and Article 55. No other reservation shall be permitted.2. Any State may at any time withdraw a reservation it has made. The withdrawal shall be notified to the depositary.3. The reservation shall cease to have effect on the first day of the third calendar month after the notification referred to in the preceding paragraph.Article 611. The Convention shall enter into force on the first day of the month following the expiration of three months after the deposit of the third instrument of ratification, acceptance or approval referred to in Article 57.2. Thereafter the Convention shall enter into force:(a) for each State ratifying, accepting or approving it subsequently, on the first day of the month following the expiration of three months after the deposit of its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession;(b) for each State acceding, on the first day of the month following the expiration of three months after the expiration of the period of six months provided in Article 58(3);(c) for a territorial unit to which the Convention has been extended in conformity with Article 59, on the first day of the month following the expiration of three months after the notification referred to in that Article.Article 621. A State Party to the Convention may denounce it by a notification in writing addressed to the depositary. The denunciation may be limited to certain territorial units to which the Convention applies.2. The denunciation takes effect on the first day of the month following the expiration of 12 months after the notification is received by the depositary. Where a longer period for the denunciation to take effect is specified in the notification, the denunciation takes effect upon the expiration of such longer period.Article 63The depositary shall notify the States Members of The Hague Conference on Private International Law and the States which have acceded in accordance with Article 58 of the following:(a) the signatures, ratifications, acceptances and approvals referred to in Article 57;(b) the accessions and objections raised to accessions referred to in Article 58;(c) the date on which the Convention enters into force in accordance with Article 61;(d) the declarations referred to in Article 34(2), and Article 59;(e) the agreements referred to in Article 39;(f) the reservations referred to in Article 54(2), and Article 55 and the withdrawals referred to in Article 60(2);(g) the denunciations referred to in Article 62.In witness whereof the undersigned, being duly authorised thereto, have signed this Convention.Done at The Hague, on the 19th day of October 1996, in the English and French languages, both texts being equally authentic, in a single copy which shall be deposited in the archives of the Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and of which a certified copy shall be sent, through diplomatic channels, to each of the States Members of The Hague Conference on Private International Law at the date of its eighteenth session.
Convention on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition, enforcement and cooperation in respect of parental responsibility and measures for the protection of children(Concluded 19 October 1996)The States signatory to the present Convention,Considering the need to improve the protection of children in international situations,Wishing to avoid conflicts between their legal systems in respect of jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition and enforcement of measures for the protection of children,Recalling the importance of international cooperation for the protection of children,Confirming that the best interests of the child are to be a primary consideration,Noting that the Convention of 5 October 1961 concerning the powers of authorities and the law applicable in respect of the protection of minors is in need of revision,Desiring to establish common provisions to this effect, taking into account the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child of 20 November 1989,Have agreed on the following provisions:CHAPTER ISCOPE OF THE CONVENTIONArticle 11. The objects of the present Convention are:(a) to determine the State whose authorities have jurisdiction to take measures directed to the protection of the person or property of the child;(b) to determine which law is to be applied by such authorities in exercising their jurisdiction;(c) to determine the law applicable to parental responsibility;(d) to provide for the recognition and enforcement of such measures of protection in all Contracting States;(e) to establish such cooperation between the authorities of the Contracting States as may be necessary in order to achieve the purposes of this Convention.2. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "parental responsibility" includes parental authority, or any analogous relationship of authority determining the rights, powers and responsibilities of parents, guardians or other legal representatives in relation to the person or the property of the child.Article 2The Convention applies to children from the moment of their birth until they reach the age of 18 years.Article 3The measures referred to in Article 1 may deal in particular with:(a) the attribution, exercise, termination or restriction of parental responsibility, as well as its delegation;(b) rights of custody, including rights relating to the care of the person of the child and, in particular, the right to determine the child's place of residence, as well as rights of access including the right to take a child for a limited period of time to a place other than the child's habitual residence;(c) guardianship, curatorship and analogous institutions;(d) the designation and functions of any person or body having charge of the child's person or property, representing or assisting the child;(e) the placement of the child in a foster family or in institutional care, or the provision of care by "kafala" or an analogous institution;(f) the supervision by a public authority of the care of a child by any person having charge of the child;(g) the administration, conservation or disposal of the