Dutch Court Suspends Moroccan Ruling Demanding Extra Child Support
A father living in the Netherlands fears he could be arrested on a future trip to Morocco. Although a Dutch court has already set child support, a Moroccan court is demanding additional payments. He has just obtained a suspension of that decision from a court in Amsterdam.
A trip to Morocco could cost him his freedom. According to evidence reviewed by the court, this Dutch national risks being arrested at the border over unpaid child support. Yet his divorce was granted in the Netherlands in 2023, and monthly payments of 50 euros have already been set for his daughter. Faced with new obligations imposed by a Moroccan court, he took his case to a court in Amsterdam.
On Bladi.net : They Divorce in Morocco, but the Netherlands Refuses to Apply the Decision to Their Children
The story began in November 2014. The couple married in Morocco before settling in the Netherlands, where their daughter was born in 2016. After several years together, the father began divorce proceedings in Morocco in 2020, then abandoned them. He ultimately chose to file in a Dutch court, which granted the divorce in March 2023.
But his ex-wife reopened the case in Morocco. On 4 November 2025, a Moroccan court awarded her 60 000 dirhams as divorce compensation, known as mout’a, and 3 000 dirhams for her housing during the waiting period. The father must also pay 400 dirhams a month toward his daughter’s housing and 100 dirhams for her upkeep and education, retroactive to March 2023.
Dutch court suspends Moroccan ruling
For the father, who says he lives on benefits, these new obligations represent an additional burden. He had already paid 46 416 dirhams in February 2024 under an earlier Moroccan ruling.
In its ruling of 5 October 2026, the Amsterdam court points to a major issue: both parents and their child have lived in the Netherlands since they married. Dutch courts therefore had jurisdiction to set child support. The amounts awarded in Morocco create, in the judge’s view, a risk of double payment for the girl’s upkeep.
On Bladi.net : She Lives in the Netherlands, but the Courts Invent a Salary for Her in Morocco
The judge also criticizes the father, noting that he initially launched proceedings in Morocco himself before changing course, and that he provided his lawyers with incomplete information.
Nevertheless, the court suspends enforcement of the Moroccan ruling of 4 November 2025, as well as any decision that may be issued on appeal, pending proceedings on the merits in the Netherlands or the ruling’s annulment in Morocco. The Dutch child-support payment of 50 euros remains in effect. The mother also retains the right to ask Dutch judges for a higher contribution or support for herself.
