Hague Convention

Children removed from the jurisdiction 

High-Conflict Complex Child Custody & Financial Disputes When You Need Expertise.
With over 30 years of successful experience in some of the most demanding cases

Highly Experienced Professional McKenzie Friend – Family Court Support 

Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (1980)

    • Return of a Child under the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention

      A court will generally order the return of a child where:

      • the child is under the age of 16;
      • the child was habitually resident in a Contracting State immediately before the alleged wrongful removal or retention;
      • the removal or retention breached rights of custody under the law of the child's habitual residence; and
      • Those rights of custody were actually being exercised, or would have been exercised but for the removal or retention.

      These conditions establish a wrongful removal or retention under Article 3 of the Convention. Subject to the limited exceptions in the Convention (for example, grave risk of harm under Article 13(1)(b), objections of a mature child, or where more than one year has elapsed and the child is settled), the court will ordinarily order the child's prompt return.

      1. Brussels II (Council Regulation (EC) No 1347/2000

      • Applied from 1 March 2001.
      • Covered jurisdiction and recognition/enforcement in matrimonial matters and parental responsibility only where connected with matrimonial proceedings.
      • It has been repealed and is no longer in force.

      2. Brussels IIa (Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003)

      • Replaced Brussels II.
      • Applied from 1 March 2005.
      • Extended jurisdictional rules to parental responsibility generally, irrespective of whether proceedings were linked to divorce or other matrimonial proceedings.
      • Also strengthened provisions relating to international child abduction within the EU.

      3. Brussels IIb / Brussels II Recast (Regulation (EU) 2019/1111)

      • Applies to proceedings instituted on or after 1 August 2022.
      • Applies in all EU Member States except Denmark.
      • Recasts and modernises Brussels IIa, including revised rules on parental responsibility and child abduction.

      4. Transitional Arrangements


      The applicable Regulation depends on when proceedings were instituted, not when they are decided.

      Accordingly:

      • Brussels II (1347/2000) is now of historical relevance only.
      • Brussels IIa (2201/2003) continues to govern proceedings begun before 1 August 2022.
      • Brussels IIb (2019/1111) governs proceedings instituted on or after 1 August 2022.

      5. Position of the United Kingdom after Brexit


      Following the end of the Brexit transition period on 31 December 2020, the Brussels II regime no longer applies to new proceedings involving the UK.

      The UK's framework now principally relies on:

      • the 1996 Hague Child Protection Convention (jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition, enforcement and cooperation in parental responsibility and protective measures);
      • the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention (international child abduction); and
      • domestic private international law, including provisions of the Family Law Act 1986 and other relevant legislation where applicable.

      Overall, your summary is legally sound. The main additions are:

      1. distinguishing the Article 3 requirements for a wrongful removal from the Convention's limited exceptions to return; and
      2. noting that Brussels IIa also introduced important EU-specific child abduction provisions, while the UK's post-Brexit framework includes the Family Law Act 1986 alongside the Hague Conventions.