning Signs
After the fact (of an international child abduction), many parents share that there might have been warning signs that they failed to recognize. Divorce is a stressful life event, and it can lead seemingly reasonable people to do extremely unreasonable things. A common ploy that can lead to international abduction is taking the child or children abroad for an innocent vacation that the parent attempts to make permanent.
If you are facing a divorce or are considering divorce and there is any indication that your spouse may be considering moving overseas, take the matter seriously by consulting with a family law attorney who has significant experience with international custody concerns.
You Need an Experienced Cumming Child Custody Attorney on Your Side
The dedicated family law attorneys at Banks, Stubbs & McFarland – serving both Forsyth County and Cumming – have considerable experience successfully guiding cases involving international custody concerns toward favorable resolutions. To learn more, please don’t hesitate tocontact us online or call us at 770-887-1209 today.