Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION authorising Austria, Luxembourg and Romania to accept, in the interest of the European Union, the accession of Belarus and Uzbekistan to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction
Date: 2018-07-06
Institutions: Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers, European Commission
Subjects: Austria, Belarus, Luxembourg, Romania, Uzbekistan, accession to an agreement, child protection, illegal restraint, international convention, parental responsibility

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 6.7.2018 COM(2018) 530 final 2018/0279 (NLE)  Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION authorising Austria, Luxembourg and Romania to accept, in the interest of the European Union, the accession of Belarus and Uzbekistan to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction   
 
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

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CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

Reasons for and objectives of the proposal 

The aim of the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International 
Child  Abduction  (hereafter:  "the  1980  Convention"),  to  date  ratified  by  98  countries, 
including all EU Member States, is to restore the status quo by mean of the prompt return of 
wrongfully  removed  or  retained  children  through  a  system  of  cooperation  among  central 
authorities appointed by its Contracting Parties. 

As the prevention of child abduction is an essential part of the EU policy to promote the rights 
of the child, the European Union is active at international level to improve the application of 
the 1980 Convention and encourages third States to accede it. 

Belarus deposited the accession instrument to the 1980 Convention on 12 January 1998. The 
Convention entered into force in Belarus on 1 April 1998. 

The 1980 Convention is already into force between Belarus and 24 EU Member States. Only 
Austria, Denmark, Luxembourg and Romania have not yet accepted the accession of Belarus 
to the Convention. 

Uzbekistan deposited the accession instrument to the 1980 Convention on 31 May 1999. The 
Convention entered into force in Uzbekistan on 1 August 1999. 

The  1980  Convention  is  already  into  force  between  Uzbekistan  and  24  EU  Member  States. 
Only  Austria,  Denmark,  Luxembourg  and  Romania  have  not  yet  accepted  the  accession  of 
Uzbekistan to the Convention. 

Article  38(4)  of  the  1980  Convention  stipulates  that  the  Convention  applies  between  the 
acceding  country  and  such  Contracting  States  as  will  have  declared  their  acceptance  of  the 
accession.  

The  existence  of  the  EU  exclusive  competence  in  the  matter  of  the  acceptance  of  the 
accession of a third State to the 1980 Convention was confirmed by the Court of Justice of the 
European Union, which was consulted at the Commission's initiative.  

On 14 October 2014, Opinion 1/13 of the Court of Justice of the European Union stated that 
the  exclusive  competence  of  the  European  Union  encompasses  the  acceptance  of  the 
accession of a third state to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International 
Child Abduction.  

The Court insisted on the need for uniformity on the matter at EU level, avoiding a géométrie 
variable among Member States.  

As the matter of international child abduction falls within the exclusive external competence 
of  the  European  Union,  the  decision  whether  to  accept  the  accession  of  Belarus  and 
Uzbekistan has to be taken at EU level by means of a Council Decision. Austria, Luxembourg 
and  Romania  should  thus  make  the  declaration  of  acceptance  concerning  the  accession  of 
Belarus and Uzbekistan in the interest of the European Union. 

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The  acceptance  of  Austria,  Luxembourg  and  Romania  would  render  the  1980  Convention 
applicable between Belarus, Uzbekistan and all EU Member States except Denmark. 

• 

Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area 

As  far  as  parental  child  abduction  is  concerned,  the  1980  Hague  Convention  is  the 
international  counterpart  of  Council  Regulation  No  2201/2003  (known  as  the  Brussels  IIa 
Regulation) which is the cornerstone of EU judicial cooperation in matrimonial  matters and 
matters of parental responsibility.  

One  of  the  main  objectives  of  the  Regulation  is  to  deter  child  abduction  between  Member 
States by establishing procedures to ensure the child's prompt return to the Member State of 
his/her habitual residence. To this end, the Brussels IIa Regulation incorporates in its Article 
11 the procedure laid down in the 1980 Hague Convention and complements it by clarifying 
some of its aspects, in particular the hearing of the child, the time period to render a decision 
after an application for return has been lodged and the grounds for not returning the child. It 
also  introduces  provisions  governing  conflicting  return  and  non-return  orders  issued  in 
different Member States. 

At  the  international  level,  the  European  Union  supports  the  accession  of  third  States  to  the 
1980 Convention in order for its Member States to rely upon a common legal framework to 
deal with international child abductions.  

