Family Violence Initiative

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Child Abuse is Wrong: What Can I Do?

When a parent abducts their child

Most abducted children are taken by someone the child knows. The person who takes them is most often a parent.

Parental child abduction happens when one parent takes a child without either the legal right or the permission of the other parent. Parental child abduction is a crime in Canada. An exception may apply when a parent takes the child to protect them from immediate harm.

What to do if you are afraid the other parent may abduct your child:

• Contact a lawyer.
• Contact your local police.
• Keep records of all important information about your child and store it in a safe place.
• Keep a copy of your custody or parenting order^* or agreement with you.
• Ask your local passport office to add your child's name to the Passport Control List.
• Talk to your child about using the phone and explain how your custody situation works.
• If it is safe to do so, try to maintain good relations with the other parent and any extended family.

If your child is abducted:

• Contact your local police immediately.
• If you are out of the country, make sure to report the disappearance to the federal government's Consular Services at 613-996-8885. You may call collect, where available.
• If you are inside Canada and you think your child is outside Canada, call the federal government's Consular Services at 1-800-387-3124.
• Contact a search organization in your province or territory and register your child as missing.

What can I do?

For more information:

• Visit the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) site and search for "Our Missing Children."
• Visit the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada website, and look under "Publications" for a booklet called "International Child Abductions: A Manual for Parents.

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