The protection of the rights and legitimate interests of children is international. Therefore, foreign nationals are also required to provide maintenance to their minor children.
In the event that parents evade this obligation, funds for their maintenance (alimony) are recovered from the parents in a judicial proceeding. Despite the fact that the collection of alimony from a foreign citizen is accompanied by significant difficulties, the international community seeks to simplify this process.
The Law of the Republic of Belarus of December 28, 2017 ratified the Convention “On the International Procedure for the Collection of Alimony for Children and Other Forms of Family Support” (hereinafter – the Convention), according to which the Contracting State appoints the Central Authority to carry out the functions assigned to the Convention. The state body responsible for the implementation of the Convention in the Republic of Belarus is the Ministry of Justice. According to the obligations assumed, the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Belarus is authorized to transmit and receive the following requests:
on the recognition or recognition and enforcement of the decision;
on the enforcement of a decision made or recognized in the requested State;
on making a decision in the requested state in the absence of a decision, including if necessary, on the establishment of motherhood and (or) paternity;
on making a decision in the requested state, if the recognition and enforcement of the decision is not possible, or a refusal to recognize and execute the decision was received due to lack of grounds for recognition and enforcement;
on improving the decision made in the requested state;
on improving the decision made in another state.
The Central Authority also helps to initiate proceedings on the basis of such requests.
Requests based on the Convention received through the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Belarus are considered according to the rules of lawsuit taking into account the provisions of the Convention by the regional, Minsk city court at the place of residence (place of stay) of the person entitled to receive child support, or the person obligated to pay child support. Requests are also considered by the regional, Minsk city court at the location of the property of the person obligated to pay child support.
With regard to such requests, the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Belarus is obliged to take all necessary measures:
assist in the provision of legal assistance;
assist in establishing the whereabouts of the debtor or creditor;
assist in obtaining the necessary information on income and, if necessary, on the financial position of the debtor or creditor, including information on the location of the assets;
to facilitate the conclusion of amicable agreements for the voluntary payment of funds for maintenance through mediation, conciliation or other similar procedures;
to facilitate the execution of content management decisions, including debt collection;
to facilitate the collection and timely transfer of funds for maintenance;
facilitate the receipt of documents or other evidence;
assist in the establishment of motherhood and (or) paternity, when necessary to recover funds for maintenance;
to facilitate the initiation of proceedings on the adoption of the necessary interim measures, which are territorial in nature and aimed at ensuring the results of the proceedings under the considered request for maintenance;
facilitate the delivery of documents.
The Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Belarus advises citizens on the application of the Convention, in particular, clarifies issues regarding documents required to protect the interests of citizens.
The defendant is a citizen of the Russian Federation
An agreement was signed between the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation on the procedure for the mutual execution of court decisions in cases of collecting alimony, therefore, a special procedure for the recognition and enforcement of court orders is not required. You can apply for the recovery of alimony to the court both at your place of residence and at the place of residence of the defendant.
The Union Convention also applies to the Convention on Legal Assistance and Legal Relations in Civil, Family and Criminal Cases, according to which cases of maintenance obligations fall within the competence of a court of the state in whose territory parents and children have a permanent joint residence, and in the absence of such place of residence – the court of the state of which the child is a citizen or in whose territory he / she constantly resides If there is a decision of the Belarusian court to recover alimony or a writ of execution, then it is necessary to contact the compulsory enforcement department of the main justice department at the plaintiff’s place of residence. The department transfers the received package of documents to the competent authority in the Russian Federation, which will be responsible for collecting child support.
