[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"advice-en-parental-rights-restriction":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"excerpt":6,"body":7,"datePublished":8,"dateModified":8},"parental-rights-restriction","Restriction of parental authority — when the court orders it","When the court restricts parental authority, how it differs from suspension and deprivation, how the application looks, the PLN 100 fee and impact on contact with the child.","\u003Cp>The guardianship court restricts parental authority when the child's welfare is at risk or when parents living apart cannot make decisions together. Restriction does not take away the status of parent or the right to contact with the child — it only narrows the range of matters that the parent may decide or subjects their actions to supervision. Below we explain which provisions the court relies on, how the proceedings run and how restriction differs from suspension and deprivation of authority.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Starting point: parental authority of both parents\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cp>Under the Family and Guardianship Code, parental authority is vested in both parents, and each of them has the right and the duty to exercise it. On important matters concerning the child — such as the choice of school, serious treatment, change of residence or moving permanently abroad — the parents decide together. If they cannot agree, the guardianship court decides.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Restriction of authority is therefore an exception to this rule. The court resorts to it when deciding a single dispute is not enough, because the conflict or neglect is of a lasting character.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Two grounds for restriction\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Ch3>Parents living apart (art. 107)\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>If the parents live apart, the court may set out the way authority is to be exercised and the manner of contact with the child. When they present a written agreement consistent with the child's welfare, the court usually leaves authority with both of them. In the absence of an agreement, the court may entrust the exercise of authority to one parent and restrict it to specified duties and rights for the other — for example, to joint decisions on treatment and education. The same ruling is made in a divorce judgment (art. 58), in which the court always rules on authority over a shared minor child.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3>Risk to the child's welfare (art. 109)\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>The second ground does not require the parents to separate. It is enough that the child's welfare is at risk — through violence, addiction, neglect of needs, long-lasting lack of interest or conditions in which the child cannot develop properly. The court then issues \"appropriate orders\". The provision gives, as examples:\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cul>\u003Cli>obliging the parents and the child to a specific course of conduct, e.g. work with a family assistant or family therapy,\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>indicating acts that the parents may not take without the court's consent,\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>permanent supervision by a court-appointed guardian over the exercise of authority,\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>sending the child to a facility providing partial care,\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>placing the child in foster care — as the most far-reaching measure within restriction,\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>entrusting the management of the child's property to a guardian.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Ful>\u003Ch2>Restriction, suspension, deprivation — compared\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Ctable>\u003Cthead>\u003Ctr>\u003Cth>Measure\u003C\u002Fth>\u003Cth>When\u003C\u002Fth>\u003Cth>Effect for the parent\u003C\u002Fth>\u003C\u002Ftr>\u003C\u002Fthead>\u003Ctbody>\u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Restriction\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>parental conflict or risk to the child's welfare\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>keeps authority in part or under the control of the court or a guardian\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Suspension (art. 110)\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>a temporary obstacle, e.g. a long trip or hospital stay\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>temporarily does not exercise authority; suspension is lifted when the obstacle ends\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Deprivation (art. 111)\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>a lasting obstacle, abuse of authority, gross neglect of duties\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>loses authority entirely; the court may restore it when the cause ceases\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\u003C\u002Ftbody>\u003C\u002Ftable>\u003Cp>Deprivation or suspension of authority may also be ordered in a divorce, separation or marriage-annulment judgment. The court applies the principle of gradation: before taking authority away, it checks whether a milder measure will not be enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>How the proceedings run\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Col>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Initiation.\u003C\u002Fstrong> The case is initiated by an application from one of the parents, but the guardianship court may also act on its own motion, e.g. after a notification from a school, a social-assistance centre or the police.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Competent court.\u003C\u002Fstrong> Such cases are heard by the family and juvenile division of the district court competent for the child's place of residence.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Fee.\u003C\u002Fstrong> An application starting non-litigation proceedings is subject in 2026 to a fixed fee of PLN 100. In a difficult financial situation, you may ask for exemption from costs.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Content of the application.\u003C\u002Fstrong> You should indicate the child, the parent concerned, the expected scope of restriction (e.g. \"joint decisions only on treatment\") and the facts and evidence justifying it.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Evidentiary proceedings.\u003C\u002Fstrong> The court hears the parents and witnesses, and may order a guardian's interview and opinions from psychologist experts. Concrete facts count — e.g. school or medical records — not general assessments of the other party.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Order.\u003C\u002Fstrong> The court issues an order, which may be appealed. The ruling may later be amended if the child's situation changes.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Fol>\u003Ch2>What restriction means in daily life\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cp>The practical effects depend on the content of the order, so it is always worth reading it carefully. Most often a parent with restricted authority:\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cul>\u003Cli>still has the right to contact with the child — contacts are independent of parental authority (art. 113),\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>still pays maintenance — restriction of authority does not release the parent from the duty to maintain the child,\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>keeps a voice only in matters indicated by the court, and in all other matters the other parent decides alone,\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>may have limited influence on trips abroad and the child's documents, if the court has not left those matters to them.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Ful>\u003Cp>For families of foreigners, decisions on the child's trip from Poland and on obtaining a passport are particularly important. If both parents have retained full authority, consent of both is as a rule required, and in a dispute the court decides.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Example\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cp>The parents of a seven-year-old live in different cities. The father has not been responding to school messages for months, while at the same time refusing consent to orthodontic treatment and to obtaining a passport, blocking a holiday trip to the grandparents. The mother files an application for authority to be entrusted to her and for the father's authority to be restricted to joint decisions on a change in the child's permanent place of residence. She attaches correspondence and a certificate from the doctor. The court grants the application: the father retains contacts every other weekend, but on treatment, school and short trips the mother decides alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>How Good Balance can help\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cp>Family matters require a well-prepared application and well-thought-out evidence. Under a \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Flegal\u002Fconsultation\">legal consultation\u003C\u002Fa> we help you assess which measure is realistic in your situation and plan the next steps. If the parents want to avoid a dispute, we will prepare a written agreement on how authority is to be exercised and on contacts within the \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Flegal\u002Fagreement-drafting\">drafting of contracts and agreements\u003C\u002Fa> service.\u003C\u002Fp>","2026-10-09"]