Kazakhstan court grants father custody of four children after mother leaves

A specialized interdistrict court for juvenile affairs in Oral has ruled that four minor children should live with their father, fully granting his civil claim, the website infohub.kz reports.

According to the press service of the West Kazakhstan Regional Court, after the parents' marriage was dissolved, three of the children had been living with their father and one with their mother. In 2025, the parents concluded a mediation agreement under which all four children were to live with their mother.

"However, the situation later changed. The mother left for the city to be with another man, leaving the children without proper supervision. After that, the children began living with their father. The mother effectively took no part in raising them and showed no interest in their lives," the court said.

The father filed a lawsuit citing the mother's improper performance of her parental duties and asked the court to order that the children live with him.

During the trial, these circumstances were confirmed. For improper performance of parental duties, the mother was held administratively liable under Part 1 of Article 127 of the Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Administrative Offenses.

The court examined testimony from local police inspectors, who reported repeated instances of the mother leaving the children unsupervised. A psychologist from the Family Support Center and other participants in the proceedings also testified.

The proceedings established that the mother had lived with another man and brought the children to live with her. The children, however, expressed a wish to live with their father because they did not get along with their stepfather. The court also established circumstances indicating that the children had been subjected to intimidation and left without proper supervision.

Assessing the evidence as a whole and guided above all by the interests of the minors, the court concluded that the claim was well-founded.

By the court's ruling, all four minor children are to live with their father. The ruling has entered into legal force.