Family in Timor-Leste

The local term família alargada refers to the extended family, which often plays a practical role in childcare, household support and care for older or disabled relatives. Mothers frequently provide most daily care while fathers more often work outside the home, but grandparents, siblings and other relatives also care for children. Informal care by relatives or other trusted adults can protect a child when parents are absent, yet limited supervision can create risks of neglect, abuse or exploitation. Timor-Leste law requires the registration of every child born in the country, regardless of the parents’ marital status or nationality. A health record or LISIO, the parents’ birth certificates or identity or electoral cards, a marriage certificate where applicable, and a birth declaration from the Chefe de Suco can support the process. Civil registry offices and Civil Centres in Dili and the municipalities provide birth certificates without a service fee. Delayed or mobile registration helps families in remote areas. Registration supports proof of identity and nationality and access to education, health care and social protection. Parents share responsibility for a child’s education and development according to their means. Child maintenance covers living costs, housing, clothing, instruction and education. The Civil Code also recognises cooperation and assistance between spouses and counts household work and childcare among family responsibilities. These duties remain relevant after separation, even when parents no longer live together. The Ministry of Social Solidarity and Inclusion, known as MSSI, provides social assistance, protection and community reintegration services. Positive-parenting programmes such as Hametin Familia address nutrition, early stimulation, early learning, non-violent discipline and child protection. Mother Support Groups offer community counselling, nutrition screening, referrals and follow-up. In 2026, the CHANCE-TL programme reached more than 7,000 children through 112 Mother Support Groups and 86 health workers, although access remains less consistent in rural and remote areas. Bolsa da Mãe is periodic, conditional cash support for economically and socially vulnerable households with dependent children. Conditions are linked to regular school attendance and access to primary health services. Under Decree-Law 23/2026, effective 13 August 2026, the monthly amount is US$7 per preschool child, US$8 for the first and second basic cycles, US$9 for the third basic cycle and US$10 for general secondary or technical-vocational education. The Bolsa da Mãe Kondisional ba Saúde, Nutrição, e Saúde Infantil, or BdMK-SANUTRIO, is being piloted for vulnerable pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers and children under three in Covalima, Ermera and RAEOA. Application procedures and coverage can change during implementation. Employment-related family benefits depend on contributions. INSS maternity, paternity, adoption and medical-risk benefits generally require six months of contributions during the previous twelve months. Labour-law maternity leave is at least 12 weeks, or 84 days, while the INSS payment can cover up to 90 days. Civil servants receive 65 working days, including 40 days after birth, and Labour Law paternity leave is five working days. Adoption benefits can apply when the adopted child is under 15. Payment is based on registered earnings and cannot be combined with salary for the same period. Older people and disabled family members often remain dependent on household and kin-based care because formal services are unevenly distributed. The non-contributory old-age social pension is available to Timorese nationals resident in Timor-Leste who are at least 60 and are not covered, or are insufficiently covered, by the contributory system. A suco residence statement supports applications through Dili, municipal or RAEOA offices or by email. The current base amount is US$60 per month, with an additional US$20 for ages 70 to 79 and US$40 for age 80 or older. A non-contributory disability pension also exists. When a contributor dies, eligible relatives may claim a contributory death grant or survivors’ pension. Potential beneficiaries include a spouse or cohabiting partner, biological or adopted descendants, unborn children and guardians. A death grant generally has no qualifying contribution period and should be claimed within three months after the month in which the death became known. A survivors’ pension generally requires at least 60 months of contributions from 2025 and should be claimed within 12 months; an unborn child’s claim follows a separate six-month period after birth. Applications can be made through social-security centres in Dili, the municipalities or RAEOA, and sometimes through a consulate, embassy or email. Death, identity, marriage or suco spouse, birth, adoption, guardianship and school documents may be requested. Law 7/2010 covers domestic violence between spouses and former spouses, people in analogous cohabitation, relatives and people linked through household dependency or economic relations. It includes physical, sexual, psychological and economic violence. PNTL, hospitals, social services, the Ministério Público, the Public Defender and support centres can provide referrals. Reception centres and shelters may accommodate a victim and minor children and provide food, psychological, medical, social and legal assistance free of charge. Courts can order removal of a perpetrator from the family residence, and courts may award alimony, including provisional alimony. Availability differs between municipalities, so emergency support may depend on transport, shelter capacity and local referral networks. The child-protection framework applies to children and young people under 17 who live in or are found in Timor-Leste. Intervention can continue up to 21, and potentially to 23 during education or vocational training. Municipal protection networks and MSSI-dependent services receive reports, assess safety, seek consent and manage cases. A written promotion and protection agreement can involve the parents or guardian, a guarda de facto, meaning a person who actually cares for the child, and a child over 12. Courts become involved when consent is absent or withdrawn, duties are repeatedly ignored, violence or a sexual offence is alleged, the child objects, means are insufficient or urgent protection is needed. Measures can include family support, kinship placement, foster care, residential care, guardianship and adoption. Poverty alone does not justify removing a child from the family. Law 5/2026 regulates national and international adoption. The process includes application and assessment, matching, a transition or administrative placement, pre-adoption integration and a judicial decision, with optional post-adoption support. Technical teams assess applicants and children, the Ministério Público protects the child’s interests, and the court constitutes the adoption. A child over 12 is heard, siblings should remain together when that serves their interests, and a person adopted at 15 or older has a right to information about their origins subject to the rules for younger children. International adoption is subsidiary to family-based and national solutions, and informal placement does not create the same status as a court-ordered adoption. Family services operate through 13 municipalities and RAEOA, municipal offices, suco leaders, health facilities, community organisations, faith groups and NGOs. Transport, documentation, social-worker capacity, shelter places and digital access vary considerably. Primero CPIMS+ supports coordinated case management for vulnerable children. Family reunification requests involving entry to or exit from Timor-Leste should be handled humanely and promptly under the child-protection framework, but the detailed immigration procedure requires confirmation with the responsible authority.