The parental responsibility, child custody and visitation rights in cross-border separations

Divorces or separations classed as 'cross-border' (parents of different nationalities or living in different Member States) lead to very complicated legal situations, notably regarding the relationship between the parents and the children of these former couples. This study comprises an in-depth analysis of the national situations in 6 Member States (France, Germany, Spain, UK, Sweden and Poland).

Although progress has been made, thanks to EU legislation, some difficulties of interpretation and implementation, together with some gaps, remain.

The study concludes with a set of recommendations to enable cross-border separation in the European Union to be dealt with more efficiently, notably in terms of mediation and international judicial cooperation.