Family Law in Colombia

The family courts were created to provide specialized justice for conflicts of a family nature. In Colombia, family courts handle divorce and custody cases.

In Colombia, married parents share equal custody rights of their minor children. If a father recognizes in the birth certificate of a child that he is the father, he shares the same custody rights with the mother, even if the child was born out of wedlock. Custody cases are first assigned to the family protection officers of the Colombian institute of family welfare and then custody and visitation are determined before a family judge.

The crime of international parental kidnapping is contemplated in the Colombian penal code as a simple kidnapping, with the use of substances that can increase or reduce the penalty

The Colombian Constitution establishes that a child born abroad to a Colombian mother or father acquires Colombian citizenship once the birth is registered at a consular office or the child subsequently resides in Colombia. If a child is born in Colombia, he or she will automatically have Colombian citizenship as long as one of the parents is a Colombian national or one of the child's parents has legal residence in Colombia

In contrast to US requirements. A Colombian passport for a minor can be obtained with the consent of one of the parents. However, Colombian authorities have rules restricting the departure of Colombian children from the country when they are not in the company of both parents

If a parent wishes to prevent the issuance of a passport to his or her minor child, he or she must submit an application to the Ministry of Social Protection, the Colombian Family Welfare Institute. If the ICBF agrees with the parents' request, it will notify the Colombian passport office that it will withhold the issuance of a passport for the minor. The Colombian passport agency will notify the Colombian embassies and consulates of the possession