The European Convention on the Repatriation of Minors is a 1970
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
treaty
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations
An international organization or international o ...
which allows a state to request that other states return
minors to its legal jurisdiction.
Content
A state party to the Convention is empowered to demand from any state party the
repatriation
Repatriation is the process of returning a thing or a person to its country of origin or citizenship. The term may refer to non-human entities, such as converting a foreign currency into the currency of one's own country, as well as to the pro ...
of any minor from the first state (the "requesting state") who is present in the second state (the "requested state"). A repatriation can be requested in three circumstances:
#the presence of the minor in the requested state is against the will of the legal guardians of the minor;
#the presence of the minor in the requested state is incompatible with a measure of protection or re-education taken in respect of the minor by government authorities of the requesting State; or
#the presence of the minor is necessary in the requesting state because there proceedings there with a view to taking measures of protection and re-education in respect of the minor.
If the requested state has legislation outside of the Convention which allows for the repatriation of minors upon request, the Convention also allows repatriation in cases where the requesting state deems the minor's presence in the requested state to be incompatible with the interests of the minor or the interests of the requesting state.
Conclusion, signatures, and ratifications
The Convention was concluded in
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
,
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, on 28 May 1970. It was opened for ratification or accession by all states, including states not part of the Council of Europe. On the date of conclusion, it was signed by
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
,
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
, and the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. It was later signed by
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
(1971),
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
(1974),
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
(1980), and
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
(2015).
To enter into force, the Convention required three states to ratify or accede to it. In 1976, Turkey was the first country to ratify. Italy ratified the Convention in 1995 and Malta ratified in 2015. As a result, the Convention entered into force on 28 July 2015.
External links
European Convention on the Repatriation of Minors Council of Europe information page
TextSignatures and ratifications
{{DEFAULTSORT:Repatriation of MInors, European Convention on the
Child custody
Council of Europe treaties
Extradition treaties
Family law treaties
Nationality treaties
Treaties concluded in 1970
Treaties entered into force in 2015
Treaties of Italy
Treaties of Malta
Treaties of Turkey
1970 in the Netherlands