Curbing false acknowledgements

The Belgian government has approved a draft bill that State Secretary for Asylum and Migration Theo Francken and minister of Justice Koen Geens (CD&V) wish to use to preventively tackle the problem of false acknowledgements. “We especially want to prevent children from being acknowledged just to get residency papers,” Theo Francken says. By the focused tackling of false marriages and false legal cohabitation, the problem has, after all, shifted towards acknowledgement of children.

The new preventive measures are to make people aware that false acknowledgements aimed at residency are not acceptable. Therefore, in case of doubt, a municipal registrar can delay or refuse an acknowledgement. In addition, children can only be acknowledged in their place of birth or in the municipality where the person acknowledging, the child, or the person who must give prior consent are registered. This measure prevents people from trying to have a child acknowledged at various municipalities or notaries.

It is important to note that the measures are not aimed at preventing all acknowledgements by or of foreigners. The new law is only aimed at preventing evasion of residence legislation. The focus is not on acknowledgements that do not lead to residence rights for one of those involved. Fathers who can prove that they have an intense relationship with the child have nothing to fear either. If the municipal registrar refuses to include the acknowledgement in a deed, the parents can provide the proof through a judicial route. Thus, the descendent relationship is determined legally and finally, which means there can be no doubt about it at a later point.

Including repressive approach

“Apart from those preventive measures, we are also acting repressively,” says Theo Francken. This means abuse is punished and false acknowledgements can be cancelled, even if falseness is only discovered after a period of time. The details about false acknowledgements are also included in the National Register, just like those of false marriages and false legal cohabitations. In addition, false acknowledgement and attempted false acknowledgement will become an offence in immigration law, just like false marriages and false legal cohabitations.

Children must not be affected

“Abuse must never lead to obtaining residency,” says Theo Francken, showing that this bill demonstrates once again that the fight against fraud in Immigration is a top priority for him. “It is in the interest of children that we take action. Those false fathers are only after papers. The child in question ends up with a father who is never there or who causes more trouble instead of caring for the children. A clear and loving relationship between father and child is a requirement to which I will give a stronger legal basis.”