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Policies

5. Family Law Matters – when legal aid is available

5.10. International child abduction

Legal aid is available for the following types of international abduction matters:

  • to defend an application to the court against proceedings brought by Family and Community Services under the Family Law (Child Abduction Convention) Regulations 1986 (Cth) for
    • the return of a child who has been removed from a convention country to, or retained in, Australia, or
    • for access to a child who is living in Australia
  • to make an application to the court under the Family Law (Child Abduction Convention) Regulations 1986 (Cth) for a declaration that the removal of a child from Australia to a convention country, or the retention of a child in a convention country, is wrongful within the meaning of the Convention.

To be eligible for legal aid the applicant must satisfy:

Note: Legal Aid funding is availabile for Family Dispute Resolution for these types of matters.

Date Last Published: 05/12/2022