It is not necessary to contact the Family Law Administration if the parents agree on how contact with the child should be arranged.

The document Contact Agreement is available upon request and can be used for inspiration or as a contact document by an agreement between the parents.

Parents decide themselves whether their contact agreement should be enforceable through the courts. If contact is to be enforceable through the courts, a checkmark must be placed in the box for enforcement in the document. Read more about enforcement below.

If you do not use the document from the Family Law Administration, it must be clearly stated in the agreement that the agreement is enforceable if the contact arrangement is to be enforceable through the courts.

A detailed contact agreement

A detailed agreement often provides less opportunity for disagreement about what is agreed upon. Therefore, it is recommended that parents specify the years, weeks, days, and times.

Examples of detailed agreements for alternating weeks:

• From Monday of even weeks at 16:00 until the following Sunday at 14:00

Examples of detailed agreements for contact during the Christmas holidays:

• Alternate years, from December 23rd at 12:00 until December 26th at 16:00

Parents should also consider who is responsible for picking up and dropping off the child, and possibly where the exchange will take place.

The Family Law Administration can usually only amend a contact agreement if the circumstances have significantly changed since the agreement was made, or if it is deemed best for the child to change the contact arrangement. Read more about changing contact agreements below.

Both parents can apply to the Family Law Administration for contact with the child to be determined or changed. However, the Family Law Administration can only determine contact based on what the non-resident parent wishes.

Contact with the child is not tied to who has custody over the child. Even if parents have joint custody, it is necessary first to clarify where the child resides or should reside in order to determine contact. If parents with joint custody cannot agree on where the child should be registered to live, the Family Law Administration can make a decision regarding residence. Read more about the child's residence on this website.

Other individuals to whom the child is associated to can also apply for contact to be determined. The Family Law Administration can determine contact with other individuals associated to the child if one or both parents are deceased or unknown, and in special circumstances, if the child has limited contact with the non-resident parent.

Biological relatives of an adopted child can also have contact or other means of contact with the child determined through the Family Law Administration.

Children whose parents do not live together and who are at least 10 years old, can request the Family Law Administration to call the parents to a meeting regarding custody, the child's residence, or contact. The Family Law Administration will invite the parents to a meeting to discuss the issues raised by the child.

To apply for contact to be determined or changed, you can fill out and submit the Application to Determine or Change Contact form to the Family Law Administration. The form is available upon request.

If the child is under the care of the child welfare authority, the Main Child Welfare Committee makes decisions about contact. Parents of a child under the care of the child welfare authority cannot apply to the Family Law Administration to determine contact.

If you disagree on contact with the child, either one of the parents or both can apply to the Family Law Administration to have contact determined or changed by submitting the Application to Determine or Change Contact form. The application form is available upon request.

If the child resides in Denmark, the application must be submitted to The Agency of Family Law (Familieretshuset). For further information at www.familieretshuset.dk. If the child resides outside of the Kingdom of Denmark the application must be submitted to relevant authority in the country, where the child resides. The Family Law Administration can process a case regarding contact, if parents agree that the matter should be processed by the Family Law Administration.

Once the Family Law Administration has received an application for contact, the application will be sent to the other parent for comments. Both parents will then be invited to a meeting.

It is essential for the parents to cooperate regarding the child. The purpose of the meeting is to assist the parents in reaching an agreement on a contact arrangement.

If the parents cannot reach an agreement during the meeting, information from the parents will be used to give an account of the case as basis for a contact decision. During the meeting, the parents will also be invited to try child expert counselling or mediation services. 

A decision made by the Family Law Administration will always be based on what is deemed best for the individual child. The Family Law Administration must always include the child’s perspective on custody, residency, and contact.

The Family Law Administration may request information from authorities, schools, or other relevant agencies to determine what is best for the individual child. The child’s perspective can be expressed by having an interview with the child, or by conducting a child expert assessment. Additionally, information from the parents will be used to describe the child’s point of view.

