A parent who wants to relocate with a child to another country should be asked to focus on the following items to support the application:

1. Reason(s) for the Proposed Move.

Prepare a simple statement of the most basic reasons why you want to move.

Examples might be:

a. Returning home after a relationship breakdown.

b. Economic reasons.

c. Health reasons.

d. Remarriage/new relationship.

e. A fresh start.

f. Other family members.

g. Need support.

h. Loss of job.

i. Loss of visa.

j. The country is dangerous.

k. Domestic violence.

2. Proposed Residence Arrangements.

a. Where exactly do you plan to live? Your plans should be as specific and concrete as possible.

b. If you intend to live with your parents or other family members, describe the separate sleeping place for you and your child within the residence.

c. Compare your present accommodation with your proposed accommodation, focusing on ways in which your proposed accommodation will be better for you and, especially, for your child.

d. If appropriate, provide descriptions and photographs of the attractive aspects of the new accommodation, including any gardens, play areas, or other special features.

e. Describe the attractive features of the proposed neighborhood for your child. Examples of features to highlight—with photographs and maps showing their proximity to the proposed residence—might include:

i. Nearby parks and playgrounds.

ii. The proposed school or daycare.

iii. Swimming pools and gyms.

iv. Places to walk and play.

v. Places related to your child’s interests, such as a music school, ballet center or ice-skating arena.

vi. Proximity to nearby family and friends.

vii. Proximity to place of worship.

f. Explain how the proposed residence is safer, quieter, cleaner, or otherwise preferable to your current residence.

g. Discuss the relative stability for your child in the current home environment versus that which you envision in the new location.

h. Describe any other significant benefits of being in the specified town, city, county, or state.

3. Proposed School Arrangements.

a. Which school do you propose your child will attend?

b. Explain why this school will be better for your child (reasons might include smaller class sizes, better teachers, better academic results, language issues, better opportunities, close proximity to the residence, or better after-school programs).

c. Obtain third-party evidence as to the benefits of the school (many countries have official school rankings; others have private comparisons).

d. Obtain a school brochure or download information from the school’s website showing the attractive features of the proposed school.

e. Make sure that your child has a place at the school and produce evidence of that.

f. If the new school will be less expensive, explain.

g. Obtain any evidence that your child is not thriving in his or her current school and explain how you expect this to improve in the new school.

4. Support Network.

a. Compare your family network in your current location with your family network in the proposed location.

i. Provide the names and relationships of all family members who will be close to you in the new location.

ii. Explain how each of these people will be of specific assistance to you and/or your child in the new location. (E.g., “My mom lives two blocks away. She recently retired as a teacher. She has offered to babysit my child during the days when I will be working.” “My brother, his wife and his three kids are just 15 minutes away. When we are over there, we all spend every Saturday in their house, and that will continue once we move.”)

iii. Collect photographs of the relatives, identifying the various people in the photographs. The best photos are family groupings or photos of your child playing with the family.

iv. Explain, if applicable, how your child is already close to the family in the proposed new location.

v. Perhaps use a map to show where family members are located and how close they will be to the place where you propose to live.

b. Compare your network of friends in your current location versus your proposed location.

i. Explain why you have not been able to make close friends in your current location.

ii. Identify each friend who you will be physically closer to if you move to the new location. Provide details such as “friend since kindergarten” or “college roommate.” Show on a map the proximity to where you will be living.

iii. Collect photographs of each friend. The best photos are of you with your friend or of your friend with his or her children together with yours.

5. Employment.

a. Provide details of lost employment or explain why your current employment is not sustainable.

b. Provide details of your proposed employment.

i. Do your absolute utmost to secure an actual job before moving.

ii. Obtain a written job offer.

iii. Explain all of the benefits of the proposed employment compared with your current situation (e.g., “I’ll be making 25% more money”; “I’m working off the books currently; this will be a legal job”; “I’m qualified to work in that country but not in this country”; “I’ll be getting health coverage for me and my child”; “my commute will be five minutes versus an hour currently”; “the prospects are great (explain in detail) compared with my current dead-end position”).

6. Other Economic Benefits of the Proposed Move.

         Examples might include:

a. Lower cost of living in the proposed new location.

b. Family owns a house in the new location.

c. Can’t make ends meet in the current location.

d. Parent who wants to move is not qualified to pursue his/her career in the current location but has the necessary qualifications in the proposed location.

e. Other parent is unemployed.

f. Other parent pays no or minimal support.

g. Government health and other benefits are available in the proposed location.

7. Visa Issues

a. Explain your immigration situation.

b. Establish your inability to leave the U.S. and then return.

c. Establish your fear of ICE.

d. Support these issues with advice from an immigration lawyer.

8. “I want/need to go home.”

If you are an expat and want to “go home” to your country of origin:

a. Explain why you initially moved to your current location.

b. Explain the relevant promises that the other parent made (e.g., “He said that if I did not like it, he would move with me back to my country”; “We came only for 3 years”).

c. Explain why he or she broke the promises.

d. Explain in detail why you are homesick.

e. Family.

f. Friends.

g. Culture.

h. Language.

i. Climate.

j. Health.

k. Religion.

l. Politics.

m. Bias.

n. Dangerous conditions.

o. Other parent’s family/friends hate you.

9. Other Reasons in Favor of Relocation.

Examples might include:

a. Need to assist a parent or other relative in the proposed new location.

b. New spouse lives in the proposed new location.

c. New spouse is being transferred to a new location.

d. Medical reasons concerning you or your child.

e. Your immigration/visa situation.

10. Proposed Visitation by the Other Parent.

a. Provide suggestions for a proposed visitation plan that reflects your desire to foster an ongoing relationship between your child and the other parent.

b. Suggestions need to convince the court that you will genuinely foster the relationship between your child and the other parent.

c. You should expressly allow frequent telephone calls and offer to use a webcam on your computer so the child and the other parent can see and talk to each other.

d. Be prepared to allow up to one-half of summer vacations with the other parent plus either winter or spring break. Perhaps the long vacation can be in the other parent’s country and one shorter vacation can be in your vicinity.

e. Offer whatever you can think of that will facilitate visitation. For example, if the child is able to travel as an unaccompanied minor, offer to take him or her to the airport and pick him or her up upon return. Consider ways in which you might reduce the cost of visitation, such as by providing accommodation during the visit or offering to cover (or perhaps to split) the travel expenses.

f. Describe (if helpful) the proximity of the proposed location to international airports with direct flights to the other parent’s location.

g. Agree, if appropriate, to consult with the other parent concerning significant issues.

11. Other Factors to Consider.

a. Will the proposed move seriously disrupt relationships, especially with the other parent and his or her family?

b. If the other parent’s family rarely sees the child, prepare documentation of that (for example, by providing the dates of each infrequent visit).

c. Identify all ways in which the other parent or his or her family has acted inappropriately concerning your child.

d. Will the proposed move hurt your child’s existing friendships?

e. The extent and quality of the time spent with the child prior to or subsequent to the relocation.

f. The distance and required travel arrangements involved in the move.

g. Any violation of prior court orders by the other parent.

h. The effect on grandparent(s) and other extended family relationships.

12. Evidence

a. Who could testify as a witness to support your claims? What will they say?

b. Find every email, text message, audio and video recording that may support any of your claims.

c. Remember that a court is unlikely to be convinced by plans based on uncertain future opportunities.