child's property.Article 4The Convention does not apply to:(a) the establishment or contesting of a parent-child relationship;(b) decisions on adoption, measures preparatory to adoption, or the annulment or revocation of adoption;(c) the name and forenames of the child;(d) emancipation;(e) maintenance obligations;(f) trusts or succession;(g) social security;(h) public measures of a general nature in matters of education or health;(i) measures taken as a result of penal offences committed by children;(j) decisions on the right of asylum and on immigration.CHAPTER IIJURISDICTIONArticle 51. The judicial or administrative authorities of the Contracting State of the habitual residence of the child have jurisdiction to take measures directed to the protection of the child's person or property.2. Subject to Article 7, in case of a change of the child's habitual residence to another Contracting State, the authorities of the State of the new habitual residence have jurisdiction.Article 61. For refugee children and children who, due to disturbances occurring in their country, are internationally displaced, the authorities of the Contracting State on the territory of which these children are present as a result of their displacement have the jurisdiction provided for in Article 5(1).2. The provisions of the preceding paragraph also apply to children whose habitual residence cannot be established.Article 71. In case of wrongful removal or retention of the child, the authorities of the Contracting State in which the child was habitually resident immediately before the removal or retention keep their jurisdiction until the child has acquired a habitual residence in another State, and(a) each person, institution or other body having rights of custody has acquiesced in the removal or retention; or(b) the child has resided in that other State for a period of at least one year after the person, institution or other body having rights of custody has or should have had knowledge of the whereabouts of the child, no request for return lodged within that period is still pending, and the child is settled in his or her new environment.2. The removal or the facilitate, by mediation, conciliation or similar means, agreed solutions for the protection of the person or property of the child in situations to which the Convention applies;(c) provide, on the request of a competent authority of another Contracting State, assistance in discovering the whereabouts of a child where it appears that the child may be present and in need of protection within the territory of the requested State.Article 32On a request made with supporting reasons by the Central Authority or other competent authority of any Contracting State with which the child has a substantial connection, the Central Authority of the Contracting State in which the child is habitually resident and present may, directly or through public authorities or other bodies:(a) provide a report on the situation of the child;(b) request the competent authority of its State to consider the need to take measures for the protection of the person or property of the child.Article 331. If an authority having jurisdiction under Articles 5 to 10 contemplates the placement of the child in a foster family or institutional care, or the provision of care by "kafala" or an analogous institution, and if such placement or such provision of care is to take place in another Contracting State, it shall first consult with the Central Authority or other competent authority of the latter State. To that effect it shall transmit a report on the child together with the reasons for the proposed placement or provision of care.2. The decision on the placement or provision of care may be made in the requesting State only if the Central Authority or other competent authority of the requested State has consented to the placement or provision of care, taking into account the child's best interests.Article 341. Where a measure of protection is contemplated, the competent authorities under the Convention, if the situation of the child so requires, may request any authority of another Contracting State which has information relevant to the protection of the child to communicate such information.2. A Contracting State may declare that requests under paragraph 1 shall be communicated to its authorities only through its Central Authority.Article 351. The competent authorities of a Contracting State may request the authorities of another Contracting State to assist in the implementation of measures of protection taken under this Convention, especially in securing the effective exercise of rights of access as well as of the right to maintain direct contacts on a regular basis.2. The authorities of a Contracting State in which the child does not habitually reside may, on the request of a parent residing in that State who is seeking to obtain or to maintain access to the child, gather information or evidence and may make a finding on the suitability of that parent to exercise access and on the conditions under which access is to be exercised. An authority exercising jurisdiction under Articles 5 to 10 to determine an application concerning access to the child, shall admit and consider such information, evidence and finding before reaching its decision.3. An authority having jurisdiction under Articles 5 to 10 to decide on access may adjourn a proceeding pending the outcome of a request made under paragraph 2, in particular, when it is considering an application to restrict or terminate access rights granted in the State of the child's former habitual residence.4. Nothing in this Article shall prevent an authority having jurisdiction under Articles 5 to 10 from taking provisional measures pending the outcome of the request made under paragraph 2.Article 36In any case where the child is exposed to a serious danger, the competent authorities of the Contracting State where measures for the protection of the child have been taken or are under consideration, if they are informed that the child's residence has changed to, or that the child is present in another State, shall