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In Romania, it is not a criminal offence for someone with parental responsibility to abduct a child. The UK government cannot force the parent who took your child, or the Romanian courts, to return them even if there is a UK court order.

Read our general guide on international parental child abduction alongside this guide.

The 1980 Hague Convention

You or your lawyer can use the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction to return your child to the UK.

The Hague Convention is an international agreement that:

• protects children from the harmful effects of being wrongfully taken to or kept in another country
• sets out a procedure to return children to the place where they usually live as quickly as possible
• applies in Romania

Under the Hague Convention, taking or keeping a child is considered wrongful if it goes against custody rights under the laws of the country where the child usually lives.

Romania can refuse a request for your child’s return in certain situations, such as:

• if there is a serious risk of physical or emotional harm
• you agreed to them being taken or kept, or were not using your custody rights when it happened
• they do not want to return, and the court believes they are mature enough to consider their opinion
• you made your request more than a year after they were taken or kept, and it can be shown they are now settled

The Hague Convention does not apply after a child reaches the age of 16.

Requesting the return of your child

Hague Convention countries have an administrative organisation called the Central Authority. This body manages how the Hague Convention is applied in that country.

There are separate Central Authorities for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. To request the return of your child, you need to send an application to the in the country where your child lived before they were taken or kept.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) recommends:

• hiring a Romanian lawyer who specialises in international parental child abduction cases
• submitting a Hague Convention application as soon as possible

Parents are not required to get legal advice before applying to the Central Authority. You can fill in and submit the application form yourself. 

Neither consular staff nor the Central Authority can offer legal advice.

Getting a lawyer

Check our list of .

If you cannot afford a lawyer, tell the . The Central Authority is responsible for notifying the Bucharest Bar who will appoint a lawyer to apply for legal aid on your behalf. Legal aid is only available until a bailiff is appointed and they try to enforce a return order. After this, you’ll need to pay for a lawyer.

Court proceedings

Courts in the country where the child has been taken to handle Hague Convention cases. This means the Romanian courts will decide whether your child should be returned, not UK courts.

The UK Central Authority will send your application to the .

In Romania, there are 2 courts involved in Hague Convention cases. The Bucharest Tribunal handles cases in the first instance, and the Bucharest Court of Appeal deals with appeals.

Usually, the processing time for a case in the Romanian courts is approximately 6 to 12 weeks for first-instance proceedings. Appeals can usually take up to 3 months.

The Romanian court will not decide who should care for your child (‘custody’) or contact arrangements. Once your child has returned to the country where they lived, the courts there will settle these issues if you and the other parent cannot agree.

Return orders and bailiff enforcement

If your application is successful, the Romanian court will issue a return order for your child, which is expected to be enforced voluntarily and in a timely manner.

Carrying out court orders can be a long and complicated process. There are often significant delays. In some cases, bailiffs have not been able to enforce Romanian court orders successfully.

If the other parent does not agree to return your child, you’ll need assistance to make sure the court’s decision is followed. Your lawyer will ask a court-appointed bailiff who also has legal expertise to enforce the order. It is important to keep getting advice from your lawyer during this time.

You can choose not to use the court-appointed bailiff. However, bailiffs are not required to take on a case unless they are court-appointed.

is an independent body connected to the Ministry of Justice. There are 15 jurisdictions across the country. Any bailiff can carry out forced enforcement within their own jurisdiction.

The bailiff will follow these steps:

1. Notify the other parent to bring your child to the bailiff’s office (or another suitable place) on a set date.
2. Try to collect your child if the other parent does not follow the enforcement order after one month.

A representative of social services and, in some cases, a psychologist may be present to help during the collection. A Romanian police officer might also attend. The police must help the bailiff if asked. You can also be present if you wish.

If the other parent refuses to follow the return order, the court can make them pay a daily fine for up to 3 months from the date they were told about the order.

If your child strongly refuses to leave, neither the bailiff nor any other authorities present can force them to go. The bailiff can stop the collection if your child categorically refuses to leave the other parent or shows aversion towards you. The bailiff will inform social services, which will then tell the court where the child is located. The court will provide (depending on the age of the child) a psychological counselling programme lasting up to 3 months. Both parents are expected to take part in such court proceedings. After this, the psychologist will prepare a report for the court, and a new return order may be issued.

The bailiff will then make another attempt to enforce the return. If the other parent, or your child, refuses again to follow the order, the court will make them pay more fines.

Finding your child

If you do not know where your child is, the court can ask the Romanian police to find them. However, parental child abduction is a civil matter in Romania. The police cannot use all the powers that would be available during a criminal investigation. This can make a collection attempt harder and delay enforcement of the court order.

Under Romanian law, a missing person is someone who needs to be found because their welfare, life or freedom may be at risk. If your child is with their other parent, the Romanian police might not treat them as missing. If you think your child is at risk of harm, tell the Romanian police when you report them missing.

It is up to the police to decide if your child’s situation meets the conditions for a criminal investigation into a missing person. Even if the police investigate and find your child, they may not tell you where your child is.

If the bailiff believes the other parent is hiding your child on purpose, they will tell the prosecutor. The prosecutor can decide whether to start a criminal investigation if the parent is not following the court’s decision.

Child welfare

If you’re concerned about your child’s welfare or safety and know their location, contact to ask for a welfare check. You’ll need to give them the child’s residential address and any evidence supporting your concerns.

Social services will investigate if there are safeguarding issues. They will not typically intervene in parental disputes or help you contact your child if they think there are no safeguarding issues.

UK court orders

You do not need to get a UK court order when your child has been taken or kept abroad. However, you might already have a UK court order. For example, you may have one deciding your child’s residency, or from a case where the other parent applied to move to Romania with your child.

In Romania, the law generally recognises decisions from foreign courts in civil cases, unless there are legal reasons not to, such as:

• the party not having the chance to defend themselves
• the order not being final
• a public policy issue

Consult a Romanian lawyer and tell them about any UK court orders. They can advise whether it is useful to present these orders in Romanian legal proceedings. If you have a UK court order and want this order to be enforced in Romania, speak with a Romanian lawyer.

The UK government cannot enforce UK court orders in Romania. Even if you have a UK court order, FCDO still recommends you apply for your child’s return under the Hague Convention. It is the only international process focused on returning abducted children.

It is up to you whether to pursue legal proceedings in both the UK and Romania. UK court orders are not binding on the Romanian authorities, but the UK court may impose penalties on the abducting parent. This could be important if they later visit the UK.

Mediation

Another option instead of going to court is to try mediation, where you and your child’s other parent can work together to make an agreement. However, waiting too long to start legal action for your child’s return could harm your chances of success. It is a good idea to get legal advice about the best way to do this. You might be able to start legal proceedings and then pause them to try mediation.

is a FCDO-funded UK charity that offers mediation.

The website lists mediators in Romania.

Mediation focusses on finding the best solution for the child. It requires the co-operation of both parents, or those with parental responsibility, to be successful.

Entering or leaving Romania with your child

If your child has a Romanian parent, they automatically have Romanian citizenship. Romanian citizens, including dual nationals, are expected to enter and leave Romania with a Romanian passport or ID card. This rule is not always enforced.

If a child travels out of Romania with one parent, the other parent must give written consent, confirmed by a notary. Find a notary abroad.

Some dual national British-Romanian children have been able to leave Romania by land with a British passport or emergency travel document. Check all rules before travelling.

The UK government cannot interfere with Romanian immigration requirements.

Disclaimer

Read our disclaimer about this advice.