News item | 23-05-2023 | 5:59 pm
It will be legally easier for grandparents to ask to see their grandchild if the parents do not cooperate. After a positive advice from the Council of State, Minister Franc Weerwind for Legal Protection has sent a bill on contact for grandparents with their grandchildren to the House of Representatives.
If grandparents want to see their grandchild, they can go to court. The grandparents still have to prove that they had intensive contact with their grandchild in the past. This is also referred to as a ‘close personal relationship’. That will no longer be necessary in the future. As a result, the court can immediately focus on the question of whether a visitation arrangement is in the best interest of the (grand)child.
Grandparents play an important role
Research shows that grandparents are sometimes unable to ask for visitation arrangements, even though they can play a very important role. For many children, grandparents are a beacon of peace and they provide distraction if, for example, there is a divorce.
“Both grandchildren and grandparents are big losers if there is no contact between them beyond their control. It leads to many sad situations and can be harmful to a child’s development. It is therefore important to adapt the law to this,” says Weerwind.
The interests of the child come first
When determining a visitation arrangement, the court first considers whether it is in the best interests of the child. It stays that way. Contact can also consist, for example, of calling grandpa or grandma or a limited visitation arrangement, if this is better for the child.
The entry into force of the bill depends on its debate in the House of Representatives and the Senate. When grandpas and grandmas can actually make use of the new scheme depends on this and may therefore take some time.