inform the authorities of that other State about the danger involved and the measures taken or under consideration.Article 37An authority shall not request or transmit any information under this Chapter if to do so would, in its opinion, be likely to place the child's person or property in danger, or constitute a serious threat to the liberty or life of a member of the child's family.Article 381. Without prejudice to the possibility of imposing reasonable charges for the provision of services, Central Authorities and other public authorities of Contracting States shall bear their own costs in applying the provisions of this Chapter.2. Any Contracting State may enter into agreements with one or more other Contracting States concerning the allocation of charges.Article 39Any Contracting State may enter into agreements with one or more other Contracting States with a view to improving the application of this Chapter in their mutual relations. The States which have concluded such an agreement shall transmit a copy to the depositary of the Convention.CHAPTER VIGENERAL PROVISIONSArticle 401. The authorities of the Contracting State of the child's habitual residence, or of the Contracting State where a measure of protection has been taken, may deliver to the person having parental responsibility or to the person entrusted with protection of the child's person or property, at his or her request, a certificate indicating the capacity in which that person is entitled to act and the powers conferred upon him or her.2. The capacity and powers indicated in 20The provisions of this Chapter apply even if the law designated by them is the law of a non-Contracting State.Article 211. In this Chapter the term "law" means the law in force in a State other than its choice of law rules.2. However, if the law applicable according to Article 16 is that of a non-Contracting State and if the choice of law rules of that State designate the law of another non-Contracting State which would apply its own law, the law of the latter State applies. If that other non-Contracting State would not apply its own law, the applicable law is that designated by Article 16.Article 22The application of the law designated by the provisions of this Chapter can be refused only if this application would be manifestly contrary to public policy, taking into account the best interests of the child.CHAPTER IVRECOGNITION AND ENFORCEMENTArticle 231. The measures taken by the authorities of a Contracting State shall be recognised by operation of law in all other Contracting States.2. Recognition may however be refused:(a) if the measure was taken by an authority whose jurisdiction was not based on one of the grounds provided for in Chapter II;b) if the measure was taken, except in a case of urgency, in the context of a judicial or administrative proceeding, without the child having been provided the opportunity to be heard, in violation of fundamental principles of procedure of the requested State;(c) on the request of any person claiming that the measure infringes his or her parental responsibility, if such measure was taken, except in a case of urgency, without such person having been given an opportunity to be heard;(d) if such recognition is manifestly contrary to public policy of the requested State, taking into account the best interests of the child;(e) if the measure is incompatible with a later measure taken in the non-Contracting State of the habitual residence of the child, where this later measure fulfils the requirements for recognition in the requested State;(f) if the procedure provided in Article 33 has not been complied with.Article 24Without prejudice to Article 23(1), any interested person may request from the competent authorities of a Contracting State that they decide on the recognition or non-recognition of a measure taken in another Contracting State. The procedure is governed by the law of the requested State.Article 25The authority of the requested State is bound by the findings of fact on which the authority of the State where the measure was taken based its jurisdiction.Article 261. If measures taken in one Contracting State and enforceable there require enforcement in another Contracting State, they shall, upon request by an interested party, be declared enforceable or registered for the purpose of enforcement in that other State according to the procedure provided in the law of the latter State.2. Each Contracting State shall apply to the declaration of enforceability or registration a simple and rapid procedure.3. The declaration of enforceability or registration may be refused only for one of the reasons set out in Article 23(2).Article 27Without prejudice to such review as is necessary in the application of the preceding Articles, there shall be no review of the merits of the measure taken.Article 28Measures taken in one Contracting State and declared enforceable, or registered for the purpose of enforcement, in another Contracting State shall be enforced in the latter State as if they had been taken by the authorities of that State. Enforcement takes place in accordance with the law of the requested State to the extent provided by such law, taking into consideration the best interests of the child.CHAPTER VCOOPERATIONArticle 291. A Contracting State shall designate a Central Authority to discharge the duties which are imposed by the Convention on such authorities.2. Federal States, States with more than one system of law or States having autonomous territorial units shall be free to appoint more than one Central Authority and to specify the territorial or personal extent of their functions. Where a State has appointed more than one Central Authority, it shall designate the Central Authority to which any communication may be addressed for transmission to the appropriate Central Authority within that State.Article 301. Central Authorities shall cooperate with each other and promote cooperation amongst the competent authorities in their States to achieve the purposes of the Convention.2. They shall, in connection with the application of the Convention, take