The very fact that “can I move with my child without fathers permission uk” is searched 300 times a month, in the United Kingdom alone, shows that it’s an important question many mothers are asking.
The relocation of a child in the UK and internationally can easily become one of the more heated subjects within family law, particularly for couples that aren’t together. Studies from the likes of ONS and Statista show that the average divorce rate in the UK is 42%, which doesn’t take into account the dissolution of non-marital relationships either.
There is also a considerable difference between an emotionally-separated family and a geographically-separated family. The former might mean that the mother and father aren’t on the best terms but the child can still easily see both, whereas the latter means that one of the parents likely has their access greatly limited.
This is where long-distance child arrangements in the UK may come into play, along with questions like “What is a prohibited steps order?” or “How far can a parent move with joint child arrangements?”. Inversely, you may be interested in the father’s rights when the mother wants to move.
We’ve put together this guide to help answer as many of these questions as we possibly can. If any remain, please don’t hesitate to contact our team of accredited family law solicitors with decades of experience between them.
A Mother’s Rights When Relocating With Their Child
From a family law perspective, if a parent wants to move within the United Kingdom with their child, then the mother (or father) with parental responsibility does not need to get consent from a parent without that responsibility. Who has and doesn’t have that responsibility is explored in the next section.
However, we would always recommend an open dialogue where possible with the other parent so they know what is happening with their child and former partner – even if you legally don’t need to. This could have a huge impact on their life and relationships with their children, and informing them of your intentions would make future discussions more pleasant and streamlined.
Moving without having that discussion, or clearing it with a family lawyer, could potentially delay your move. In certain circumstances, the courts could even stop you from moving if they believe it would negatively affect your child, their life, and their relationships too much.
A Father’s Rights When The Mother Wants To Move
It is better to think in terms of ‘those with parental responsibility and ‘those without parental responsibility’ instead of ‘father’ and ‘mother’.
Being a mother doesn’t mean you will always have a responsibility to your child in the eyes of the law, and vice versa. With that in mind, the father’s rights are interchangeable with the mother’s rights depending on their responsibility status.
The official website for the UK government explains the role of having parental responsibility as ‘providing a home for the child’ and ‘protecting and maintaining the child’. It also includes being responsible for:
- Disciplining the child
- Choosing and providing for the child’s education
- Agreeing to the child’s medical treatment
- Naming the child and agreeing to any change of name
- Looking after the child’s property
(Source: Gov.uk, ‘Parental rights and responsibilities’)
Ultimately, your rights – and your ability to have a greater influence over the child – depends on that responsibility, whether you’re a father or a mother.
That responsibility is given to the mother automatically upon birth, along with the father named on the birth certificate or who is married to the mother. While a Parental Responsibility Agreement can be reached for a father who doesn’t meet either of those two criteria, without this, you can’t actually decide where the parent lives. An unmarried father or a father who is not named on the birth certificate can apply to the court for a Prohibited Steps Order to prevent the relocation of a child.
Exploring Whether You Need To Go To Court To Relocate
While you aren’t required to go to court to move away with your child if you have consent, if the other parent objects, it may be necessary to seek family law mediation. This is when an external party tries to collaborate with you to find a solution that works for both parties.
By going down the path of mediation, you may be able to avoid going to court. However, it may be needed if an agreement can’t be found with this method. At court, you may then be asked to prove that you are fair and keeping your child’s best interests in mind with your desire to relocate.
It’s worth keeping in mind that you may want to get something more legally binding than simply the spoken consent of the other parent. This can be achieved by getting a Consent Order from the court and this protects you in case the other parent has a change of mind.
Reasons Why A Court May Prohibit A Mother/Father Moving With Their Child
There are many reasons that this may happen and it ultimately comes down to the wellbeing of the child, which is what officials will consider the most important element in family law cases.
One reason they would deny the relocation would be if the move could lead to a severe breakdown in the child’s relationship with the other parent. If they become difficult to access or communicate with, the officials may be harder to convince.
A lack of planning could also impact your ability to relocate. You would need to present clear plans for things like schools to join, a home to live in, and how finances will be provided from the new location.
For older children, them expressing they do not want to move is also one way to quickly get the relocation delayed or prohibited.
In summary: There are multiple reasons why a court may prohibit the relocation. So, consider all of the above and have solutions prepared for each point if you believe either of them may be contested.
What Is A Prohibited Steps Order?
A Prohibited Steps Order can ultimately be used to limit the parental responsibility that one has over their child and the different elements of that which they can exercise.
For example, if the mother wanted to move with their child without the father’s permission in the UK, as the father you may be able to stop this from happening with the order. This can also limit things like name changes, school changes and more.
These last as long as the court deems necessary, although in almost all cases, these will come to an end when the child reaches their 18th birthday as this is when they legally become an adult.
To get a Prohibited Steps Order, you must work with a family law solicitor who will then guide you through the process, from the initial request to completion with the court. These can be instigated by either the mother or the father.
How Far Can A Parent Move With A Joint Child Arrangements Order In The UK?
In most cases, as long as you can present good arguments for the points we detailed in the ‘Reasons Why A Court May Prohibit A Mother/Father Moving With Their Child’ section, then you could move with a child anywhere in the United Kingdom. Again, that is assuming that you’ve provided strong enough counters for the points raised in that section and have followed the necessary legal steps.
However, if you wish to move internationally, it may complicate things a little further. Without consent from the other parent, you would need to apply for ‘permission to remove from the jurisdiction’.
As is consistent with family law matters, this will be much more straightforward if the child’s best interests are genuinely in mind and will be better served by moving somewhere else.
It may be difficult to remove any biases you have, so we’d always encourage someone to get help from an external family law team to provide a different perspective to tackle this. Rest assured though, many long-distance child arrangements orders are granted in the UK every year, so this is possible.
Tips On How To Legally Arrange The Relocation Of A Child
We’ve covered a lot of different areas within one large topic here, but we wanted to summarise some of the most important tips we’ve provided in one section for you.
Discuss it with the other parent
Being completely transparent will always be the best way to approach this. While they may not need to provide their official consent for it to be legal to relocate, you should seek it anyway to avoid any complications in the future. Transparency and honesty with the other parent will also be seen in a positive light by the court if they get involved.
Have the child’s best interest in mind
This will be one of the main elements considered by the court in granting you the right to relocate – if the court gets involved. If you’re simply wanting to move to prevent contact with one parent, then it may not be deemed a good enough reason.
Prepare your case
Things like the parent’s ability to make money or keep the child educated will be considered and challenged within the court, so have your arguments and evidence ready for when this inevitably happens.
Long-distance child arrangement orders in the UK are granted often, so stay positive
While it may be easier for parents on good terms to arrange these, by going through mediation or using family law specialists, even a mother and father on negative terms can come to agree satisfactory child arrangements.
If you want to stop a parent from moving a child without permission, consider a Prohibited Steps Order
If child arrangements can’t be agreed upon, then the parent who is potentially having their child moved away from them may want to consider a Prohibited Steps Order to limit the other parent’s rights over the child.
Consider help from a family law solicitor
For many, this isn’t something they want to tackle by themselves. Going into something as important as this without a proper understanding of the rules and regulations may actually do more harm than good. That’s why we’d always consider someone to discuss matters with a professional, which you can do by visiting our contact us page. Whether you have a small question or a huge problem, we’re here to help.
