[Senate Treaty Document 105-51]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



105th Congress                                              Treaty Doc.
                                SENATE

 2d Session                                                      105-51
_______________________________________________________________________


 
 CONVENTION ON PROTECTION OF CHILDREN AND CO-OPERATION IN RESPECT OF 
                         INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION

                               __________

                                MESSAGE

                                  from

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              transmitting

  CONVENTION ON PROTECTION OF CHILDREN AND CO-OPERATION IN RESPECT OF 
    INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION, ADOPTED AND OPENED FOR SIGNATURE AT THE 
   CONCLUSION OF THE SEVENTEENTH SESSION OF THE HAGUE CONFERENCE ON 
               PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW ON MAY 29, 1993





 June 11, 1998.--Convention was read the first time and, together with 
the accompanying papers, referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 
          and ordered to be printed for the use of the Senate


                         LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

                              ----------                              

                                    The White House, June 11, 1998.
To the Senate of the United States:
    With a view to receiving the advice and consent of the 
Senate to ratification, I transmit herewith the Convention on 
Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of 
Intercountry Adoption, adopted and opened for signature at the 
conclusion of the Seventeenth Session of the Hague Conference 
on Private International Law on May 29, 1993. Thirty-two 
countries, including the United States, have signed the 
Convention, 17 countries have ratified it, and one country has 
acceded to it. The provisions of the Convention are fully 
explained in the report of the Department of State that 
accompanies this message.
    The Convention sets out norms and procedures to safeguard 
children involved in intercountry adoptions and to protect the 
interests of their birth and adoptive parents. These safeguards 
are designed to discourage trafficking in children and to 
ensure that intercountry adoptions are made in the best 
interests of the children involved. Cooperation between 
Contracting States will be facilitated by the establishment in 
each Contracting State of a central authority with programmatic 
and case-specific functions. The Convention also provides for 
the recognition of adoptions that fall within its scope in all 
other Contracting States.
    The Convention leaves the details of its implementation up 
to each Contracting State. Implementing legislation prepared by 
the Administration will soon be transmitted for introduction in 
the Senate and the House of Representatives. Once implementing 
legislation is enacted, some further time would be required to 
put the necessary regulations and institutional mechanisms in 
place. We would expect to deposit the U.S. instrument of 
ratification and bring the Convention into force for the United 
States as soon as we are able to carry out all of the 
obligations of the Convention.
    It is estimated that U.S. citizens annually adopt as many 
children from abroad as all other countries combined (13,621 
children in Fiscal Year 1997). The Convention is intended to 
ensure that intercountry adoptions take place in the best 
interests of the children and parents involved, and to 
establish a system of cooperation among Contracting States to 
prevent abduction of, and trafficking in children. We have 
worked closely with U.S. adoption interests and the legal 
community in negotiating the provisions of the Convention and 
in preparing the necessary implementing legislation.
    I recommend that the Senate give its advice and consent to 
ratification of this Convention, subject to the declaration 
described in the accompanying report of the Department of 
State.

                                                William J. Clinton.


