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Hague Adoption Convention
Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in
Respect of Intercountry Adoption
Joint Council on
International Children’s Services embraces the ideals embodied in the
Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect
of Intercountry Adoption.
April 3,
2008
The
Council on Accreditation has issued a letter to Tom DiFilipo,
President & CEO of Joint Council, further clarifying the process by
which COA accredits/approves adoption service providers in the
United States pursuant to the Hague Convention. To view a copy of
the letter, please click
here.
April 2,
2008
The U.S. Department of State
requested that Joint Council post the following
document.
The article discusses the intercountry adoption process in light of
the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption, which officially went
into force on April 1st.
Please do not hesitate to contact the
Department of State directly at
adoptionusca@state.gov with any questions.
March 22,
2008
Due to concerns regarding the
complexity of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regulations
governing the implementation of the Hague Convention and the
relatively short initial comment period of only 60 days (which
originally ended in December 2007), Joint Council has continued to
advocate for a reopening of the comment period.
We are pleased to announce that DHS has
reopened the comment period for an additional 60-day period effective
Monday, March 24, 2008. Joint Council urges all Member Organizations,
colleagues and adoptive parents to utilize this opportunity to submit
comments on the DHS Hague regulations.
On Tuesday, March 25, 2008, Joint
Council will provide detailed instruction on how you or your
organization can submit comments.
We extend our appreciation to the
Center for Adoption Policy and other organizations for their
collaborative efforts in achieving a reopening of the comment period.
We also thank our colleagues at USCIS and the Department of Homeland
Security for providing this opportunity.
March 19,
2008
Joint Council continues to advocate
for the addition of newly accredited agencies to be posted ‘at the
earliest possible date’ after accreditation. Joint Council has
received confirmation that newly accredited agencies will be posted
to the DOS website within days of their accreditation.
Accordingly, the
list of Hague Accredited agencies has recently been updated on the U.S.
Department of State's
website.
Joint Council would like to extend our congratulations to the many Joint
Council member and affiliate organizations who continue to be added.
Joint
Council was also instrumental in ensuring that the
DOS website include a statement related to the ‘rolling’ nature of
accreditation. This statement is now included on the recently updated
Department of State
website.
Joint Council will be continuously
working with the U.S. State Department as more agencies receive Hague
Accreditation and are listed on the State Department’s
website.
March 7,
2008
Joint Council would like
to reaffirm that the list of approved agencies published on the U.S.
Department of State website published on February 29th identifies
only the first group of agencies that have achieved Hague
Accreditation. The list will be regularly updated as agencies
achieve accreditation on an ongoing basis.
March 3,
2008
Tom DiFilipo,
President & CEO of Joint Council, the Joint Council Board of
Directors, and the Joint Council staff are proud to acknowledge our
many member and affiliate organizations who have recently been
recognized as Hague Accredited by the U.S. Department of State.
The Joint Council
community has been actively involved with the implementation of the
Hague Convention in the United States for over the past decade. We are
especially proud that a majority of the organizations who have already
been Hague Accredited are members and affiliates of Joint Council.
At the same time, we
are confident that even more members and affiliates of the Joint Council
community will be recognized in the coming weeks and months. The
currently published list will continue to be updated over time and is a
small reflection of the many organizations that will be Hague Accredited
in the near future. To view a copy of the list, please visit the U.S.
Department of State's website at
http://www.travel.state.gov/family/adoption/convention/convention_4169.html#.
The Hague Accreditation
process has been complicated and demanding, and many other in-process
organizations should expect to receive Hague Accreditation very soon.
All of our member and affiliate organizations uphold Joint Council’s
Standards of Practice and have demonstrated a commitment to practices
that are in the best interest of children worldwide.
Should any questions
exist about a particular Joint Council member or affiliate organization
pursuing Hague Accreditation, please do not hesitate to contact us at
703-535-8045.
While we are excited
that another stage of Hague implementation is complete, Joint Council
will continue our efforts to ensure that all qualified organizations are
recognized as Hague Accredited, and that the Hague is successfully and
comprehensively implemented in the United States.
April 19,
2007
A
notice was
posted by the U.S. Department of State regarding the deadline for
initial accreditation or approval for agencies in order to be accredited
or approved when the Hague Convention enters into force. To view the
notice, please click
here.
March 09,
2007
The U.S. Department of State has issued two notices regarding
adoption service providers seeking to become accredited/approved.
The first notice concerns what providers should expect from the
accreditation/approval process and can be read by clicking
here.
The second notice clarifies questions primary provider rules for
incoming adoptions and can be read
here.
