Can a parent take a child out of Tunisia without the other's consent?

Answer by the AvoConsulte editorial team

Not always. It depends on the child's nationality, who has custody and whether a court has made an order. A parent leaving with a Tunisian child may be asked for the other parent's authorisation, and in a dispute either parent can ask a judge to ban the child from leaving Tunisia.

Passport and authorisation

Since Organic Law No. 2015-46, which amended the passport law, the mother as well as the father can apply for a minor's Tunisian passport and authorise the child's travel. In principle one parent's authorisation is enough, unless a court has decided otherwise, for example by a travel ban or a custody judgment that regulates travel.

Foreign governments' travel advice reports that a non-Tunisian parent leaving Tunisia alone with a Tunisian child may be asked at the border for a written authorisation from the Tunisian parent, signed before a Tunisian authority. Confirm the current practice with a Tunisian consulate or the border police. If your surname differs from the child's, carry the family record book or the child's birth certificate.

When parents disagree

• A parent who fears the child will be taken abroad can ask for a travel ban on the child: from the president of the court of first instance in urgent proceedings, or from the family judge as an urgent measure during a divorce case.
• Lifting the ban has to be requested from the court.
• A custodial parent who moves far away, especially abroad, may see custody or visiting arrangements reviewed, since the other parent's rights must remain possible to exercise.

If a child has already been taken

Act quickly: see a lawyer in both countries, consider a complaint, since refusing to hand over a child in breach of a custody or visiting order can be an offence, and ask which instrument applies: the 1982 Franco-Tunisian convention on custody and visiting rights, or the 1980 Hague Convention on child abduction, which Tunisia has joined but which only applies with countries that have accepted its accession.

Before travelling with a child in a tense family situation, get advice first. For your own situation, consult a family lawyer; the AvoConsulte directory lists lawyers registered with the ONAT by city.

This answer was written by the AvoConsulte editorial team and gives general information only: it is not legal advice. For your own situation, consult a lawyer.

Sources

1. Loi organique n° 2015-46 du 23 novembre 2015, modifiant et complétant la loi n° 75-40 du 14 mai 1975 relative aux passeports et aux documents de voyage DCAF – Base de données de la législation sécuritaire tunisienne (JORT n° 95 du 27 novembre 2015)
2. Tunisia: Step Forward for Women's Rights Human Rights Watch
3. Tunisie – Conseils aux voyageurs : entrée / séjour Ministère de l'Europe et des Affaires étrangères (France)
4. Convention franco-tunisienne du 18 mars 1982 relative à l'entraide judiciaire en matière de droit de garde des enfants, de droit de visite et d'obligations alimentaires Conférence de La Haye de droit international privé (HCCH)
5. Status table – Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (acceptances of Tunisia's accession) Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH)