Let’s talk legal... Taking children on holiday when you are a divorced parent

By Evolve Family Law

The pleasurable task of finding and booking a holiday can be a major stressor when you are a separated or divorced parent. The pleasure of looking forward to a half-term or summer break with your children can evaporate if your ex-partner won’t communicate with you or is uncooperative. Problems can mount if your new partner has children from a previous relationship, and you and your partner are juggling holidaying as a blended family with two ex-partners who don’t seem to understand the complexities of taking children on holiday as divorced parents.

Holiday orders

You may need a holiday order if:

1. You want to take your children overseas on holiday, and you don’t have a child arrangement order that names you as the parent your children live with.

2. You have a child arrangement order, but you want to take the children abroad for over four weeks.

3. You want to holiday in the UK with your children, but your ex won’t agree to overnight contact or a week’s holiday, saying that you can only take the children away for a long weekend.

4. Your ex-partner won’t agree to swap their contact dates, preventing you from taking the children on holiday on the dates your new partner and their children are available to go on holiday.

5. Your ex won’t agree to your taking the children abroad unless you agree not to take your new partner with you.

Legal advice on the law and holidaying with your children after a separation

If you are intending to book a holiday and you are not sure legally where you stand, or you have booked and your ex is now saying the children cannot go on the planned trip, the family law solicitors at Evolve Family Law can outline how the law applies in your circumstances. They will explain whether you need your ex-partner’s agreement for the holiday and how to get a holiday order if you need either your ex-partner’s consent or a court order.

Getting early holiday legal advice from a family lawyer may seem like overkill, but legal advice gives you peace of mind knowing that you are within your rights to take your children on holiday and will explain the paperwork you should take on holiday as a separated parent to minimise the risk of problems at the airport or ferry terminal.

If you book a holiday and hope for the best, your ex may be able to stop your children from boarding the plane if you don’t have your ex-partner’s written permission or a holiday order. The stress of hoping for the best when you know your ex-partner and what they are capable of just isn’t worth it.

The family law solicitors can write to your former partner to get their agreement to a specific holiday or future holidays, or secure a child arrangement order or holiday order that enables you to go away without the extra stressor of having to negotiate being able to take a hard-earned break with your children.