December 15,
2006
The Council on Accreditation (COA) has
developed several new one-page Tip Sheets which address specific
subjects that agencies may struggle with during COA accreditation. The
Tip Sheets are each available for download below in .pdf format:
October 12,
2006
The Council on
Accreditation has published frequently asked questions regarding the
COA Accreditation and Approval
Application and Schedule of
Fees.
October 5,
2006
The
Hague Accreditation and Approval application period will begin on
Monday, October 9, 2006. Applications will be made
available on COA's site (http://www.coanet.org) at that time. Click
here
for more information about the applications and Webinar meetings COA
will offer to help answer questions about the requirements and
application process.
The transitional application deadline (TAD) for Hague
Accreditation has been published. The deadline to apply for
Accreditation is set for November 17. The TAD is the date by
which adoption service providers in the United States will need to
submit an application if they wish to be accredited, temporarily
accredited, or approved to handle Hague Convention adoptions as of
the time the Convention enters into force for the United States. The
State Department's website at
www.travel.state.gov links to the TAD notice in the Federal
Register or click
here
for a PDF copy.
October 4, 2006 --
BREAKING NEWS!
The Council on Accreditation (COA) has published the
Hague Accreditation fee schedule and information on the
Substantial Compliance System. In a conference call with COA
this week, JCICS was informed that the accreditation/approval fee is
based on budgeted revenue information for an agency's Hague
Convention intercountry adoption program. More information and the
description of these fees can be found on the
COA website.
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Hague News and
Updates
Accrediting Entities
The Department of State has finalized the agreements with the two
accrediting entities under the Hague Convention. The Council
on Accreditation (COA) and the state of Colorado's Department of
Human Services are the two designated entities.
They will use the standards established in 22 CFR Part 96, the final rule
on Accreditation of Agencies and Approval of Persons under the IAA. COA will
accept applications from adoption service providers licensed and located
throughout the United States, while Colorado will limit applications to
providers licensed and operating in the State of Colorado. Both
COA and Colorado expect to begin accepting applications soon after their
fees are approved by the State Department and published later this
summer.
Many agencies have been asking “what does this mean for me now?” and
“when will accreditation start?”
Now
that the accrediting entities have been designated, we are on our way to
accreditation beginning, but first a few more steps need to occur.
The fee schedule (outlining how much accreditation will cost) needs to
be published along with the substantial compliance system (SCS) that
will explain the standards on which agencies will be evaluated for
accreditation and the weight given to each standard. These are
both expected to be published at the end of the summer.
Accreditation
Process:
Once the above criteria is made public, so agencies can decide to
seek accreditation or not, the application process for accreditation
will begin. The "transitional application deadline" or TAD, will be
the cut off date for initial applications for accreditation.
This may occur in September or early October. An agency seeking
accreditation will need to complete an application and submit an
application fee at this time. |
Important Links
Accrediting
Entity Agreements
The Council on Accreditation
Colorado
Regulations
from the Department of State
Final Rules on Reporting on Non-Convention and Convention Adoptions
of Emigrating Children
22 CFR Part 99
(9/12/06)
Proposed
Visa Regulations
22 CFR Part 42 (6/23/06)
Final Regulations on Agency Accreditation and Person Approval (99 pages)
22 CFR Part 96 (2/15/06)
Final Regulations on Record Retention (4 pages)
22 CFR Part 98 (2/15/06)
Final
Regulations on Hague Certificates (8 pages)
22 CFR Part 97 (11/02/06)
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Depending on how many agencies seek accreditation, the accrediting
entities will set the "deadline for initial application or approval" or
the DIAA. During the accreditation process timeframe agencies will
work with the accrediting entities (COA and Colorado) to demonstrate
their compliance and adherence to the regulations and the Convention.
It is estimated that accreditation will last for 12 months to allow
enough time for all interested international adoption agencies to apply.
After the deadline for accreditation, the U.S. will submit it's
instruments of ratification and three months later enter into force and
become a "Hague Country".
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How to Prepare?
The JCICS Surviving Hague Accreditation Guide is available to
JCICS Members for free and available to non-members for $75. See below
for more information.
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The
JCICS Surviving Hague Accreditation Guide is available with the
updated regulations and helpful hints for getting prepared for
accreditation.
For more information call (703) 535-8045 or email
jcics@jcics.org. |
March 20, 2006
- On March 17th The Department of State held a public meeting
addressing the Hague regulations. JCICS attended the meeting and
summarized some of the questions and answers that took place.
Click here for the summary.
Two important points
that were addressed at the meeting are listed below:
What is the difference between post-placement and post-adoption
services?