Consideration must be given to the child’s age if a possible interview will take place. An interview may not always be suitable for younger children. In such cases, it may be better to conduct a child expert assessment, and obtain input from childcare providers, schools, or other professionals who know the child well.

If an interview with the child is deemed to be harmful for the child or irrelevant to the case, the Family Law Administration will not engage in such with the child.

It may also be unnecessary to have an interview with the child if the parents agree not to, or if it concerns minor matters related to contact arrangements.

It is a right, not an obligation, for the child to express their opinion.

In special circumstances, it may be necessary to process matters differently, e.g. if one parent is not living in the Faroe Islands.

The Family Law Administration typically only determines the overall contact arrangement in their decision. Parents decide the specific details within the contact arrangement themselves. Parents can always agree on different terms than listed in the agreement. If parents disagree on specific aspects of the agreement or, e.g. significant changes, the Family Law Administration offers child expert counselling and mediation.

A decision made by the Family Law Administration can be enforced legally. It means that the non-resident parent, according to § 535 (1), no. 4 of the Justice Act (Act no. 964 of June 26, 2020, on the Administration of Justice for the Faroe Islands), can seek assistance through the courts if the child is not given for agreed or determined contact. Similarly, the resident parent can seek assistance through the courts if the child is not returned home after contact with the non-resident parent.

You can appeal The Family Law Administration’s decisions to the National Board of Appeals (Føroya Kærustovn) within 4 weeks of the date the decision was made.

The Family Law Administration must always take the child's perspective into account in matters concerning custody, residence, or contact.

As such, an interview with the child can help to see the child’s viewpoints on the matter.

It is a right, not an obligation, for the child to express their opinion. The fact that a child has the right to express their point of view does not mean that the child makes the decision in the matter or that the decision is solely based on what the child says.

There is no age limit on when children can be interviewed. It is an individual assessment depending on the age, maturity, and other circumstances of the child, as well as the circumstances of the case. The Family Law Administration has interviewed children as young as six years.

If both parents agree that it would be harmful for the child to be involved in the process, the child will not be included. A child interview will not take place if the interview could be detrimental to the child or if the interview is not considered significant for the case.

The child's perspective can also be included differently, such as through a child expert examination, comments from childcare institutions, schools, or other professionals who know the child.

A child expert or psychologist conducts the child interviews.

Children, like adults, have the right to an assessor if they are involved in proceedings concerning custody, residence, or contact.

Contact arrangements should be in the best interest of the individual child, and contact will be determined based on a specific assessment of the circumstances of the individual family.

There is no standard or minimum requirement for the frequency of contact, and the Family Law Administration cannot determine more contact than the non-resident parent wishes.

The Family Law Administration can decide that contact will be under supervision (supervised contact) if special circumstances support it and it is deemed to be in the best interest of the child, or as part of the Family Law Administration's process of the case. The Family Law Administration may also refuse to determine contact or decide to cancel previously determined contact if it is deemed to be in the best interest of the child.

Weekday and weekend contact

When the Family Law Administration assesses what kind of contact is in a child’s best interest, various factors are taken into consideration – among other things:

• The child’s age and level of maturity.
• The child’s perspective – varies according to age and level of maturity.
• The child’s weekdays, including extracurricular activities.
• The relationship between the child and the non-resident parent so far.
• The parents’ ability to cooperate.
• Personal and work circumstances of the parents.
• Distance between the residences of the parents.
• The child’s relationship with siblings, including half- and stepsiblings.
• Other relevant circumstances.

Vacation and holiday contact

Contact during vacation and holidays is also determined based on a specific assessment of individual circumstances. Contact during vacation time can be arranged as follows:

• Summer vacation for 3-4 weeks.
• A couple of days during autumn break, or the entire autumn break every other year.
• A couple of days during the Easter holiday or the entire Easter holiday every other year.
• The Christmas holiday so that contact will be on Christmas Eve every other year. 
• New Year’s Eve every other year.
• Contact may also be assigned for other cultural or religious events.

