Elderly parents can claim alimony from daughters and sons who abandoned them and moved abroad. This was stated by lawyer Arslan Mikailov to Minval.
This topic became relevant after some retired parents began asking lawyers how they can obligate their children to take care of them, even if they live abroad.
According to the lawyer, Azerbaijani legislation provides not only for the obligation of parents to support their children but also the reverse norm — the obligation of adults to care for their incapacitated parents, including providing financial support.
“According to the Family Code, adults are also obliged to provide maintenance for their parents who are unable to work and require financial assistance. The procedure here is the same as in a divorce case. If there is neither a voluntary agreement nor an agreement at the mediation stage between the parties, the parent in need of financial assistance can apply to the court for alimony recovery,” the interlocutor noted.
The lawyer specified that in such cases, the same procedure applies as for recovering alimony for children. Parents can first try to resolve the issue amicably or through mediation. However, if no agreement is reached, they have the right to go to court with a claim for alimony collection.
He emphasized the relevance of referring to Article 82 of the Family Code, which explicitly defines the obligation of parents to support their underage children. Also, Article 83 of the same code specifies the participation of adult children in additional expenses for their parents. Furthermore, according to Article 390 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, intentional failure to provide assistance to parents entails administrative liability.
A separate issue arises if the son or daughter lives abroad. In this case, according to the lawyer, the parent can still file a lawsuit, but certain procedural features apply.
“The lawsuit is filed at the place of registration or last residence of the defendant. It is important that the person living abroad is notified of the start of judicial proceedings, for example, by phone, through messengers, or official documents,” he explained.
After the court decision is issued, mechanisms of international cooperation come into force. If the country where the defendant resides has an agreement on legal assistance with Azerbaijan, the court decision may be recognized and enforced in its territory. For this, the court act must be translated into the language of the corresponding country, notarized, and sent through the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Thereafter, it is transferred to the competent authorities of the state where the defendant lives for enforcement.
Thus, even living abroad does not exempt offspring from the obligation to assist their parents. The law provides mechanisms that allow protecting the rights of elderly people and obtaining alimony payments through international procedures.