Now available in 23 EU languages: Guide to Good Practice under the Child Abduction Convention: Part VI – Article 13(1)(b)

The Permanent Bureau is pleased to announce the publication of 19 new translations of the Guide to Good Practice under the Child Abduction Convention: Part VI – Article 13(1)(b). With these new translations, the Guide to Good Practice is now available in 23 European Union (EU) languages.

The Guide, originally published in English and French, was developed by the Permanent Bureau of the HCCH, with the assistance of a Working Group composed of a broad range of national experts. It was later translated into Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese with the generous support of the Asociación Internacional de Juristas de Derecho de Familia (AIJUDEFA), the Ministry of Justice of Portugal, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan respectively. The most recent translations of the Guide to Good Practice into 19 other official languages of the European Union were made possible with the support of the Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers of the European Commission. The Permanent Bureau thanks the Directorate-General for this generous voluntary contribution.

The Guide seeks to promote the consistent application of Article 13(1)(b) of the Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction and good practice for judges and Central Authorities faced with the application of this provision. Article 13(1)(b) provides for one of the limited exceptions to the principle of prompt return of a wrongfully removed or retained child under the Convention in cases where the return would expose the child to a grave risk of harm.

All language versions of the Guide to Good Practice are available for download on the Publications page of the HCCH website.