In determining vacation and holiday contact, emphasis is also on the individual family's culture and tradition.

If the child does not stay overnight with the non-resident parent during weekday and weekend contact, the Family Law Administration will typically not determine holiday contact with overnight stays.

Special considerations for babies and toddlers

Usually, short contacts with shorter intervals between them are arranged during the first months of the child's life. Contact can then increase with the child's age.

If the relationship between the child and the non-resident parent is good, contact with overnight stays can be arranged when the child is around 9-12 months old.

Parents can agree to change previously agreed-upon or determined contact arrangements. The Family Law Administration can, upon request, put a new contact agreement into a new contact plan with mandatory enforcement.

If parents disagree on changing contact, the Family Law Administration can, upon request, change an agreement or a decision regarding contact if the change is deemed to be in the best interest of the child or if circumstances have significantly changed.

The Family Law Administration does not typically process matters of changing a contact arrangement if the change does not involve alterations to the overall contact framework. For instance, the Family Law Administration cannot decide to extend or move a contact-date due to a family member's birthday or similar individual events or circumstances. Minor or specific adjustments within the overall contact arrangement must be agreed upon by the parents themselves. If parents cannot reach an agreement, the previously determined contact arrangement remains in effect.

In such cases, parents can request child expert counselling or mediation from the Family Law Administration.

If the applicant does not demonstrate significantly changed circumstances that support changing the contact, or if the change is not deemed to be in the best interest of the child, the Family Law Administration may reject the request to change contact.

The Family Law Administration can make a temporary decision regarding contact, while a custody, residential, or contact case is being processed. A temporary decision is in force until a final decision concerning contact has been made.

Parents share responsibility for ensuring that the child is picked up and dropped off for a contact session, as well as for bearing any travel expenses related to contact. Most parents agree among themselves on how they divide the pickup and drop-off of the child, as well as how they share travel expenses related to a contact session.

If parents do not agree, it is recommended that the non-resident parent is responsible for and bears the cost of picking up the child for contact, and the parent with whom the child resides is responsible for and bears the cost of picking up the child when the contact session ends.

If parents disagree about travel and travel expenses related to contact, the Family Law Administration can, in special circumstances and upon request, decide on the division of travel and travel expenses. In the assessment, special consideration will be given to any significant geographical factors or other factors related to travel, and if the circumstances of the case otherwise argue for deviating from the main rule that parents share the expenses. It may thus be deemed unreasonably burdensome, based on an overall assessment of various circumstances, for one of the parents to bear a portion of the travel expenses before deviating from the main rule.

Parents have the responsibility for the pickup and drop-off of the child, but individuals to whom the child is attached to can also pick up and drop off the child.

If contact is arranged with someone other than the parents, that person is responsible for picking up and dropping off the child for contact, as well as bearing any travel expenses.

If the contact parent (non-resident parent) lives abroad, some parents agree that the child travels alone. For example, Atlantic Airways offers a service where airline staff accompany the child during the journey. If parents do not agree that the child can travel alone, the Family Law Administration will usually not decide that the child should travel alone.

A determined or agreed-upon contact arrangement only lapses if the parents agree to it, or if the Family Law Administration, or the courts in the Faroe Islands have made a decision on it.

If the Family Law Administration has made a decision regarding a contact arrangement or if the contact is arranged in a contact agreement with enforcement, parents can seek assistance from the bailiff’s court if the specified agreement is not upheld. If the parents themselves have reached an agreement, it must clearly be stated in the agreement that it is subject to enforcement if they want to have the option of seeking assistance from the bailiff's court. Read more about enforcement below.

The non-resident parent (the parent with contact rights) has the right to compensation contact if the agreed-upon contact session did not occur due to the resident parent (the parent with whom the child resides) preventing it without a valid reason. Read more about compensation contact below.

The resident parent may also experience situations where the non-resident parent does not pick up the child or does not want contact. In such cases, authorities cannot assist in enforcing contact. Therefore, there is no possibility to enforce contact if the non-resident parent does not want contact.

