Texas Family Code - Section 153.503. Abduction Prevention Measures

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§ 153.503. ABDUCTION PREVENTION MEASURES.  If the court 
finds that it is necessary under Section 153.501 to take measures to 
protect a child from international abduction by a parent of the 
child, the court may take any of the following actions:
		(1)  appoint a person other than the parent of the child 
who presents a risk of abducting the child as the sole managing 
conservator of the child;
		(2)  require supervised visitation of the parent by a 
visitation center or independent organization until the court finds 
under Section 153.501 that supervised visitation is no longer 
necessary;
		(3)  enjoin the parent or any person acting on the 
parent's behalf from:    
			(A)  disrupting or removing the child from the 
school or child-care facility in which the child is enrolled;  or
			(B)  approaching the child at any location other 
than a site designated for supervised visitation;
		(4)  order passport and travel controls, including 
controls that:           
			(A)  prohibit the parent and any person acting on 
the parent's behalf from removing the child from this state or the 
United States;
			(B)  require the parent to surrender any passport 
issued in the child's name, including any passport issued in the 
name of both the parent and the child;  and
			(C)  prohibit the parent from applying on behalf 
of the child for a new or replacement passport or international 
travel visa;
		(5)  require the parent to provide:                                           
			(A)  to the United States Department of State's 
Office of Children's Issues and the relevant foreign consulate or 
embassy:
				(i)  written notice of the court-ordered 
passport and travel restrictions for the child;  and
				(ii)  a properly authenticated copy of the 
court order detailing the restrictions and documentation of the 
parent's agreement to the restrictions;  and
			(B)  to the court proof of receipt of the written 
notice required by Paragraph (A)(i) by the United States Department 
of State's Office of Children's Issues and the relevant foreign 
consulate or embassy;
		(6)  order the parent to execute a bond or deposit 
security in an amount sufficient to offset the cost of recovering 
the child if the child is abducted by the parent to a foreign 
country;
		(7)  authorize the appropriate law enforcement 
agencies to take measures to prevent the abduction of the child by 
the parent;  or
		(8)  include in the court's order provisions:                                 
			(A)  identifying the United States as the country 
of habitual residence of the child;
			(B)  defining the basis for the court's exercise 
of jurisdiction;  and     
			(C)  stating that a party's violation of the order 
may subject the party to a civil penalty or criminal penalty or to 
both civil and criminal penalties.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 612, § 1, eff. June 20, 2003.           

Last modified: August 10, 2007