Spending Passover With Your Child Abroad

Hannah Goldstein

Who should the Children spend time with over Passover, and where?

With Passover coming to an end, you might be wishing that you had escaped the wintery weather for somewhere sunnier, or you might be thinking ahead to next year and planning to get a holiday booked in early. If you are divorced, or thinking of getting divorced, and have children, you might be wondering who the children will spend Passover with next year, and whether you can decide to take them abroad with or without your ex’s consent.

Can a parent take a child out of the country without the other parent’s permission?

If you want to take your child out of the jurisdiction, you must have consent from all those who hold Parental Responsibility, if you do not have a ‘Lives with Order’ from the Court. You must also seek consent from the other parent if you have been through the Court process and obtained a ‘Joint Lives with Order’.

A ‘Lives With Order’ allows you to take your child out of the country for up to 28 days without the other parents’ consent. However, insofar as possible you should inform the other parent in advance of taking the child away, with information about where you will be staying, dates of travel and provide emergency contact numbers and evidence of return flights to maintain a positive co-parenting relationship.

What do I do if the other parent refuses to consent to holidays abroad?

If your ex is refusing to give you consent to take the children abroad on holiday, you should first ensure that you have provided all the information about your proposed trip, including dates, flight details, the address where you will be staying etc. It is important that you attempt to resolve matters without the Court’s intervention in the first instance, given you will need provide the evidence of your attempts to seek consent should you need to make a Court application at a later stage.

If you cannot reach agreement, you should first consider mediation, unless one of the exemptions apply (such as domestic abuse, child protection concerns, urgency etc) all couples must attend a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting before making a Court application.

If your partner is refusing to engage in mediation, or you are not able to reach agreement, you might need to consider making an application to the Court for a ‘Specific Issue Order’.

How do we decide who the children will spend time with for Passover next year?

Often, parents decide to split the holidays either by alternating each year, or sharing the holiday itself. It is always best to try and agree matters with your ex. In section 1(5) of the Children Act 1989 there is the ‘’no-order principle’’; the Court must consider whether it would be better for the child to make an order than to make no order at all. Therefore, unlike when dealing with a financial settlement, you do not need a Court order to resolve matters regarding your children. Indeed, the Court now requires all parents to consider methods of Non-Court Dispute Resolution (NCDR).

How we can help?

If you are struggling to reach an agreement with your ex as to arrangements for the children, you should consider engaging in mediation before making an application to the Court. A mediator can assist with drawing up a parenting plan and helping you decide who the children spend the Jewish holidays with. If mediation has broken down, speak to one of our specialist family solicitors who can assist you with the next steps.

If you are thinking about separating, but are concerned about child-arrangements, our experienced family solicitors can guide you through the issues. Get in touch today to talk to one of our qualified family law solicitors about how we can help.