killamarsh

Can anyone share their experience with me when trying to get a passport for a child without the consent of a father.

Background:

the father hasnt paid anything towards my son's upbringing - he actually denied paternity

he applied and now has parental responsibility ( in 2001)

we had to move away from london because of his behaviour

he was arrested and charged for being drunk in charge of a child under 5 (bottle of vodka btw london and south yorks) and carrying a knife

hasn't seen my son since 2003, when he was arrested

he hasn't got a job and has been on benefits for at least 15 yrs - so no financial support

We have to keep our address secret due to his obsessive nature

Do I need to get a court order before I apply for my son's passport?

He already has citizenship because I grew up in Oz, but his current passport has expired.

I don't even know where to start. Obviously I need to get legal advise but should I be reading some sort of policy before I go any further? Or should I just apply and explain everything and provide documentation?

Wendy

I would advise that you got legal advise really and maybe post this in the immigration forum as that is where the migration agents post.

Good luck

Need 2 Move

With regards to the passport, as you are the mother, you will be able to apply for a passport, there is a section on the passport application for the fathers details which you need to fill in (you will need to remember his DOB, and if he has a passport, the number of this also)

With regards immigration - I would take advice, my solicitor advised that if my ex did not give consent for removal of the children from the country - and in our case we had to get him to go to a solicitor! - we would have to go through the courts which is a minimum wait of 6 months before hearing date.
Sounds like you would have no problem going to court with those circumstances, but its the hassle and the cost.

This is just from my experience, you would do well to consult a professional and contact passport office, but I hope it helps.
angela x

JAJ

I take it you want your son to have an *Australian* passport.

There are two issues you may need to consider:

1. Do you need a court order to get an Australian passport: see http://www.passports.gov.au and http://www.australia.org.uk (for London specific procedures)

2. Do you need a court order to remove your child from the United Kingdom. Probably yes, if your ex-partner has parental responsibility.

See a good family law solicitor in the UK. The fact a child is an Australian citizen does not override child custody laws, even if no visa is required to go to Australia and DIMA are not involved.


Be careful with a lot of the advice you will get on online forums, people will assume you are asking about British passports and Australian migration visas, and hence some of the information you receive will not be correct.