Child abduction is a term that generally refers to the wrongful removal of children for any of a number of purposes. In most legal systems, child abduction is considered a felony which is handled under criminal law. In general, the term refers to the withdrawal of legal custody over a minor, or of the supervision from the person who is authorised to practice it over the minor. In many child abduction cases, such wrongful removal is conducted by one of the parents.

One of the terms often confused with child abduction is kidnapping. Although both can refer to the theft of a child, an essential difference between the two is in the underlying suggestion of the use of force or fraud when the term kidnapping is used. To make the distinction clearer, experts often speak of Parental Child Abduction, or International (Parental) Child Abduction ICA. These concepts are often abbreviated as PCA and ICA respectively.

ICA cases differ from national child abduction cases in several ways, of which the most obvious is the simple fact that the child involved is wrongfully removed across an international border. The fact that the legal systems of the involved countries differ generally allows the abductor more freedom in effectively keeping the child from the (other) parent or guardian who is left behind. Furthermore, the reasons behind ICA are often more varied than in national CA cases, and could range from issues of family conflict and crimes of abuse to cultural and ideological differences. As a result, the child is generally not only moved across greater distances, but the psychological impact and matters of identity development of the child and the social settings in which it grows up often play more of a role as well.

Experts and practices dealing with law, psychology and mediation frequently find themselves confronted with cases of ICA. In law, the bridge between international private and criminal law can cause confusion on how to deal with these complicated cases. In psychology, terms such as Parental Alienation Syndrome are often discussed in child and family psychology. Aside from these professional fields, many institutions and debates find themselves dealing with subjects related to ICA.