                          LETTER OF SUBMITTAL

                              ----------                              

                                       Department of State,
                                        Washington, April 29, 1998.
The President,
The White House.
    The President: I have the honor to submit to you, with the 
recommendation that it be transmitted to the Senate for its 
advice and consent to ratification, the Hague Convention on 
Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of 
Intercountry Adoption. The Convention was adopted and opened 
for signature at the conclusion of the Seventeenth Session of 
the Hague Conference on Private International Law on May 29, 
1993. It was signed by the United States at the Royal 
Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs on March 31, 1994. As 
of February 1998 it had been signed by 31 other States and had 
been ratified by 17 of those States and acceded to by one other 
State. The Convention entered into force on May 1, 1995 after 
the deposit of the third instrument of ratification. U.S. 
citizens adopt over 13,000 children from abroad every year, 
representing about half of all children made available annually 
for intercountry adoption worldwide. The Department of State is 
hopeful that ratification of the Convention by the United 
States may encourage additional States to become parties to the 
Convention.
    The Convention endorses the legal institution of 
intercountry adoption by recognizing in its preamble that 
children should grow up in a family environment, to ensure 
their full and harmonious development. After recalling that 
every State should take priority measures to enable children to 
remain in the care of their family of origin, the signatory 
States recognize that intercountry adoption may offer the 
advantage of a permanent family to a child for whom a suitable 
family cannot be found in the child's State of origin. The 
preamble strongly suggests that if a child cannot remain in the 
care of its family of origin and cannot readily be provided 
with a permanent family in its country of origin, the provision 
of a permanent family through intercountry adoption can be more 
beneficial for the child than foster or institutional care in 
the child's country of origin.
    Chapter I of the Convention contains Articles 1-3. Article 
1 sets out the three general objectives of the Convention: (a) 
to establish safeguards to ensure that intercountry adoptions 
are in the best interests of the child and respectful of the 
child's fundamental rights recognized in international law; (b) 
to establish cooperation among Contracting States to ensure the 
safeguards are respected and thereby prevent abuses such as 
child abduction and the sale of, or traffic in, children; and 
(c) to secure the recognition in Contracting States of 
adoptions made in compliance with the requirements of the 
Convention.
    Article 2 sets out the scope of application of the 
Convention. It is to apply when a child habituallyresident in a 
State of origin that is party to the Convention either has been, or is 
to be, moved to a receiving State that is party to the Convention after 
the child's adoption in the State of origin by spouses or a person 
habitually resident in the receiving State, or for the purpose of such 
an adoption in the receiving State. Article 2 makes clear that the 
Convention covers only adoptions creating a permanent legal parent-
child relationship.
    Article 3 limits application of the Convention by providing 
that the Convention ceases to apply if the child turns 18 
before the adoption has reached the point at which the Central 
Authorities of both the State of origin and the receiving State 
or those performing Central Authority functions have agreed 
that the adoption may proceed (Article 17c). Adoptions to which 
the Convention does not apply or no longer applies may proceed, 
but will not be subject to the Convention's requirements.
    The provisions of Chapter II (Articles 4-5) set out the 
most fundamental determinations that must be made by the 
competent authorities of the State of origin of a child and the 
receiving State before an adoption covered by the Convention 
may take place.
    Article 4 requires the determination by the competent 
authorities of the State of origin that (a) the child is 
legally adoptable; (b) an intercountry adoption is in the 
child' best interests once due consideration has been given to 
the possibility of placement of the child within the State of 
origin; (c) the persons and entities whose consent to adoption 
of the child is necessary have freely given their consent in 
the requisite written form in awareness of the consequences and 
without inducement by payment or compensation (and with consent 
of the mother, where required, only after birth of the child); 
and (d) depending on the age and maturity of the child, the 
child has been counseled about the effects of adoption and 
where required, the child's consent has been obtained in the 
appropriate manner. Requiring these determinations will protect 
children immigrating to the United States from other 
Contracting States and children emigrating from the United 
States who are being adopted by persons residing in other 
Contracting States.
    Under Article 5, an adoption covered by the Convention may 
take place only if the competent authorities of the receiving 
State have determined that the prospective adoptive parents are 
legally eligible and suited by their circumstances to adopt a 
child from abroad and have been appropriately counseled. Those 
authorities must also have determined that the child is or will 
be authorized to enter and reside permanently in the receiving 
State.
    Chapter III (Articles 6-13) deals with Central Authorities 
and accredited bodies. Article 6 provides that every 
Contracting State is to designate a CentralAuthority to 
discharge the duties imposed upon it by the Convention. Federal states 
and States with more than one system of law, or having autonomous 
territorial units, may appoint more than one Central Authority, but are 