If the resident parent wants to have vacation time with the child, which falls outside regular vacation and holidays and extends beyond the arranged contact between the child and the non-resident parent, the resident parent must apply to the Family Law Administration to have the specific contact session, which falls within the intended vacation, cancelled. However, the resident parent can still take vacation with the child during regular vacation times if the child does not have contact time with the non-resident parent or outside regular vacation times if the vacation does not interfere with the contact between the child and the non-resident parent.

Enforcing a contact agreement or arrangement means that parents can seek assistance from the bailiff's court to enforce the contact. For instance, if the resident parent refuses to allow the child for contact, the non-resident parent can seek assistance from the bailiff to enforce the contact. Or if the non-resident parent does not return the child after the contact session is supposed to end, the resident parent can seek assistance from the bailiff, pursuant to the Administration of Justice Act, Art. 535, para 1, subpara 4 (Act No. 964, dated 26th June 2020).

If a parent is in this situation, they can contact the Faroese courts if the child resides in the Faroe Islands and the relevant foreign court if the child is abroad.

The bailiff’s court will not enforce contact if it is deemed harmful or detrimental to the child.

If agreed or determined contact is not upheld due to the resident parent preventing contact without a valid reason, the non-resident parent has the right to automatic compensation contact if this is specified in the in the contact agreement between the parents.

The compensation contact will take place in the week following the scheduled contact that was not upheld, under the same conditions as the regular contact was otherwise agreed upon or determined.

However, the condition is that the situation is not caused by circumstances related to the non-resident parent and their failure to uphold the contact agreement. Furthermore, the non-resident parent must immediately after the contact was not upheld, give notice to the resident parent that they wish to have compensation contact the following week.

The non-resident parent cannot receive compensation contact for:

• contact scheduled during vacations or holidays.
• contact under supervision.
• contact that, according to an agreement or decision, should occur at a specific time not following a closely defined plan.

Compensation contact will not be determined if:

• the contact coincides entirely or partially with scheduled or agreed-upon contact, or if
• the contact coincides entirely or partially with vacation or holidays that the child spends with the resident parent.

The Family Law Administration may refuse to determine contact or decide to cancel previously determined or agreed-upon contact. Examples that could lead to contact being refused or cancelled include:

• Long-term separation between the child and the non-resident parent.
• Instability from the non-resident parent.
• High conflict between parents.
• Incidents where the non-resident parent has used violence.
• Preference of the child.

What is supervised contact?

Supervised contact means that the interaction between the child and the non-resident parent is supervised by a child expert counsellor, child professional, a family member, or other relevant individual.

Supervised contact is determined when the Family Law Administration asseses that other options are not suitable for arranging contact between the child and the non-resident parent.

What is the purpose of supervised contact?

There can be various reasons why the Family Law Administration decides that a non-resident parent should have supervised contact for a period of time.

Supervised contact can be determined when the Family Law Administration needs more information about the relationship between the child and the non-resident parent, either because the relationship has been strained for a long time, or because the child and the parent do not know each other well enough. Supervised contact can also be implemented when the conflict between the parents is particularly high and marked by significant strife and a lack of cooperation regarding the child, or when there are allegations or suspicions of abuse or mistreatment.

Four kinds of supervised contact

Observed contact is usually applied when there is a need for more information about the child and parent. For example, as part of a child expert assessment. In such cases, the observation forms the basis of an assessment of how the contact should be arranged in the future.  A decision on observed contact, therefore, is a stage in the process of clarifying the case and not a decision on whether there is to be contact in the future.

Attended contact is used when there is a need for a neutral person to be present during contact. For example, in instances where the level of dispute is especially high among the parents and the resident parent, for this reason, is opposed to contact. In such cases, it may be a helpful method to ensure the connection between the child and the non-resident parent as well as a way to get the contact process started. Attended contact can also be used in cases where it is deemed to be in the best interest of the child to have a connection to the non-resident parent but only on an acquaintance level. Contact on an acquaintance level is a type of contact where there are extended periods between each meeting, and the contact lasts for a short time. Attended contact can also be used whilst picking up and dropping off the child as a means to establishing a well-functioning routine. 