14 Council Decisions have been already adopted between June 2015 and December 2017 in 
order to accept the accession to the 1980 Hague Convention on International Child Abduction 
of  20  third  countries  (Morocco,  Singapore,  the  Russian  Federation,  Albania,  Andorra,  the 
Seychelles, Armenia, the Republic of Korea, Kazakhstan, Peru, Georgia, South Africa, Chile, 
Iceland, the Bahamas, Panama, Uruguay, Colombia, El Salvador and San Marino)1 . 

• 

Consistency with other Union policies 

The present proposal is evidently linked to the general objective enshrined in Article 3 of the 
Treaty on the European Union to protect the rights of the child. The 1980 Hague Convention 
system is designed to protect the child from the harmful effects of a parental abduction and 
ensure that the child is able to maintain contact with both parents, for instance by securing the 
effective exercise of access rights. 

It is worth mentioning also the link to the promotion of the use of mediation in the settlement 
of  cross-border  family  disputes.  The  Directive  on  certain  aspects  of  mediation  in  civil  and 

1 

14 Council Decisions have been already adopted, authorizing Member States to accept the accession to 
the  1980  Convention  of  Andorra  (Council  Decision  (EU)  2015/1023  adopted  on  15  June  2015); 
Seychelles  (Council  Decision  (EU)  2015/2354  adopted  on  10  December  2015);  Russia  (Council 
Decision (EU) 2015/2355 adopted on 10 December 2015); Albania (Council Decision (EU) 2015/2356 
adopted  on  10  December  2015);  Singapore  (Council  Decision  (EU)  2015/1024   adopted  on  15  June 
2015);  Morocco  (Council  Decision  (EU)  2015/2357  adopted  on  10  December  2015);  Armenia 
(Council  Decision  (EU)  2015/2358  adopted  on  10  December  2015);  Republic  of  Korea  (Council 
Decision  (EU)  2016/2313  adopted  on  8  December  2016)  ,  Kazakhstan  (Council  Decision  (EU) 
2016/2311  adopted  on  8.12.2016),  Peru  (Council  Decision  (EU)  2016/2312  adopted  on  8.12.2016); 
Georgia and South Africa (Council Decision (EU) 2017/2462 of 18 December 2017); Chile, Iceland 
and  the  Bahamas  (Council  Decision  (EU)  2017/2424  of  18  December  2017);  Panama,  Uruguay, 
Colombia  and  El  Salvador  (Council Decision  (EU)  2017/2464 of 18  December  2017);  San  Marino 
(Council Decision (EU) 2017/2463 of 18 December 2017). 

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commercial  matters2  also  applies  to  family  law  within  the  common  European  judicial  area. 
The 1980 Hague Convention also encourages the amicable resolution of family disputes. One 
of  the  Guides  to  Good  Practise  under  the  1980  Hague  Convention  published  by  the  Hague 
Conference on Private International Law is devoted to the use of mediation for the resolution 
of  international  family  disputes  concerning  children  which  fall  within  the  scope  of  the 
Convention. At the initiative of the European Commission, this Guide has been translated in 
all  EU  languages  other  than  English  and  French  and  also  in  Arabic  to  support  the  dialogue 
with  States  which  have  not  yet  ratified  the  Convention  and  help  finding  concrete  ways  to 
tackle the problems posed by international child abduction with non-ratification countries3. 

2. 

• 

LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY 

Legal basis 

Given the fact that the decision regards an international agreement, the applicable legal basis 
is Article 218 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union together with Article 
81 (3). The Council shall act unanimously after consulting the European Parliament. 

The  United  Kingdom  and  Ireland  are  bound  by  Regulation  (EC)  No  2201/2003  and  are 
therefore taking part in the adoption and application of this Decision. 

In accordance with Articles 1 and 2 of Protocol No 22 on the position of Denmark, annexed to 
the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, 
Denmark is not taking part in the adoption of this Decision and is not bound by it or subject to 
its application. 

• 

Proportionality 

The present proposal is drafted along the lines of the already adopted Council Decisions on 
the same subject matter and does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve the objective of 
a coherent EU action in the matter of international child abduction by ensuring that Austria, 
Luxembourg and Romania accept the accession of Belarus and Uzbekistan to the 1980 Hague 
Convention within a given time frame. 

3. 