to designate a national Central Authority to which communications may 
be addressed for onward transmission.
    Article 7 sets out the non-delegable functions of Central 
Authorities which they must perform to protect children and 
achieve other objects of the Convention. Central Authorities 
are to cooperate with each other and promote cooperation 
amongst the competent authorities in their States. They are to 
take directly all appropriate measures to provide (1) 
information on their adoption laws, and (2) general information 
such as statistics and standard forms. They are also to keep 
each other informed about operation of the Convention and, as 
far as possible, to eliminate any obstacles to its application.
    Article 8 provides that Central Authorities are to take 
themselves, or through public authorities, all appropriate 
measures to prevent improper financial or other gain in 
connection with intercountry adoptions and are to deter all 
practices contrary to the objects of the Convention.
    Article 9 states that Central Authorities are to take 
themselves, or through public authorities or other bodies in 
their State, all appropriate measures, inter alia, to (a) 
assemble and exchange information about the situation of the 
child and the prospective adoptive parents in connection with a 
particular proposed adoption; (b) facilitate, monitor and 
expedite proceedings with a view to completing an adoption; (c) 
promote the development of adoption counseling and post-
adoption services; (d) exchange general evaluation reports 
about experience with intercountry adoption; and (e) respond, 
as permitted by their domestic law, to justified information 
requests about particular adoption situations from other 
Central Authorities or public authorities.
    Article 10 provides that Convention accreditation is to be 
granted to and maintained only by bodies (adoption agencies) 
that demonstrate their competence to provide adoption-related 
services. This Article leaves up to each Contracting State what 
authorities or entities are to provide accreditation.
    Article 11 sets out specific requirements to be met by 
bodies (adoption agencies) if they are to qualify for 
accreditation under the Convention. These requirements must be 
read together with the Article 32 requirements and prohibitions 
that are applicable to all adoptions covered by the Convention. 
Accredited bodies (adoption agencies) may pursue only ``non-
profit objectives,'' the conditions and limits to be 
established by the competent authorities of the accrediting 
country. Accredited bodies (adoption agencies) are to be 
directed and staffed by personsqualified by their ethical 
standards and by training or experience to work in the field of 
intercountry adoption. Finally, accredited bodies (adoption agencies) 
are to be subject to supervision by competent authorities of the 
country in which they operate as to their composition, operation, and 
financial situation.
    Article 12 provides that a body (adoption agency) 
accredited in one Contracting State may act in another 
Contracting State only if it has been authorized to do so by 
the competent authorities of both States.
    Article 13 states that each Contracting State is to notify 
the Permanent Bureau (secretariat) of the Hague Conference of 
the designation of Central Authorities, as well as the names 
and addresses of accredited bodies (adoption agencies).
    Chapter IV (Articles 14-22) sets out the various procedural 
steps involved in individual intercountry adoptions covered by 
the Convention. Its use of the word ``Central Authority'' 
should also be viewed as encompassing in many countries public 
authorities and, in the United States, bodies (adoption 
agencies) accredited under Chapter III and meeting the 
requirements of Article 32, and bodies (adoption agencies) or 
persons approved as meeting the requirements of Articles 22(2) 
and 32.
    While the Convention does not explicitly authorize 
prospective adoptive parents to undertake direct steps to adopt 
children from another Contracting State, it does not bar such 
activity. Article 29 sets certain requirements for contacts 
between prospective adoptive parents and the parents or 
caregivers of the child they seek to adopt--contacts that 
normally could only take place in the country of origin of the 
child that is the subject of the possible intercountry 
adoption. While the Convention thus permits direct efforts by 
prospective adoptive parents to adopt a child from another 
Contracting State, the Convention's substantive requirements 
and many of its procedures would apply to such an intercountry 
adoption. Countries of origin may, however, refuse to allow 
prospective adoptive parents to arrange intercountry adoptions 
directly on their own behalf and may require that they obtain 
the assistance of public authorities or Convention-accredited 
adoption agencies.
    Article 14 provides that persons habitually resident in a 
Contracting State wishing to adopt a child habitually resident 
in another such State are to apply to the Central Authority (or 
a public authority) in the State of their habitual residence 
(the receiving State).
    Article 15 sets the requirements for a report and its 
findings on the prospective adoptive parents. Under this 
provision, if the Central Authority (public authority, 
Convention-accredited agency, or agency or person approved 
under Convention Article 22(2)) is satisfied that the applicant 
prospective adoptive parents are eligible and suited to adopt, 
it shall prepare a report (home study) including specified 
background information on them, as well as on the 
characteristics of the children (e.g., special needs children) 
for whom they would be qualified to care for as adoptive 
parents. The Central Authority of the receiving State is to 
transmit the report to the Central Authority (or public 
authority, accredited agency, or approved agency or person) of 
the State of origin.
    Article 16a sets out the information requirements for the 
report concerning the child and its background. The report is 
