International AMBER Alert Day: what to do if your (ex-)partner leaves with your child abroad
Last week was international AMBER alert day. An AMBER alert is a nationwide warning message that can be sent out if the police fear for the life of a missing or abducted child. An AMBER alert does not exist in Belgium, although we have had the similar "Child alert" since 2011. But what should you do when your (ex-)partner leaves abroad with your child without permission?
When one parent leaves the country with the child, without the knowledge of the other parent, this becomes a international child abduction mentioned. International child abduction is strictly enforced and punished, but it is not always easy to bring the child back to Belgium.
The difficulty lies in the country to which the child was abducted. If it is a country that is party to the Hague Convention you can submit a request for the return of your child to the Federal Contact Point. This agency will be able to arrange for a reasonably quick return of the child, this because of the other country's cooperation.
There are also countries that do not cooperate with this authority, then it will be more difficult to bring the child back to Belgium. This is usually made even more difficult because the court that must be caught will be the court of the other country.
To initiate such proceedings, we recommend that you contact one of our specialists.
If you fear international child abduction, we recommend the following preventive measures:
- Do not give your child's passport to the other parent
- Request your municipal government not to issue a passport for your child without prior permission
- Have your child listed on the PASBANN list at the Passport Office of the FPS Foreign Affairs
- Inform your surroundings of the abduction risk (family, friends, school, hobby,...)
- Inform local police of kidnapping risk
- Consult one of our attorneys to arrange for a travel ban with the child