• 

RESULTS 
CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS 

EX-POST 

EVALUATIONS, 

OF 

STAKEHOLDER 

Stakeholder consultations 

Austria,  Luxembourg  and  Romania  consulted  by  the  Commission  on  their  willingness  to 
accept  the  accession  of  Belarus  and  Uzbekistan  to  the  1980  Convention,  gave  a  favourable 
opinion.  

The discussions held at the expert meeting of 18 April 2018 showed that -at this stage- there 
are  no  objections  from  the  Member  States  to  the  acceptance  by  Austria,  Luxembourg  and 
Romania of the accession of Belarus and Uzbekistan to the 1980 Convention. 

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Directive 2008/52/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2008 on certain aspects 
of mediation in civil and commercial matters (OJ L 136 of 24 May 2008, p. 3); 
https://www.hcch.net/en/publications-and-studies/details4/?pid=5568&dtid=3 

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• 

Collection and use of expertise 

Given  that  the  Convention  is  already  into  force  between  with  24  Member  States  for  both 
Belarus  and  Uzbekistan,  it  was  the  opinion  of  the  Commission  and  of  the  Member  States' 
experts  that,  in  such  cases,  there  is  no  need  of  a  specific  assessment  of  the  situation  of  the 
third countries concerned.  

• 

Impact assessment 

As  for  the  14  Council  Decisions  already  adopted  between  2015  and  2017  concerning  the 
acceptance of the accession of several third States to the 1980 Hague Convention, no specific 
impact assessment has been carried out given the nature of this legislative act. In any case, a 
specific assessment of the situation of Belarus and Uzbekistan was deemed superfluous taking 
into account both the fact that the Convention is already into force with 24 EU Member States 
and the willingness of Austria, Luxembourg and Romania to accept Belarus and Uzbekistan. 

4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS 

The proposed decision has no budgetary implications. 

5. 

• 

OTHER ELEMENTS 

Implementation plans and monitoring, evaluation and reporting arrangements 

As  the  proposal  concerns  only  the  authorization  to  Austria,  Luxembourg  and  Romania  to 
accept the accession of Belarus and Uzbekistan to the 1980 Convention, the monitoring of its 
implementation is limited to the respect by Austria, Luxembourg and Romania of the wording 
of  the  declaration  and  the  timeframe  to  deposit  it  and  communicate  its  deposit  to  the 
Commission as established in the Council Decision. 

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2018/0279 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

authorising Austria, Luxembourg and Romania to accept, in the interest of the 
European Union, the accession of Belarus and Uzbekistan to the 1980 Hague Convention 
on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 81(3) in conjunction with Article 218(6)(b) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament4,  

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

The European Union has set as one of its aims the promotion of the protection of the 
rights of the child, as stated in Article 3 of the Treaty on European Union. Measures 
for  the  protection  of  children  against  wrongful  removal  or  retention  are  an  essential 
part of that policy. 
The  Council  adopted  Regulation  (EC)  No 2201/20035  (‘Brussels  IIa  Regulation’), 
which  aims  to  protect  children  from  the  harmful  effects  of  wrongful  removal  or 
retention and to establish procedures to ensure their prompt return to the state of their 
habitual residence, as well as to secure the protection of rights of access and rights of 
custody. 

The  Brussels  IIa  Regulation  complements  and  reinforces  the  Hague  Convention 
of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (‘the 1980 
Hague Convention’) which establishes, at international level, a system of obligations 
and cooperation among contracting states and between central authorities and aims to 
ensure the prompt return of wrongfully removed or retained children. 

All Member States of the Union are party to the 1980 Hague Convention. 

The  Union  encourages  third  states  to  accede  to  the  1980  Hague  Convention  and 
supports  the  correct  implementation  of  the  1980  Hague  Convention  by participating, 
along  with  the  Member States,  inter  alia,  in  the  special  commissions  organised  on  a 
regular basis by the Hague Conference on private international law. 

(6) 

A common legal framework applicable between Member States of the Union and third 
states could be the best solution to sensitive cases of international child abduction. 

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OJ C , , p. . 
Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  2201/2003  of  27  November  2003  concerning  jurisdiction  and  the 
recognition  and  enforcement  of  judgments  in  matrimonial  matters  and  the  matters  of  parental 
responsibility, repealing Regulation (EC) No 1347/2000 (OJ L 338, 23.12.2003, p. 1). 