to be transmitted to the Central Authority (public authority, 
accredited adoption agency or approved agency or individual 
adoption service provider) in the receiving State with proof 
that the necessary consents have been obtained in accordance 
with Article 4 of the Convention, and the reasons for its 
determination on placement of the child, taking care not to 
reveal the identity of the birth parents of the child if, in 
the State of origin, these identities may not be disclosed. 
Under Article 16b the Central Authority of the State of origin 
is to give ``due consideration'' to the child's upbringing and 
the child's ethnic, religious and cultural background and is to 
determine whether the envisaged placement is in the best 
interests of the child.
    Under Article 17 any decision in the State of origin that a 
child should be entrusted to the prospective adoptive parents 
may only be made if(a) that State's Central Authority has 
ensured that the prospective adoptive parents agree; (b) the Central 
Authority (public authority, Convention-accredited adoption agency, 
Convention-approved adoption agency or individual provider of adoption 
services) in the receiving State has approved the decision when such 
approval is required by the law of that State or by the Central 
Authority of the State of origin; (c) the Central Authorities of both 
States have agreed that the adoption may proceed; and (d) it has been 
determined, in accordance with Article 5, that (i) the prospective 
parents are eligible and suited to adopt, and (ii) the child is or will 
be authorized to enter and permanently reside in the receiving State.
    Article 18 provides that the Central Authorities of both 
the State of origin and the receiving State are to take all 
necessary steps to obtain permission for the child to leave the 
State of origin and enter and reside permanently in the 
receiving State.
    According to Article 19 the movement of the child to the 
receiving State may take place only if the requirements of 
Article 17 have been met. The Central Authorities of both 
States are to ensure that the transfer takes place in secure 
and appropriate circumstances, and, if possible but not 
necessarily, in the company of the adoptive or prospective 
adoptive parents. If the child's transfer does not ultimately 
take place the reports referred to in Article 15 (on the 
prospective adoptive parent(s)) and Article 16 (on the child) 
are to be returned to the authorities who transmitted them.
    Article 20 calls on the Central Authorities to keep each 
other informed about the adoption process in individual cases, 
as well as the progress of the placement if a probationary 
period is required before the final adoption.
    Article 21 states that when the adoption is to take place 
after the transfer of the child to the receiving State and it 
appears that the continued placement of the child with the 
prospective adoptive parents is not in the child's best 
interests, the receiving State Central Authority (or public 
authority, accredited adoption agency, or Convention-approved 
adoption agency or individual adoption service provider) shall 
take the measures necessary to protect the child, in particular 
(a) to remove the child from the prospective adoptive parents 
and arrange for the child's temporary care; and (b) in 
consultation with the Central Authority (or adoption service 
provider) of the State of origin, to arrange without delay a 
new placement of the child with a view to adoption, or, if this 
is not appropriate, to arrange alternative long-term care. An 
adoption is not to take place until the Central Authority (or 
adoption service provider) of the State of origin has been duly 
informed concerning the new prospective adoptive parents. Only 
as a last resort is the child to be returned to its State of 
origin if the child's interests so require. Article 21(2) 
provides for consultation with, and, where appropriate, consent 
of, the child, regarding the measures taken under this Article.
    Use of the term ``Central Authority'' throughout Chapter IV 
(Articles 14-22) should be understood in light of actions taken 
by Contracting States pursuant to Article 22.
    Article 22(1) states that the functions of a Central 
Authority under Chapter IV may be performed by public 
authorities or by bodies (agencies) accredited under Chapter 
III, to the extent permitted by the law of the State in 
question.
    Under Article 22(2) any Contracting State may declare to 
the depositary of the Convention that the functions of the 
Central Authority under all Articles of Chapter IV except 
Article 14 and 22, may be performed in that State by bodies 
(adoption agencies) or persons (e.g., attorneys) who (a) meet 
the requirements of integrity, professional competence, 
experience and accountability of that State, and (b) are 
qualified by their ethical standards and by training or 
experience to work in the field of intercountry adoption (the 
same requirement as imposed for accredited bodies under Article 
11b). Under Article 22(3) a Contracting State making the 
declaration permitted under Article 22(2) is to keep the 
Permanent Bureau of the Hague Conference on Private 
International Law informed of the names and addresses of these 
Convention-approved bodies and persons.Article 22(4) states 
that any Contracting State may declare that adoptions of its children 
pursuant to the Convention may only take place if Central Authority 
functions are performed in accordance with Article 22(1), i.e., by 
Central authorities, public authorities or Convention-accredited bodies 
(adoption agencies), i.e., not by bodies or persons found only to meet 
the requirements of Article 22(2).
    Notwithstanding any declaration made under Article 22(2), 
the reports provided for in Articles 15 and 16 are, in every 
case, to be prepared under the responsibility of either the 
respective Central Authority or other public authority or 
Convention-accredited adoption agencies as provided for in 
Article 22(1).
    I recommend that the United States ratification be subject 
to the following declaration:

