A contact arrangement sets out when and how a child has contact with the parent with whom the child does not principally live. Dutch law treats contact as a right of the child as much as of the parent.
Legal basis
Article 1:377a of the Dutch Civil Code gives the child and the parent a mutual right to contact. The court may deny or suspend contact only on the grounds listed in paragraph 3: serious harm to the child’s mental or physical development, manifest unsuitability of the parent, a child of twelve or older with serious objections, or contact otherwise being contrary to the child’s compelling interests.
Where the parents are divorcing and have minor children, the arrangement is set out in the parenting plan, which Article 815 of the Code of Civil Procedure makes a condition for the petition to be admissible.
How it works in practice
A workable arrangement is specific: which days, what time, who collects and returns the child, how holidays and public holidays are divided, and how changes are communicated. Vague wording such as in mutual consultation is the single most common source of later conflict.
Enforcement is possible. A parent who does not comply can be compelled through preliminary relief proceedings, with a penalty payment, and in extreme cases with the assistance of the police, although courts are reluctant to go that far because of the effect on the child.
Where it goes wrong
Two patterns recur. The first is the arrangement that was never adjusted as the child grew: what suited a toddler rarely suits a fourteen-year-old. The second is withholding contact because maintenance is unpaid. The two are legally unconnected, and a parent who links them generally weakens their own position.
Related terms
See also parental authority, the parenting plan and child maintenance.
Our family law practice negotiates and, where needed, litigates contact arrangements.
