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Overview
If someone takes your child out of Aotearoa New Zealand without your consent, you may be able to ask for them to be returned under the Hague Convention. If your child is being kept in Aotearoa New Zealand without the consent of another party overseas, you may be asked to return your child to that country.
The Hague Convention
The Hague Convention is an international agreement between several countries. It helps children return to the country they usually live in if they’re taken or kept overseas, so that parenting arrangements can be made.
The Hague Convention assumes that the courts in the country where the child usually lives are best able to make decisions about the child.
Why a child may not be returned from a Hague Convention Country
In some cases, a judge in Aotearoa New Zealand or overseas may decide not to return the child to the country where the child usually lives.
This may happen if:
- the person wanting the return of their child wasn’t using their custody rights when their child was taken or kept overseas
- the person wanting the return of their child had agreed to the child being taken to or kept in the other country
- the child would be at risk of physical, mental or emotional harm if they came back to the country they usually lived in
- the child doesn’t want to come back, and is old enough for their views to be considered
- the child is settled in the new country and has been living there for more than 12 months
- returning the child would be against their basic freedoms and human rights.
If you don’t meet the criteria to apply for the return of the child, you could make an application for contact (under the Hague Convention).
To find out more about this application, contact the Central Authority:
Phone 027 337 3612 or 04 918 8800 (or +64 4 918 8800 if you’re outside Aotearoa New Zealand).
You can also talk to a lawyer.
Have a child returned from a country that isn’t part of The Hague Convention
If your child has been taken to a country that isn’t part of the Hague Convention, you might still be able to get them returned to Aotearoa New Zealand. You’ll need to talk to a specialist lawyer in Aotearoa New Zealand if you’re in this situation.
Find a lawyer on the Law Society’s website(external link)
In most cases, you’ll also need to hire a lawyer in the overseas country to help you get the child back. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade should be able to give you a list of lawyers in the overseas country.
Contact the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade(external link)
Contact with a child living overseas
You may contact a child living overseas by phone, email, text message, social media, or video call. However, the contact you can have will depend on the conditions of any existing orders. To understand your options about contacting a child living overseas, contact the Central Authority or talk to a lawyer.
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