Under the
regulations, agencies could be exempt from accreditation if they
provide only “post-adoption” services and do not provide any of the
other services that require accreditation or approval. However, if
agencies provide “post-placement” services they must be accredited or
approved or act as a supervised provider. This terminology is taken directly from the IAA and could
be confusing for US agencies. Department of State representatives
outlined the distinction:
Post-placement is considered to be the period of time between parental
custody and the final adoption. An agency providing counseling,
support or reporting to families in this time needs to be accredited
or approved or acting as a supervised provider.
Post-adoption services are those that are provided any time after the
adoption is finalized. This could include providing support and
resources to the adoptive family as well as doing in-home visits and
assisting the family in filing post-adoption reports. This is NOT
considered an adoption service under the regulations, and therefore
agencies performing only this function, or this function coupled with
a home study, do not need to seek accreditation.
Will agencies
with programs in Guatemala need to be accredited or approved under the
regulations?
The Department of State was unable to provide a precise
recommendation for agencies with programs in Guatemala. They said the
Guatemala is considered a Convention country; however, their
procedures are not in compliance with the Convention. The Department
will be working with Guatemalan authorities to enforce the importance
of setting up laws in compliance with the Hague Convention. The State
Department felt that there will be more information from the
government of Guatemala before 2007 when the US plans to ratify the
Convention and become a “Hague country”.
Agencies will need to decide for themselves if they are interested in
seeking accreditation when it is available or if they would prefer to
see how things progress and if needed, operate as a supervised
provider. This decision may also depend on other countries in which
an agency has programs.
Did you know?
The Hague Convention only applies to other "Hague Countries".
Once the U.S. is a Hague Country then all adoptions agencies working in
other Hague Countries will have to be Hague Accredited or can act under
an accredited agency as a supervised provider. For an
up-to-date list of countries party to the Hague Convention,
click here.
*
For JCICS' estimated timeline on Hague ratification,
click here.
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Background
Information
JCICS Response to the Proposed Hague
Regulations 22 CFR Part 96:
On September 15, 2003, the U.S. Department
of State released the proposed final regulations for the Intercountry Adoption Act, as
well as the proposed regulations for
record preservation in the Federal Register. This commenced a
public comment period of 60 days (which was later extended an additional
30 days). All comments were to be submitted
to the U.S. Department of State no later than December 15, 2003.
During the fall of 2003, JCICS diligently examined the proposed regulations, surveyed our
members and drafted the JCICS response. In September we established
sub-teams within the working Hague Committee to gather feedback from the
membership at large. The Hague Committee Team Leads coordinated their
efforts via email and two lengthy conference calls to refine the
response paper. JCICS was also able to attend two meetings at the
Department of State to learn more information and have outstanding
issues clarified. After a membership review of the draft response paper
the Board of Directors reviewed and approved its submission. JCICS
submitted the detailed response paper to the Department of State in late
November.
History:
On October 6, 2000 President Clinton signed into law the Intercountry
Adoption Act of 2000, the US implementation of the Hague Convention on
International Adoption.
The Hague Convention is multilateral treaty that includes 66 prospective
member countries. The Convention serves to set internationally agreed
upon norms and procedures for countries who participate in intercountry
adoption. The goal of the Convention is to protect the children, birth
parents and adoptive parents involved in intercountry adoptions and to
prevent child-trafficking and other abuses.
The United States has signed the Hague
Convention but has not yet ratified. Ratification will occur when
the instruments of ratification are deposited at the Hague. At
that time, the U.S. Department of State will become the Central
Authority for the United States.
JCICS has supported the Hague Convention on International Adoption since
its drafting in 1994 and, along with other major adoption organizations,
has been active in guiding formulation of an effective implementation
plan in the US. For additional background information on the
history of the Hague Convention and who participated in the Seventeenth Session of the Hague Conference,
click here.
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Links: (Some direct links have been removed due to site changes)
For a copy of Joint
Council's position on the Hague Convention click
here.
At the 2004 JCICS annual conference
in April the Hague Committee revised a brief
position paper. Click
here for the 2-page document.
Full text of the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and
Co-operation in
Respect of Intercountry Adoption
The complete text of the final version of HR2909, the
Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000.
The U.S. Department of State
informational flyer on the Hague Convention
and information on
implementation.
Questions regarding the Hague may be sent to
the U.S. Department of State via e-mail at
adoptionusca@state.gov.
JCICS expresses its appreciation to those members of Congress and their
staff who worked tirelessly to forge a compromise and secure passage of
this important legislation. In particular, JCICS appreciates the work of
the members of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute.
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