Parents beware! From Jan. 1, 2023, automatic custody after recognition

Currently, it is arranged so that both parents acquire custody at the time the parents are married and/or registered partners at the time of birth. When the parents are not married and/or registered partners, only the mother acquires parental authority. If the mother and other parent have the recognition recorded, joint custody will still need to be applied for. This will change effective Jan. 1, 2023.

Indeed, on March 22, 2022, an important bill on regulating recognition and parental authority was passed. From Jan. 1, 2023, a change in the law will take effect with the premise that recognition and authority will be linked. At the time the mother and the older parent record the recognition together, the other parent also acquires parental authority by operation of law. There are exceptions to this, however. It is therefore advisable to seek legal advice when you have a question about recognition and/or custody of your (un)born child.

The passage of this legislative amendment aims to eliminate the distinction between children born to married or unmarried parents. In today’s society, parents are not routinely married and/or registered partners. In doing so, there is an increasingly conscious choice of “informal coexistence.” This change in the law makes it more in line with changing society.

Would you like legal advice regarding recognition or parental authority? Please contact Manon Voogt. Manon focuses on, among other things family and inheritance law issues.