Interstate and International Custody

International Abductions and the Hague Convention

International Child Abduction is when a parent (who does not have the legal right to do so) moves a child to another country. The Hague Convention was created to provide children with protection against the adverse effects of abducting a child across international borders, and it aims to facilitate the quick return of children to the country of habitual residence.

The Hague Convention does not apply to all international abduction cases. To petition for the return of a child under the provisions of the Hague Convention, the following factors must be met:

• The child is a habitual resident of a member country and has been wrongfully removed or retained to another member country. (Habitual residence is the place where the day-to-day life of a child was centered before their move)
• The countries involved must already be members of the Hague Convention by the time that the abduction occurred.
• The child must be less than 16 years old during the time of application.