In a situation where one of the parents avoids the obligation to pay child support, it becomes necessary to refer the matter to court to obtain a court decision. This court may be both the district court competent for the place of residence of the child and the place of residence of the sued parent.
In cases where the defendant is a foreigner, the case is settled by a Polish court if the foreigner resides in Poland. In this case, the court will base its decision on Polish law.
On the other hand, in the document on the applicable law to maintenance obligations, the Hague Protocol indicates that the person obliged to pay maintenance and the person entitled to receive it may conclude a written agreement, choosing the law of a given country that will apply to them in a maintenance case.
They can choose the law of the country in which one of the parties is a citizen. In the case of persons from Ukraine – decisions of Ukrainian courts on alimony are subject to the procedure of recognition of this document by the District Court. For this document to have legal force in Poland, a translated verdict of the Ukrainian court should be submitted to the District Court with an application for recognition.
