Care for the grandchildren

Sometimes parents want their children to stay with grandparents. This can be the case, for example, if one parent suffers from health impairments or is transferred abroad on business for a few months and would like to enable his or her children to continue attending school in Germany on a regular basis.

Power of attorney for custody

In these cases, it is even possible for parents to give a power of attorney for partial custody to grandparents so that they are able to act in everyday life with the grandchildren.

My child has a right of access. As a grandparent, can I also demand contact?

In these cases, it is usually not necessary to have your own right of access. Because during the times when your grandchild is with your child, you may of course also spend time together. The question of a separate right of access rather arises when there is no contact between your child and the grandchild, but you would like to see your grandchild.

Relationship and regular contact

It is then important that the contact serves the welfare of the child. This can usually be affirmed if a good grandparent-grandchild relationship has been established.

Vacations and joint leisure activities

During the Corona period, a lot was demanded of grandparents and grandchildren - if grandparents were previously involved in their grandchildren's daily lives, they were now subject to contact restrictions and were not allowed to see each other in person for long stretches of time. Now, fortunately, they can once again think about going on vacation with their grandchildren. When vacationing together, both domestically and abroad, it is important to note that grandparents carry a power of attorney that they may make health decisions for the grandchildren during their time together, in particular.

For grandparents: Dos and Dont's

Grandparents should always be aware of family circumstances. They can and should be important caregivers for their grandchildren - but you should be careful not to try to replace the parents.

If there are indications in the parental household that the grandchildren are not doing well there, grandparents should not stand by silently for long, but take action. Family law attorneys can show you what legal steps are possible to quickly protect your grandchildren.