If you want to move away with your children after separation, and the move would make the other parent’s time with them significantly harder, you generally need either their agreement or a court order. Relocation disputes are among the hardest cases in family law because someone’s legitimate plans usually have to give way, and the deciding question is not what either parent wants: it is what is best for the children.
Before you move
Moving first and arguing later is risky. If parenting orders exist, relocating in breach of them is a contravention. Even without orders, a unilateral move can result in the court ordering the children’s return while the dispute is decided, and it colours how your co-parenting judgment looks in later proceedings. The right sequence is agreement, mediation, or a court application, before the removalists.
How courts decide relocation cases
The court weighs the benefit to the children of the proposed move, including the moving parent’s wellbeing, family support, housing, work and, where relevant, escape from family violence, against the cost to the children’s relationship with the other parent, and the practicality of keeping that relationship meaningful across distance: travel time and cost, school holidays, video contact. There is no presumption either way. A move from Wollongong to Sydney is a very different case from a move interstate or overseas, and outcomes are intensely fact-specific.
If you are the parent staying behind
Act quickly. If a move is threatened or has happened, urgent orders can restrain it or require return, and airport watch list orders exist for genuine overseas risks. Delay is read as acceptance. Equally, a knee-jerk refusal to every proposal is not a strategy; a realistic offer about holidays, travel and contact is usually more persuasive to a court than blanket opposition.
Mediation first, almost always
Family dispute resolution is generally required before parenting applications anyway, with exceptions for urgency and violence, and relocation is exactly the kind of dispute where a mediated package, who pays for flights, how school holidays divide, daily video calls, can satisfy both households in ways a court order rarely does. Our solicitors are accredited Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners.
Frequently asked questions
How far can I move without permission?
There is no fixed distance. The question is impact: a move across town that keeps school and contact intact is rarely a dispute; one that makes the current arrangements unworkable is.
Can I relocate to escape family violence?
Safety comes first, and the law recognises this both in urgent orders and in how relocation is assessed. Get advice immediately; the way a protective move is done matters enormously. In an emergency call 000.
What if the other parent barely sees the children now?
The depth of the existing relationship is a significant factor. A parent exercising little of their time faces a harder argument against relocation, but their case is not zero, so agreement or orders are still the safe route.
A move on the horizon, yours or theirs?
Timing matters more in relocation than almost anywhere else in family law. A 90-minute consultation gives you a strategy before positions harden. Use the enquiry form just below, or call (02) 4210 9288. Garrison Lawyers acts for clients across Wollongong, Shellharbour, Kiama, the Illawarra and the Shoalhaven.
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This article is general information only, current at the date of publication. It is not legal advice and does not take your circumstances into account. For advice about your situation, speak with a family lawyer.