Custodial Rights of Children in UAE – Professional Lawyer

Custody is the single most important and argued term in the event of a divorce. The principles of custody in Shariah are different and surprisingly more favorable to the mother as compared to other forms of jurisdictions.

In shariah it is also important to distinguish between the custodian and the guardian. The custodian is in most cases the mother and the guardian, the father. In most cases the mother will become the ‘custodian’ of young children, for boys till the age of 11 years and for a girl till the age of 13 years, and the father the ‘guardian’. The obligations of the custodian, mostly the mother are set out in the law and revolve around being responsible for the child’s needs, both physical and emotional.

Custody can be withdrawn from a parent for various reasons, all of which should in some way or the other be harmful to the child and detrimental to child’s upbringing. The courts in the UAE primarily look at the betterment of the child when making such decisions.

If the mother is the custodian of the child, the father is still, in his capacity as the guardian, still responsible for the child’s financial needs and needs to pay towards his child’s maintenance. The mount of the maintenance is decide by the courts based on the income of the father and can change when the need arises.

Another important thing to note when it comes to custody is the jurisdiction that the custody shall be applied for. Foreign Orders issued by courts outside the UAE are not always enforceable in the UAE because the UAE considers children in its borders and jurisdiction to be their responsibility and take it upon themselves to insure that the best decisions are made for the children. Hence, child custody in the UAE should always be applied for through the UAE courts.

Our attorneys have spent years studying and practicing the laws pertaining to the UAE and applying them to cases. This has given us a firm grasp on a plethora of issues which can affect custody and which need skill and experience to contract. For years our clients have benefitted from this experience and have seen results that reflect pour hard work and knowledge of this field of law.