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Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction

Convention on the Rights of the Child

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Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction

Overview:

The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (hereinafter called ‘the Convention’) was stipulated at the 14th meeting of the Hague Conference on Private International Law conducted on 25 October 1980 in Hague.

The Convention has been extended to be applicable to Macau in 1993 where the Social Welfare Bureau (the former Macao Department for Social Welfare), ever since 1993, was appointed as the Central Authority of Macau SAR to be responsible for the implementation of the Convention.

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With the consideration of Macau’s handover to its motherland China on 20 December 1999, the People’s Republic of China has for this reason informed the depositary of the Convention  – Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands that the Convention will continue to be applicable to Macau and has appointed the Social Welfare Bureau of Macau Special Administrative Region (Macau SAR) to be the Central Authority of Macau SAR.  This letter of notification from the People’s Republic of China was announced in the form of public notice from the Chief Executive No. 22/2001 on the 10th issue of the Macau SAR’s Official Gazette on 7 March 2001.

Main objectives of the Convention are:

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to ensure a prompt return of the child(ren) who is/are wrongfully removed or retained in any one of the Contracting States;
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to ensure the respect from other Contracting States for the custodial rights/guardianship or access rights stipulated in the laws of the Contracting States;
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to ensure the cooperation among Central Authorities of Contracting States and the enforcement of the measures.

The Convention is applicable to:

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child(ren) aged below 16, habitually residing in Macau SAR or any of the Contracting States, who is/are wrongfully removed or retained, and if his/hers/their parental/guardian’s custodial rights, guardianship or access rights is/are being infringed.

Cooperation of Central Authorities covers:

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The return of the child(ren): The Central Authority of Macau SAR will cooperate with the Central Authorities of Contracting States to ensure prompt return of the child(ren) who is/are wrongfully removed or retained.
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The implementation of access rights: the Central Authority of Macau SAR will cooperate with the Central Authority of the Contracting States to assist the parent(s)/guardian of the child(ren) to effectively exercise their access rights.

The Central Authority of Macau SAR is:
Instituto de Acção Social (Social Welfare Bureau)
Estrada do Cemitério, No 6
Macau
telephone: +853 2836 7878
fax: +853 2855 9529
e-mail: srh@ias.gov.mo
Internet: www.ias.gov.mo

 

Hyperlinks to laws of Macau SAR:

  1. Chief Executive’s notice no. 25/2008 advised that the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction to be effective between Macau Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China and Ukraine starting from 1 June 2008.
  2. Chief Executive’s notice no. 22/2001 advised that The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction will continue to be applicable in the Macau Special Administrative Region.
  3. Notice no. 97/99 – According to the notice, the depositary of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, Kingdom of the Netherlands informed that: (…… already informed the Central Authority of Macau SAR which is appointed to enforce the stipulations of the Convention.)
  4. Decree law no. 203/99/M specified that the Macau Social Welfare Bureau is appointed as the local Central Authority responsible for the implementation of the duties stipulated in the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.
  5. Presidential Decree of the Republic no. 32/98 extended the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction to be applicable in Macau SAR.  The Convention has been approved by the Government Order no. 33/83 on 11 May and that the text has been published on Series 1, 108th issue of the Public Notices of the Republic on 11 May 1983.

For more information about the Convention, please visit:

  1. the website related to child abduction mentioned in the Hague Conference on Private International Law;
  2. The Explanatory Report written by Ms E. Perez Vera;
  3. The Status Table* of the Convention prepared by the Permanent Bureau of the Hague Conference.
Other links:
  1. UN

(Note: * means website written not in Chinese)