          The United States declares, pursuant to Article 
        22(2), that in the United States the Central Authority 
        functions under Articles 15-21 may also be performed by 
        bodies or persons meeting the requirements of Articles 
        22a and b, and 32. In addition, such bodies or persons 
        will be subject to federal law and regulations 
        implementing the Convention as well as state licensing 
        and other laws and regulations applicable to providers 
        of adoptions services. The performance of Central 
        Authority functions by such approved adoption service 
        providers would be subject to the supervision of the 
        competent federal and state authorities in the United 
        States.

    Chapter V (Articles 23-27) deals with the recognition and 
effects of Hague Convention adoptions.
    Article 23 requires the recognition by operation of law in 
all Contracting States of adoptions certified as made in 
accordance with the Convention. The certificate is to specify 
when and by whom the agreements under Article 17c that the 
adoption could proceed were given. Each Contracting State is, 
at the time of its signature or action resulting in its 
becoming a party to the Convention, required to notify the 
Convention depositary of the identity and functions of the 
authorities which are competent to make this certification in 
that State and any modifications of their designation.
    Article 24 permits a Contracting State to refuse to 
recognize a Convention adoption only if the adoption is 
manifestly contrary to its public policy, taking into account 
the best interests of the child. As the authorities of both the 
country of origin and the receiving State have been involved in 
permitting the adoption to take place pursuant to the 
Convention, resort to the public policy exception to 
recognition by one of those States, or by a non-involved third 
Contracting State, would be very rare and invoked only in 
exceptional circumstances.
    Article 39(2) permits any Contracting States to enter into 
agreements with one or more other such States with a view to 
improving the application of the Convention in their mutual 
relations. Such agreements may derogate only from certain 
provisions of Convention Chapter IV concerned with procedural 
requirements. This provision was included at the request of the 
Nordic States. Article 25 permits any Contracting State to 
declare to the Convention depositary that it will not be bound 
to recognize adoptions made in accordance with an agreement 
concluded pursuant to the authority given by Article 39(2).
    Article 26(1) provides that recognition of an adoption 
includes recognition of the legal parent-child relationship 
between the child and the child's adoptive parents, parental 
responsibility of the adoptive parents for the child, and 
termination of the pre-existing legal relationship between the 
child and the child's mother and father--provided the adoption 
has this effect in the Contracting State where the adoption was 
made. When the adoption has the effect of terminating the pre-
existing legal parent-child relationship, the child is to enjoy 
in the receiving State, and in any other Contracting State 
where the adoption is recognized, rights equivalent to those 
resulting from adoptions having this effect in the Contracting 
States concerned. However, the provisions of Article 26 are not 
to prejudice the application of any provision more favorable 
for the child that may be in force in the Contracting State 
recognizing the adoption.
    Article 27 sets the requirements for the conversion of what 
may be a simple adoption in the country of origin into a full 
adoption in the receiving State. When an adoption granted in 
the State of origin does not have the effect of terminating the 
pre-existing legal parent-child relationship (simple adoption) 
it may be converted in the receiving State recognizing the 
adoption under the Convention into an adoption having such an 
effect (full adoption) if the law of the receiving State so 
permits and if the consents to the intercountry adoption 
referenced in Article 4c and d have been given. Article 27 also 
requires that Article 23, which mandates recognition of an 
adoption made in accordance with the Convention, shall apply to 
the decision converting the simple adoption to a full adoption.
    Chapter VI (Article 28-42) contains what are referred to as 
general provisions.
    Article 28 was stated to be important to some countries 
that considered it essential for the political acceptability of 
the Convention. The Article states that the Convention does not 
affect any law of a State of origin that requires that adoption 
of a child habitually resident within that State to take place 
in that State or which prohibits the child's placement in, or 
transfer to, the receiving State prior to the child's adoption.
    Article 29 prohibits contacts between the prospective 
adoptive parents on the one hand, and the parents of the child 
