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Child custody and parenting time

When a child is taken to another country

The Hague treaty, the State Department and passport rules can help. Time matters.

When a child is taken to another country

  • The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction is a treaty. It helps return a child who was wrongfully taken to, or kept in, another member country. It also helps parents keep visiting rights. It covers children under 16.
  • Time matters. If a return case starts less than one year after the child was taken or kept, the court must order the child returned, with a few narrow exceptions. After one year, the court can refuse if the child is now settled in the new place.
  • The treaty only works between member countries. The HCCH lists 103 parties to the Convention. Whether a country is a treaty partner with the United States is listed by the U.S. State Department.
  • In the United States, the State Department's Office of Children's Issues is the official "Central Authority" for these cases. It handles cases of children taken out of the U.S. and into the U.S. It does not act as your lawyer and does not charge a fee to process an application.
  • Office of Children's Issues: call 1-888-407-4747 from the U.S. or Canada, or +1-202-501-4444 from other countries. Email: [email protected] (prevention) or [email protected].
  • The federal law that puts the treaty into effect in the U.S. is the International Child Abduction Remedies Act (ICARA). Under it, you can ask a state court or a federal court where the child is to order the child's return. The court decides only whether the child should go back. It does not decide who gets custody.
  • A child can be "wrongfully removed" under the treaty even if there was no custody order yet.
  • If your child was taken abroad, or you fear it will happen, contact the Office of Children's Issues right away. In the U.S., you can also ask your local family court for an emergency order, such as an order that stops a parent from taking the child out of the country.
  • For a child under 16, both parents (or each legal guardian) must sign the passport application, usually in person. If one parent can't come, that parent can sign Form DS-3053, a notarized consent. The consent is good for 90 days. One parent can apply alone with proof of sole custody, such as a court order giving sole legal custody.
  • If your court order gives joint legal custody, the State Department reads it as needing both parents' permission (or the court's) for a passport.
  • A parent with proof of custody rights can send a written objection before a passport is issued. The State Department can then deny the passport.
  • The Children's Passport Issuance Alert Program (CPIAP) lets a parent or legal custodian ask to be told if someone applies for a U.S. passport for their child. It covers unmarried children under 18. You use Form DS-3077 and send it by mail or email to [email protected]. The State Department can still issue a passport in some cases allowed by law.
  • An alert only covers U.S. passports. A parent may still get a passport from another country for a child who is also a citizen there.

Who to contact

U.S. State Department, Office of Children's Issues

Help if a child was taken to another country or may be. Also the passport alert program.

1-888-407-4747 (from abroad +1-202-501-4444)

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/International-Parental-Child-Abduction.html

Your state's page

More guides and tools

Sources

Last checked: November 2026