Deprivation of parental rights is possible only through a court order; no other procedure is provided for by current legislation.
To deprive a person of parental rights who evades the fulfillment of parental duties, the following actions must be taken:
- establish that a person is deliberately evading parental responsibilities, maliciously failing to comply with the requirements and recommendations of guardianship and trusteeship bodies, juvenile services, or intentionally evading treatment (chronic alcoholics, drug addicts, substance abusers) and collect all necessary supporting evidence;
- contact the guardianship and trusteeship body in order to obtain a conclusion regarding the living conditions and upbringing of the child, the behavior of the parents, their relationship with the children, and their attitude towards the fulfillment of their parental duties;
- to apply to the court with a claim for deprivation of parental rights and receive a decision adopted by the court based on the results of the consideration. The right to apply to the court with a corresponding claim is possessed by one of the parents, a guardian, a trustee, a person in whose family the child lives, a healthcare institution, an educational or other children's institution in which the child is located, a guardianship and trusteeship body, a prosecutor, as well as the child himself (if he has reached the age of 14). There are cases when claims for deprivation of parental rights are filed by close relatives of the child.
A mother or father who has been deprived of parental rights loses their rights towards the child, which, as a general rule, belong to them as parents by virtue of their relationship with the child, namely:
- lose personal non-property rights regarding the child (for example, the right to decide on the child's upbringing and even communicate freely with him, the right to give permission for the child to change his surname or first name, the right to determine the child's place of residence and allow or prohibit his travel abroad, etc.), and are also released from responsibilities regarding his upbringing;
- cease to be the legal representative of the child;
- lose the right to any benefits and state assistance provided to families with children;
- cannot be an adoptive parent, guardian or trustee (i.e. cannot adopt another child);
- cannot obtain in the future those property rights related to parenthood that they could have in the event of their incapacity for work (the right to child support, the right to a pension and compensation for damage in the event of loss of a breadwinner, etc.);
- lose other rights based on kinship with the child (for example, their child may be adopted without their consent as parents);
- lose the right to inherit after the child (except in cases where their inheritance is provided for in the child's will).
A person deprived of parental rights is not released from the obligation to support a child (pay alimony).
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Natalia Sarmatytska, Chief Lawyer of the Chuguyiv Legal Aid Bureau Sector«