Preventing the other parent from taking your children abroad without your consent

The application must be made to the local French authorities known as the “préfecture” in your department. You can find their contact details in this directory.

• If the “préfecture” is closed (at night, weekends, public holidays), then you can go to any police station near you, i.e. a “commissariat de police” or “brigade de gendarmerie”.

Once there, you will be asked to complete an application form. You will also need to provide the following documents:

• your proof of identity: passport or identity card
• proof of identity for each of your children
• proof of your residency rights; for example, a photocopy of your valid residence permit or “titre de séjour”, or your asylum application
• a document proving your parental authority or "autorité parentale", such as a copy of a birth certificate for each of your children, where your name is mentioned
• a document dated within the last three months proving your place of residence called a “justificatif de domicile”, for example an electricity or gas bill, or a declaration that you are hosted at someone’s home called an “attestation d’hébergement” with proof of residence from the host and a copy of both sides of their identity document
• any relevant document that could assist the department to examine your application and make a decision. For example, an extract from a divorce decree, a copy of an airline ticket, messages containing threats, or any log or “main courante” you have already filed with the police.

Your application will be forwarded to the head of the prefecture known as the “Préfet” for approval. 

You will receive a response by telephone within the next few hours on the number you specified on the application form. You will also receive a letter within the next few days confirming the response at the address you specified in the application.

If the application is approved, your childrens’ names will be added to the national missing persons register, and reported to the Schengen Information System. This will allow police and immigration services to check that the children are allowed to travel when they pass through checkpoints.

This measure will be valid for: 

• 15 days if it has been issued by the “préfecture” 
• 10 days if it has been issued by the police. 

It is not renewable unless you request this promptly from the family court judge known as the “Juge aux affaires familiales (JAF)”. 

Sometimes the “Préfet” refuses to approve the application if they deem it unjustified. If this is the case, you can contact a lawyer to find out what action is possible.

This measure allows you to prevent a child from leaving the country without the consent of both parents. This means that each parent will need written permission from the other parent if they want to travel abroad with the children. This document will be recorded by the French police.

This ban will usually last until each child is 18 years old, or until a new decision is made. It may be lifted temporarily with the agreement of both parents.

The application must be made to the family court judge known as the “Juge aux affaires familiales (JAF)”.

It must be done by a lawyer if you have legal proceedings in progress, for example a divorce or child custody applications. 

If you have no current legal proceedings, you can still ask a lawyer to help you make this application.

The steps are as follows:

• Complete this form.
• Send the application to the family court judge or “Juge aux affaires familiales” of the child’s place of residence. To find their contact details, you can search this directory by entering your postcode and selecting “tribunal judiciaire”. 
• Send the application by registered post or “lettre recommandée avec accusé de réception”. This is the only way to have proof of receipt. Keep the receipt as proof of postage.

The judge will summon both parents for an appointment known as a hearing or “audience” to make a decision. Some points to consider:

• This “audience” may be scheduled several weeks after the application. 
• Your lawyer may ask the judge to schedule an “audience” date as soon as possible.
• It is advisable to ensure that the “audience” is scheduled before the end date of the “Opposition à la Sortie du Territoire (OST)” issued by the “préfecture”. This will ensure there is no period of time between the two measures which would allow the other parent to leave the country. 

In making a decision, the judge will take into account concrete elements and concerns that would justify a legal ban on leaving the country, for instance: 

• threats to travel abroad with the children and not return
• absence from work
• lack of family ties in France 
• expiry of a residence permit or “titre de séjour” 
• a contentious separation 
• history of abuse.

The judge’s decision will not be made on the day of the “audience”. On that day, the judge will schedule the date on which the decision must be made, known as the deliberation date or “date de délibéré”, which may be scheduled up to four weeks later.

Your lawyer will usually receive the decision. If you went to the “audience” alone without a lawyer, you will receive the decision by post at the address you indicated in your application. You will receive the letter by registered post or “lettre recommandée avec avis de réception”. 

If the application is approved, your childrens’ names will be added to the national missing persons register, and reported to the Schengen Information System. This will allow police and immigration services to check that the children are allowed to travel when they pass through checkpoints.