In Colombia, family law encompasses various elements such as international parental abduction, which is treated as simple kidnapping under the penal code and is not an extraditable offense.
A parent must submit an application to "ICBF" if they wish to avoid issuing a passport to the minor.
If the ICBF agrees, it will go to the Colombian passport agency and notify the Colombian embassies and consulates about the retention according to the verdict of the authorities.
Colombian passport
In Colombia, a Colombian passport can be obtained for a minor child with the consent of one of the parents.
For a Colombian child to leave the country it must be in the company of both parents.
Colombian citizenship
According to the Constitution, a child born abroad to a Colombian father or mother acquires Colombian nationality at the moment of registering the birth at a consular office.
A child born in Colombia automatically acquires nationality if one of his parents is a Colombian citizen or legal resident.
Criminal aspects
The crime of international parental abduction is contemplated in the Colombian penal code as simple kidnapping.
It is not considered an extraditable offense.
Custody / rights of visitation
Colombian law says that married parents share the same rights of custody of their minor children, even if the child was born out of wedlock.
If a father recognizes that a child is his son on the birth certificate, he shares the same custody rights as the mother.
Custody cases are first assigned to family protection officers within the Colombian Family Welfare Institute and then custody and / or visitation is determined before a family court judge.
Colombian courts favor a parent with Colombian nationality more than a parent with US nationality.
Family courts
Family courts handle divorce and custody cases
Congress granted jurisdiction over the civil aspects of international child abduction in cases related to the Hague Convention.