appropriate steps to provide information as to the laws of, and services available in, their States relating to the protection of children.Article 31The Central Authority of a Contracting State, either directly or through public authorities or other bodies, shall take all appropriate steps to:(a) facilitate the communications and offer the assistance provided for in Articles 8 and 9 and in this Chapter;(b) facilitate, by mediation, conciliation or similar means, agreed solutions for the protection of the person or property of the child in situations to which the Convention applies;(c) provide, on the request of a competent authority of another Contracting State, assistance in discovering the whereabouts of a child where it appears that of International Child Abduction, as between Parties to both Conventions. Nothing, however, precludes provisions of this Convention from being invoked for the purposes of obtaining the return of a child who has been wrongfully removed or retained or of organising access rights.Article 51In relations between the Contracting States, this Convention replaces the Convention of 5 October 1961 concerning the powers of authorities and the law applicable in respect of the protection of minors, and the Convention governing the guardianship of minors, signed at The Hague 12 June 1902, without prejudice to the recognition of measures taken under the Convention of 5 October 1961 mentioned above.Article 521. This Convention does not affect any international instrument to which Contracting States are Parties and which contains provisions on matters governed by the Convention, unless a contrary declaration is made by the States, Parties to such instrument.2. This Convention does not affect the possibility for one or more Contracting States to conclude agreements which contain, in respect of children habitually resident in any of the States, Parties to such agreements, provisions on matters governed by this Convention.3. Agreements to be concluded by one or more Contracting States on matters within the scope of this Convention do not affect, in the relationship of such States with other Contracting States, the application of the provisions of this Convention.4. The preceding paragraphs also apply to uniform laws based on special ties of a regional or other nature between the States concerned.Article 531. The Convention shall apply to measures only if they are taken in a State after the Convention has entered into force for that State.2. The Convention shall apply to the recognition and enforcement of measures taken after its entry into force as between the State where the measures have been taken and the requested State.Article 541. Any communication sent to the Central Authority or to another authority of a Contracting State shall be in the original language, and shall be accompanied by a translation into the official language or one of the official languages of the other State or, where that is not feasible, a translation into French or English.2. However, a Contracting State may, by making a reservation in accordance with Article 60, object to the use of either French or English, but not both.Article 551. A Contracting State may, in accordance with Article 60:(a) reserve the jurisdiction of its authorities to take measures directed to the protection of property of a child situated on its territory;(b) reserve the right not to recognise any parental responsibility or measure in so far as it is incompatible with any measure taken by its authorities in relation to that property.2. The reservation may be restricted to certain categories of property.Article 56The Secretary General of The Hague Conference on Private International Law shall at regular intervals convoke a Special Commission in order to review the practical operation of the Convention.CHAPTER VIIFINAL CLAUSESArticle 571. The Convention shall be open for signature by the States which were Members of The Hague Conference on Private International Law at the time of its eighteenth session.2. It shall be ratified, accepted or approved and the instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval shall be deposited with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, depositary of the Convention.Article 581. Any other State may accede to the Convention after it has entered into force in accordance with Article 61, paragraph 1.2. The instrument of accession shall be deposited with the depositary.3. Such accession shall have effect only as regards the relations between the acceding State and those Contracting States which have not raised an objection to its accession in the six months after the receipt of the notification referred to in Article 63(b). Such an objection may also be raised by States at the time when they ratify, accept or approve the Convention after an accession. Any such objection shall be notified to the depositary.Article 591. If a State has two or more territorial units in which different systems of law are applicable in relation to matters dealt with in this Convention, it may at the time of signature, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession declare that the Convention shall extend to all its territorial units or only to one or more of them and may modify this declaration by submitting another declaration at any time.2. Any such declaration shall be notified to the depositary and shall state expressly the territorial units to which the Convention applies.3. If a State makes no declaration under this Article, the Convention is to extend to all territorial units of that State.Article 601. Any State may, not later than the time of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, or at the time of making a declaration in terms of Article 59, make one or both of the reservations provided for in Article 54(2), and Article 55. No other reservation shall be permitted.2. Any State may at any time withdraw a reservation it has made. The withdrawal shall be notified to the depositary.3. The reservation shall cease to have effect on the first day of the third calendar month after the notification referred to in the preceding