or any other person who has care of the child on the other 
hand, until the requirements of Article 4a-c, and Article 5a 
have been met--unless the adoption takes place ``within a 
family'', or unless the contact is in compliance with the 
conditions established by the competent authority of the State 
of origin. Such contacts are regulated to minimize the 
possibility of inducements for consent by payment or 
compensation that are prohibited by Article 4c(3) of the 
Convention. As the contacts in question are possible only 
within the State of origin, and primarily when the prospective 
adoptive parents are seeking to act directly on their own 
behalf and without the assistance of Convention-accredited 
agencies or Convention-approved agencies or persons, this 
Article implicitly confirms that, so far as the Convention is 
concerned, prospective adoptive parents may seek to act 
directly on their own behalf but subject to the applicable 
requirements of the Convention and the consent of the States 
concerned.
    Article 30 requires competent authorities of every 
Contracting State to ensure that information held by them 
concerning the child's origin, and in particular information 
concerning the identity of the child's parents, as well as the 
child's medical history, will be preserved. Subparagraph 2 
requires those competent authorities to ensure that the child 
or the child's representative have access to such information, 
with appropriate guidance, insofar as is permitted by the law 
of the State where the information is preserved.
    Article 31 makes clear that personal data gathered or 
transmitted pursuant to the Convention, especially data 
referred to in Articles 15 (home study on the prospective 
adoptive parents) and 16 (the report with background on the 
child) are to be used only for the purposes for which the data 
were gathered or transmitted.
    Article 32 sets certain requirements that are to be 
generally applicable to all adoptions covered by the 
Convention, including the operation of Convention-accredited 
bodies, Convention-approved bodies and persons referred to in 
Article 22. No one is to derive improper financial or other 
gain from an activity related to an intercountry adoption. Only 
costs and expenses, including reasonable professional fees of 
persons involved in the adoption, may be charged or paid.
    Article 33 provides that a competent authority which finds 
that any provision of the Convention has not been respected or 
that there is a serious risk that it may not be respected is 
immediately to inform the Central Authority of its State. That 
Central Authority is responsible for ensuring that appropriate 
measures are taken.
    Article 34 states that if the competent authority of the 
State of destination of a document so requests, a certified 
translation must be furnished. Unless otherwise arranged, the 
costs of translation are to be borne by the prospective 
adoptive parents.
    Article 35 provides that the competent authorities of 
Contracting States are to act expeditiously in processing 
adoptions covered by the Convention.
    For States having two or more systems of law with regard to 
adoption applicable in different territorial units, Article 36 
states that (a) any reference to habitual residence in that 
State is to be construed as referring to habitual residence in 
a territorial unit of that State; (b) any reference to the law 
of that State is to be construed as referring to the law in 
force in the relevant territorial unit of that State; (c) any 
reference to the competent or public authorities of that State 
is to be construed as referring to those authorities authorized 
to act in the relevant territorial unit; and (d) any reference 
to accredited bodies of that State shall be construed as 
referring to bodies accredited in the relevant territorial 
unit.
    For a State that, with regard to adoption, has two or more 
systems of law applicable to different categories of persons, 
Article 37 provides that any reference to the law of that State 
is to be construed as referring to the legal system specified 
by the law of that State.
    Article 38 provides that a Contracting State within which 
different territorial units have their own laws with regard to 
adoption shall not be bound to apply the Convention where a 
state with a uniform system of law would not be bound to do so. 
In other words, theConvention would not govern adoptions within 
the United States when the child moves from one U.S. jurisdiction to 
another.
    Article 39 states that the Convention does not affect any 
international agreement or other instrument to which 
Contracting States are Parties and which contains provisions on 
matters governed by the Convention unless a contrary 
declaration has been made by the Contracting States to such 
agreement or other instrument. Article 39(2) was already 
mentioned in connection with Article 25.
    Article 40 prohibits countries becoming parties to the 
