KÜHEYLAN HUKUK
Establishing a Personal Relationship with the Child and Failure to Comply with the Meeting Order (2026) TMK art. 323–326 and Child Protection Law art. Meeting Order, Legal Support Directorate Process and Disciplinary Imprisonment within the Scope of 41/A–41/I have been updated as of 2026
The right of the parent who is not given custody to have regular access to the child is guaranteed by law. Meeting dates are determined in the divorce decision or in a separate personal relationship case. The duty of enforcement offices in implementing the decision ended in 2023; Applications are now made to legal support and victim services directorates, and delivery procedures are carried out under the supervision of experts. A parent who violates the surrender order may be sentenced to disciplinary imprisonment by the family court.
TMK m. According to Article 323, each parent has the right to request the establishment of an appropriate personal relationship with the minor child who is not under their custody or does not live with them. This right is the right of both the parent and the child; It is a basic necessity for the child to maintain ties with both parents for the healthy progress of his development. The European Court of Human Rights also accepts the parent and child's enjoyment of each other's presence as the essence of the right to respect for family life in Article 8 of the Convention.
A personal relationship does not only include face-to-face meeting; Telephone and video calls, correspondence, and spending time together on holidays and special occasions are also part of this right. In extraordinary cases, other relatives such as grandparents and siblings may also request the establishment of a personal relationship to the extent that it is in the best interest of the child (TCC Art. 325).
2. How to Determine the Meeting Order?
There is no fixed interview schedule or age limit in the law. Judge; It decides by taking into account the child's age, health status, school schedule, distance between the cities where the parents live, and the child's existing bond with the parent. Established trends in practice can be summarized as follows:
0–2 years (infancy) Short-term, frequent and, as a rule, outpatient meetings; mostly in the mother's presence
3–6 years (preschool) Daytime meetings on certain weekends of the month, gradual transition to boarding schedule
school age Inpatient meetings two weekends a month, one day of religious holidays, one week of semester break and one month of summer break
Puberty Flexible order, taking into account the child's school and social life and his/her opinion
In cases where the parent is at risk of violence, addiction or kidnapping the child, the court often decides to establish it under supervision or in a child meeting center, instead of completely abolishing the personal relationship. Complete rejection of personal relationships is possible only in exceptional cases that seriously endanger the child's peace and development (TMK article 324).
If the personal relationship is not regulated in the divorce decision, if the regulation does not fit the conditions that have changed later, or if the parents have never been married, a separate personal relationship lawsuit can be filed. The case is heard in the family court in the child's place of residence. In the case, a social investigation report is obtained and the child of cognitive age is heard. It is recommended to request temporary personal contact measures in order not to lose contact with the child during the trial; Courts generally evaluate this request at the initial discretion or preliminary examination stage.
With Law No. 7343, articles 41/A–41/I were added to the Child Protection Law, and articles 25, 25/a, 25/b and 341 of the Execution and Bankruptcy Law regarding child surrender were abolished. The new system, the details of which are determined by the Regulation dated 4 August 2022, is implemented throughout the country as of 8 May 2023.
Authorized unit: Legal support and victim services directorate at the child's place of residence; Civil court registry office determined by the Ministry in places where there is no such court.
Expert accompaniment: Delivery procedures are carried out by a psychologist, pedagogue, social worker or child development specialist; The child is delivered to the delivery location or child interview center determined by the directorate.
Delivery order: If the first delivery does not occur, a delivery order is notified to the obligor. The delivery order is notified once and remains valid for subsequent negotiation periods.
Notification obligation: The right holder must notify the directorate at least 48 hours before the delivery time. If the submission is not made twice in a row or three times within a year without a justified excuse, the file will be removed from the process.
Violation of the delivery order or prevention of delivery related to personal relationship Disciplinary imprisonment from 3 to 10 days
Violation of the order regarding the surrender of the child Up to 3 months disciplinary imprisonment
Not bringing the child back at the end of the interview period disciplinary imprisonment for up to 3 months; also criminal complaint
The complaint must be made to the family court where the directorate is located within one month from the violation. If the complaint is dropped or the child is handed over, disciplinary imprisonment will be abolished. If the finalized disciplinary imprisonment is not executed within two years, it can no longer be fulfilled.
The sanction is not limited to disciplinary imprisonment. Systematic and deliberate obstruction of personal relationship is considered as a serious behavior that may be a reason for changing custody in the Supreme Court practice. For this reason, documenting each violation with a directorate report creates a valuable archive of evidence for future lawsuits.
With the divorce decision, the father was granted the right to live-in personal contact on the first and third weekends of the month. The mother avoided delivery for four months, citing the child's illness, the intensity of schoolwork, and similar reasons.
Upon the father's application to the legal support directorate, a delivery order is notified to the mother. Every unjust violation after this stage is recorded in the report and if a complaint is made to the family court within a month, disciplinary imprisonment for 3-10 days is on the agenda. When repeated violations are documented and the social investigation report finds that the mother hinders the relationship between the father and the child, the case for changing custody also has a strong basis.
If child support is not paid, can the child be denied contact?
No. Alimony obligation and personal relationship right are independent of each other. Alimony receivables are pursued through enforcement; Preventing the meeting results in the risk of disciplinary imprisonment.
What happens if the child does not want to see his father?
The delivery specialist evaluates the child's resistance on the spot and records it in the report. In cases where resistance is permanent or occurs as a result of manipulation, the court may be asked to reorganize the personal relationship or seek counseling measures.
Can grandparents request the right to visit their grandchildren?
TMK m. Pursuant to Article 325, other persons may also be granted the right to personal contact in extraordinary circumstances and provided that it is in the best interest of the child. The death of one of the parents is the most common situation for such requests.
Can the meeting order be changed later?
Yes. In cases such as the child's age, a change in school order, or one of the parents moves, a lawsuit may be filed to reorganize the personal relationship.
Failure to notify the directorate 48 hours before the delivery time; In this case, the responsible person is not obliged to bring the child.
Attempting to document the violation on your own, through police station or neighbor testimony; Procedural minutes are prepared by the directorate.
Missing the one-month complaint period.
Delivering the child late upon returning from the meeting; The beneficiary also faces the risk of disciplinary imprisonment.
Turning meetings into opportunities to inform the child against the other parent.
The right to personal relationship is meaningful to the extent that it is established on paper as well as operated in the field. Designing the meeting schedule in accordance with the child's age, conducting the legal support directorate process in accordance with the procedure, and bringing violations to justice in a timely manner directly affects the preservation of the bond between parent and child. Küheylan Law Firm offers result-oriented legal support that ensures its clients' connection with their children in personal relationship cases and in the delivery and complaint processes.
Important Legal Notice: This guide has been prepared for general information purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Since each dispute involves unique facts, the file must be evaluated separately by a lawyer in order to avoid loss of rights in a concrete case. The legislation and case law information contained in the text is up to date as of the date of publication; subsequent changes may affect the result.
Küheylan Law Firm · Burhaniye Mh. Neşetbey Sk. No:12/5 Floor:5 Flat:3 Üsküdar/İstanbul · info@kuheylanhukuk.com · kuheylanhukuk.com
KÜHEYLAN HUKUK