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(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

The 1980 Hague Convention stipulates that it applies between the acceding state and 
contracting states that have declared their acceptance of the accession. 

The  1980  Hague  Convention  does  not  allow  regional  economic  integration 
organisations,  such as the Union, to become party to it. Therefore, the Union cannot 
accede  to  that  Convention,  nor  can  it  deposit  a  declaration  of  acceptance  of  an 
acceding state. 

Pursuant to Opinion 1/13 of the Court of Justice of the European Union, declarations 
of  acceptance  under  the 1980  Hague  Convention  fall  within  the  exclusive  external 
competence of the Union. 

(10)  Belarus  deposited  its  instrument  of  accession  to  the  1980  Convention  on  12  January 

1998. The Convention entered into force for Belarus on 1 April 1998. 

(11)  All concerned Member States, with the exception of Austria, Denmark, Luxembourg 
and  Romania  have  already  accepted  the  accession  of  Belarus  to  the  1980  Hague 
Convention. Belarus has accepted the accession of Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania 
and Malta  to the 1980 Hague Convention. An assessment of the situation in  Belarus 
has led to the conclusion that Austria, Luxembourg and Romania are in a position to 
accept,  in  the  interest  of  the  Union,  the  accession  of  Belarus  under  the  terms  of  the 
1980 Hague Convention. 

(12)  Uzbekistan deposited its instrument of accession to  the 1980 Convention on 31 May 

1999. The Convention entered into force for Uzbekistan on 1 August 1999.  

(13)  All  Member  States,  with  the  exception  of  Austria,  Denmark,  Luxembourg  and 
Romania  have  already  accepted  the  accession  of  Uzbekistan  to  the  1980  Hague 
Convention.  Uzbekistan  has  accepted  the  accession  of  Bulgaria,  Estonia,  Latvia, 
Lithuania and Malta to the 1980 Hague Convention. An assessment of the situation in 
Uzbekistan has led to the conclusion that Austria, Luxembourg and Romania are in a 
position to accept, in the interest of the Union, the accession of Uzbekistan under the 
terms of the 1980 Hague Convention. 

(14)  Austria,  Luxembourg  and  Romania  should  therefore  be  authorised  to  deposit  their 
declaration  of  acceptance  of  the  accession  of  Belarus  and  Uzbekistan  to  the  1980 
Hague Convention in the interest of the Union in accordance with the terms set out in 
this Decision. The other Member States of the Union which have already accepted the 
accession of Belarus and Uzbekistan to the 1980 Hague Convention should not deposit 
new declarations of acceptance as the existing declarations remain valid under public 
international law. 

(15)  The  United  Kingdom  and  Ireland  are  bound  by  the  Brussels  IIa  Regulation  and  are 

therefore taking part in the adoption and application of this Decision. 

(16) 

In  accordance  with  Articles  1  and  2  of  Protocol  No  22  on  the  position  of  Denmark, 
annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the 
European Union, Denmark is not taking part in the adoption of this Decision and is not 
bound by it or subject to its application, 

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HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  

Article 1 

1. 
Austria,  Luxembourg  and  Romania  are  hereby  authorised  to  accept  the  accession  of 
Belarus and Uzbekistan to the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of 
International Child Abduction (‘the 1980 Hague Convention’) in the interest of the Union. 

2. 
Austria,  Luxembourg  and  Romania  shall,  no  later  than  …  [twelve  months  after  the 
date  of  adoption  of  this  Decision],  deposit  a  declaration  of  acceptance  of  the  accession  of 
Belarus and Uzbekistan to the 1980 Hague Convention in the interest of the Union worded as 
follows: 

‘[Full  name  of  MEMBER  STATE]  declares  that  it  accepts  the  accession  of  Belarus  and 
Uzbekistan to the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International 
Child Abduction, in accordance with Council Decision (EU) 2018/…’. 

3. 
Austria,  Luxembourg  and Romania shall inform the Council and the Commission  of 
the deposit of their declarations of acceptance of the accession of Belarus and Uzbekistan to 
the  1980  Hague  Convention  and  shall  communicate  the  text  of  those  declarations  to  the 
Commission within two months of their deposit.  

This Decision shall take effect on the date of its notification. 

Article 2 

This Decision is addressed to Austria, Luxembourg and Romania. 

Done at Brussels, 

Article 3 

For the Council 
The President 

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