Convention from making any reservations.
    Article 41 provides that the Convention shall apply in 
every case where an application by persons habitually resident 
in a Contracting State who wish to adopt a child habitual 
resident in another such State has been received by the Central 
Authority in the State of their habitual residence after the 
Convention has entered into force in that State and the State 
of origin of the child they wish to adopt.
    Article 42 provides that the Secretary General of the Hague 
Conference on Private International Law is to convene at 
regular intervals a special commission to review the practical 
operation of the Convention.
    Chapter VII (Articles 43-48), with its final clauses, sets 
out the usual types of provisions concerning signature and 
ratification of the Convention, accession to the Convention, 
when the Convention shall enter into force, how the Convention 
may be denounced and when the denunciation will be effective, 
and the notification requirements to be met by the depositary--
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the 
Netherlands.
    According to Article 43, the Convention is open for 
signature and ratification, acceptance or approval by States 
which were Member States of the Hague Conference on Private 
International Law at the time of its Seventeenth (1993) Session 
and by the other States which participated in that Session.\1\
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    \1\ Member States as of the seventeenth Session of the Hague 
Conference on Private International Law:
    Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, 
Egypt, Finland, France, Federal Republic of Germany, Greece, Ireland, 
Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, 
Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Spain, Suriname, Sweden, 
Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern 
Ireland, United States of America, Uruguay, Venezuela and Yugoslavia.
    Non-member States that participated in the eighteenth session:
    Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ethiopia, 
Honduras, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Mauritius, Peru, Philippines, 
Romania, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Viet Nam.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Article 44 provides that other States may accede to the 
Convention after it has entered into force (which occurred on 
May 1, 1995), such accessions to have effect only as regards 
the relations between the acceding State and those Contracting 
States which have not objected to that State's accession in the 
six months after receipt of the notification of accession. Such 
an objection is also possible for States ratifying, accepting 
or approving the Convention after an accession.
    Article 45 establishes that if a State has two or more 
territorial units in which different systems of law are 
applicable concerning Convention adoptions, it may declare that 
the Convention will extend to all of its territorial units, or 
only to one or more of those units. Such a declaration may be 
modified at any time. Article 45(3) further directs that if a 
State makes no declaration under this provision, the Convention 
shall presumptively extend to all territorial units of that 
State.
    Purusant to Article 46, the Convention entered into force 
on May 1, 1995, following its ratification by three States. For 
every State subsequently ratifying the Convention or acceding 
to it, the Convention enters into force, in accordance with 
Article 46(2), 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.
    Article 47 provides that a Contracting State to the 
Convention may denounce the Convention in writing, such 
denunciation taking effect on the first day of the month 
following the expiration of twelve months after the 
notification is received by the depositary, unless the 
denunciation specifies a longer period of time.
    Provided that the Senate gives advice and consent to U.S. 
ratification, the U.S. instrument of ratification would not be 
deposited until congressional enactment of necessary 
implementing legislation and until appropriate steps have been 
taken pursuant to that legislation to enable the United States 
fully to implement the Convention.
    I believe that the United States, as the world's major 
receiving country of children made available by other States 
for intercountry adoption, should embrace the internationally 
agreed norms and procedures that it helped develop for the 
protection of children involved in intercountry adoptions and 
for the protection of the interests of their birth and adoptive 
parents.
    I therefore recommend that this Convention be transmitted 
to the Senate at an early date for its advice and consent to 
ratification, subject to the declaration previously described.
    Respectfully submitted,

                                                     Strobe Talbot.





                            
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