Supported contact is used in cases where the non-resident parent is young, immature, or highly inexperienced in taking care of the child or if the child is very young or disabled. The supported contact is used to ensure that a gradual adaptation can take place, possibly with training in how to take care of the child.

Protected contact entails that the contact is under constant supervision. Protected contact is often used when the child has not had contact with the non-resident parent for a long time, or when there is uncertainty about whether the parent can provide care and maintain a safe environment for the child. This could occur, for example, if the non-resident parent is an addict, or if there are suspicions of abuse. Protected contact is also used in cases where there are concerns about inappropriate behaviour or if the resident parent has expressed fear that the child might be taken out of the country and the risk of abduction cannot be ruled out. Protected contact can be used when the Family Law Administration assesses that no other options for contact are suitable.

The Family Law Administration will only decide on other forms of contact in very special situations. For instance, if regular contact is not possible or if contact is particularly limited due to, for example, the work situation of the non-resident parent – such as in the case of sailors.

A decision or agreement regarding other forms of contact cannot be enforced. This means that parents cannot seek legal help if a decision or agreement regarding other forms of contact is not upheld.

Joint custody
If parents have joint custody, both parents can travel with the child abroad without requiring a decision from the Family Law Administration or consent from the other parent. However, this is not applicable if the parents disagree on custody, or if the Family Law Administration has decided to limit the right to travel abroad, in which case consent from the other parent is required.

If the parents have joint custody, but disagree on the matter of custody, the Family Law Administration can grant one parent the right to travel abroad for a short period. In this context, the purpose of the trip is crucial in determining for how long the parent can travel with the child.

The resident parent has sole custody
If the residence parent has sole custody, the Family Law Administration’s decisions on the right to contact is limited to contact in the Faroe Islands, the Kingdom of Denmark, and other Nordic countries. Parents can agree themselves that the child can travel with the non-resident parent outside the Nordic countries.

If parents cannot agree, the non-resident parent can request the Family Law Administration for contact outside the Nordic countries. The Family Law Administration assesses whether it is in the best interest of the child to accompany the non-resident parent abroad. In many cases, the Family Law Administration decides that the child is allowed to spend vacation abroad or visit family abroad.

If there is a significant or imminent risk that the child will be abducted or retained abroad, the Family Law Administration may decide to prohibit a parent from traveling with the child. The Family Law Administration may also decide to prohibit a parent from traveling with the child to destinations listed as problematic by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

According to administrative law, anyone who is a part of a case at the Family Law Administration may, at any time during a case course, choose to be represented by an attorney or others, or seek assistance from others, for example, by having an assessor during meetings.

It is, however, important for the decision in the case or for reaching an agreement between the parents, that the parents are also personally present.

The Family Law Administration may order the parties to personally be present when it is essential for the decision in the case.

When a child is included in the case course regarding contact, custody or residency, the child will have the opportunity to have an assessor.

Parents with an ongoing case regarding residence of a child or contact, can apply for legal aid if they meet the financial criteria. The income threshold to qualify for legal aid is the same as in cases where free trial is granted under Chapter 41 of the Justice Act for the Faroe Islands.

The application form Application for Legal Aid can be obtained upon request.

Decisions made by the Family Law Administration can be appealed to the National Appeals Institution (Føroya Kærustovnur) within 4 weeks of the date you were informed of the decision.

Send the appeal to:

Føroya Kærustovnur
undir Hornabakka
PO box 45
110 Tórshavn

or by e-mail to fks@fks.fo 

In some cases, the Family Law Administration may reopen the case if an appeal has been received. E.g. if the appeal contains new and vital information.

Please contact the Family Law Administration, if you have further questions.

See legislation here.