Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 January 2021
162. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Justice the protections in place to prevent a parent leaving the country with a young child born here who has dual citizenship without the permission of the other parent; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1991/21]
View answerSection 16 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997 establishes the offence of international child abduction in Irish legislation.
It is an offence for any person including a parent or guardian to take or send a child under 16 years from the State:
(a) in defiance of a court order, or
(b) without the consent of each person who is a guardian, or without the consent of a person to whom custody of the child has been granted by a court, unless the consent of a court was first obtained.
If a parent/guardian fears that their child may be abducted, the following steps may be taken:
- Contact the Gardaí informing them of the perceived threat,
- If a person is the legal guardian of a child (or has applied to be a guardian) he or she may contact the Passport Office and request that he or she be informed if the other parent applies for a passport for the child,
- Apply to the Court requesting that it direct who should hold the child's passport, e.g. the parent/guardian, the Gardaí and/or the courts.
If a child has been removed from the State, the International Child Abduction Unit is the Central Authority within my Department that provides assistance to parents and guardians of children who have been removed from the jurisdiction without their consent. This unit is a transmitting and receiving agency for applications for the return of children to the jurisdiction under the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction and Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003 of 27 November 2003.
The procedures for dealing with situations of international parental child abduction involving countries which are party to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction are set out in the Child Abduction and Enforcements of Custody Orders Act 1991. EC Regulation 2201/2003 supplements and supports the terms of the Hague Convention in instances of international parental child abduction between Member States excluding Denmark.
Any assistance provided by embassies overseas would be a matter for the Department of Foreign Affairs.
