Briefly summarize the position in your jurisdiction.
The UAE is not a signatory to the Hague Convention. Within UAE
laws, there are no statutory provisions specifically dealing with
child abduction.
Leave to Remove/ Applications to take a child out of the
jurisdiction
Summarize the position in your jurisdiction
Post divorce, if the custodian of the child is other than the
child's mother, he or she must obtain the written agreement
from the guardian before taking the child out of the UAE. If such
permission is withheld by the guardian, the custodian may obtain
permission for the child's travel from a judge (Article 149
Personal Status Law).
During the marriage, a mother cannot take the child out of the UAE
without written permission from her husband. After divorce (and the
conclusion of the waiting period), the mother may take the child
out of the country without the father's consent unless it harms
the child in some way (Article 150 Personal Status Law).
The guardian of a child has the right to hold the child's
passport for safekeeping, but must hand the passport over to the
custodian when it is required for the child's travel.
Furthermore, the judge may order the passport to be kept with the
custodian if they experience difficulty dealing with the guardian
when the passport is requested (Article 157 Personal Status
Law).
Under what circumstances may a parent apply to remove their child from the jurisdiction against the wishes of the other parent?
The custodian of the child may not permanently settle the child
in another country if it would cause harm to the other parent, and
if the distance between the two countries prevented the non
-resident parent from visiting the child and returning home in one
day (Article 151).
If the guardian can prove that his residence in the UAE has expired
due to valid reasons such as the end of his employment or due to
any other reason, which the court will not find arbitrary, the
court may allow the guardian to take away the children and the
mother will have the choice to join them or not.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.