Objectives
The preamble to the Convention states: :Intercountry adoptions shall be made in the best interests of the child and with respect for his or her fundamental rights and to prevent the abduction ic. should be "abduction of" the sale of, or traffic in children and each State should take, as a matter of priority, appropriate measures to enable the child to remain in the care of his or her family of origin. The main objectives of the convention, are set out in Article 1: *to establish safeguards to ensure that intercountry adoptions take place in the best interests of the child and with respect for his or her fundamental rights as recognized in international law, *to establish a system of co-operation amongst Contracting States to ensure that those safeguards are respected and thereby prevent the abduction, the sale of, or traffic in children, *to secure the recognition in Contracting States of adoptions made in accordance with the convention.History
The convention was developed by thePolicies and procedures
With respect to the previous multilateral instruments which include some provisions regarding intercountry adoption, the Hague Adoption Convention is the major multilateral instrument regulating international adoption and calls for the need for co-ordination and direct co-operation between countries to ensure that appropriate safeguards are respected. The Hague Adoption Convention has several requirements. The adoption process includes establishing a "Central Authority" to serve as the country's primary contact in adoption processes; satisfying several checks for a child eligible for adoption, including verifying the propriety of the adoption under the laws of both countries; making a reasonable prior effort to facilitate a domestic adoption; and agreeing to use only certified adoption agencies. Article III outlines the responsibilities that the entire process must be authorized by central adoption authorities designated by the contracting states. If fully implemented at the national level, the convention offers a protective framework against the potential risks of private adoption (when the adoptive parents set the terms of the adoption directly with the biological parents or with children's institutions placed in the country of origin, without recurring to accredited adoption service providers). ''The Implementation and Operation of the 1993 Intercountry Adoption Convention: Guide to Good Practice'', prepared by HCCH, provides assistance to the operation, use and interpretation of the convention.Compliance
To comply with international standards, many changes have been introduced in national legislation enacting laws to criminalize the act of obtaining improper gains from international adoptions. However, instances of trafficking in and sale of children for the purpose of adoption continue to take place in many parts of the world. In the fiscal year of 2006, the Department of State Office of Children's Issues assisted in the return to the United States of 260 children who had been abducted to or wrongfully retained from other countries and 171 children were returned from countries that are Convention partners with the United States. Especially during emergency situations, natural disasters or conflicts, children are observed to be adopted without strict legal procedures being followed, with a risk that there may be cases of child trafficking. An excessive bureaucratization of the adoption process after the implementation of the Hague Adoption Convention has been noted to establishing possible additional barriers to the placement of children.Elizabeth Bartholet, International Adoption: Current Status and Future Prospects, 1993, p. 95References
{{Adopt International adoption Treaties concluded in 1993 Treaties entered into force in 1995 Adoption law Hague Conference on Private International Law conventions Treaties of Albania Treaties of Australia Treaties of Austria Treaties of Belarus Treaties of Belgium Treaties of Benin Treaties of Brazil Treaties of Bulgaria Treaties of Canada Treaties of Chile Treaties of the People's Republic of China Treaties of Costa Rica Treaties of Croatia Treaties of Cyprus Treaties of the Czech Republic Treaties of Denmark Treaties of Ecuador Treaties of Estonia Treaties of Finland Treaties of France Treaties of Georgia (country) Treaties of Germany Treaties of Ghana Treaties of Guyana Treaties of Haiti Treaties of Honduras Treaties of Hungary Treaties of Iceland Treaties of India Treaties of Ireland Treaties of Israel Treaties of Italy Treaties of Kyrgyzstan Treaties of Latvia Treaties of Lithuania Treaties of Luxembourg Treaties of Malta Treaties of Mauritius Treaties of Mexico Treaties of Monaco Treaties of Montenegro Treaties of New Zealand Treaties of the Netherlands Treaties of Norway Treaties of Panama Treaties of Paraguay Treaties of Peru Treaties of the Philippines Treaties of Poland Treaties of Portugal Treaties of Romania Treaties of Serbia Treaties of Slovakia Treaties of Slovenia Treaties of South Africa Treaties of Spain Treaties of Sri Lanka Treaties of Sweden Treaties of Switzerland Treaties of North Macedonia Treaties of Turkey Treaties of the United Kingdom Treaties of the United States Treaties of Uruguay Treaties of Venezuela Treaties of Vietnam Treaties of Andorra Treaties of Armenia Treaties of Azerbaijan Treaties of Belize Treaties of Bolivia Treaties of Burkina Faso Treaties of Burundi Treaties of Cambodia Treaties of Cape Verde Treaties of Colombia Treaties of Cuba Treaties of the Dominican Republic Treaties of El Salvador Treaties of Fiji Treaties of Guatemala Treaties of Guinea Treaties of Ivory Coast Treaties of Kazakhstan Treaties of Kenya Treaties of Lesotho Treaties of Liechtenstein Treaties of Madagascar Treaties of Mali Treaties of Mongolia Treaties of Moldova Treaties of Namibia Treaties of Rwanda Treaties of San Marino Treaties of Senegal Treaties of Seychelles Treaties of Eswatini Treaties of Thailand Treaties of Togo Treaties of Zambia Family law treaties 1993 in the Netherlands Treaties extended to Greenland Treaties extended to the Faroe Islands Treaties extended to the Caribbean Netherlands Treaties extended to the Isle of Man Treaties extended to Ashmore and Cartier Islands Treaties extended to the Australian Antarctic Territory Treaties extended to Christmas Island Treaties extended to the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Treaties extended to the Coral Sea Islands Treaties extended to Heard Island and McDonald Islands Treaties extended to Norfolk Island Treaties extended to Hong Kong Treaties extended to Macau 20th century in The Hague