What is abduction?

Abduction is an illegal way of possession of a child without the consent of his/her guardians or parents. There are two categories of abductions which are registered in United Kingdom; abduction by unfamiliar people and by parents. Latter one is more common. Knowing so, there are complications when a father or mother to a child abducts him/her without the consent of the other parent. Children in this whole process are mostly affected. To prevent parents for practicing this, UK has implemented rules and regulations which not only safeguard abduction but also penalize person who is involved in this activity.

Abduction laws in United Kingdom are very strict and violating them can take you behind bars. If your child is abducted by other parent, the basic and first step to report is to police. It is applicable only when children or a single child is taken away by a spouse without the consent of another parent. According to United Kingdom abduction law of 1984, a parent who takes child outside UK for 28 consecutive days without informing the other parent who legally has custody of the child will be penalized.

Also read: Impact of separation and divorce on work place

What makes Abduction an act of criminal offense:

In 1984, a bill was passed against parental abduction. The statement which is contained in the bill included several points.

• This law is implemented on those who are a father or mother to the child.
• The person whose child is abducted should be a legal guardian.
• Custody of the child is given to the other parent and the one who abducted doesn’t have the right to take the child out of country. Custodian can sue the other parent, if the other parent takes the child outside UK without the consent of the other parent.
• Person (either mother or father) will not be held guilty in taking the child outside UK only if the child is taken outside the country for 24-29 days.
• If a person is found guilty after hearing, court gives judgement against him/her. He/she would be imprisoned for a month or fine. In some cases, both the penalties are applied.

For more details, please visit http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1984/37/contents

How to get your child back:

There are laws and regulation that briefs on how to get your child back from parental abduction. Despite the fact that children are taken away by their father or mother and both have the custody rights, it would be difficult for the other parent to see his/her child again if he/she practices abduction.

• Taking legal help when the child is taken away is the first thing to do in such situations.
• Try to arrange contact with your child who is abducted.
• Court order will help you get back abducted child in a less complicated way.

For more details, please visit https://www.gov.uk/return-or-contact-abducted-child

Whom to contact if your child is abducted:

Consulting and discussing parental abduction crime scene with Central Authority of United Kingdom is a best solution to handle the situation. It implies only when the child is taken outside UK. It hampers the custody rulings on children if the parent (who abducted children without the consent of one who won the case and has custody) fails to provide sensible grounds of abduction.

Overall, the government figures show that the abduction rate has risen more than 88 percent in the course of a decade. It is also found that mothers  abducted their children once they couldn’t win the custody case. Furthermore, it has also been found that about 24% of the Brits didn’t know that abduction is a crime and they were unaware of the legal consequences and outcomes of this practice.

Go back to Home Page