Care and contact arrangements — travel — Care of Children Act 2004, ss 4, 5 & 6 — Hague Convention. This hearing was to determine an application by the father for a variation to a parenting order, to allow the parties' children to travel to the United States to visit him for the school holidays. The mother opposed the application, citing her concern that the father may retain them in the United States without her permission. The parties met in New Zealand and moved together to the United States, but then split up. A United States parenting order was in place granting the mother day-to-day care of the children, and allowing her move back to New Zealand with them. The father remained living in the United States. The children visited the father on one occasion, but their return to New Zealand was delayed. As a result, the mother applied to the New Zealand Family Court on a without notice basis for a parenting order, which was granted on an interim basis. The children's welfare and best interests were paramount in considering the application. The Judge considered the parties' submissions and evidence, noting that there were no concerns for the children's safety in the father's care and that permitting the children to travel would foster their relationship with their father. The delay in return of the children was in fact a result of difficulty in securing a Managed Isolation and Quarantine (MIQ) spot for the children, for which the father had been responsible. The Judge granted the application and varied the parenting order to permit the children to travel, with conditions including that the father pay a bond into the solicitor's trust account. Judgment Date: 17 June 2022. * * * Note: names have been changed to comply with legal requirements. * * *