HCCH Update (4 April 2025): 15 Years of the Washington Declaration on International Family Relocation

The Hague Conference on Private International Law convened a meeting of experts and judges in Washington, D.C. in 2010 to discuss cross-border family relocation. At the conclusion of that meeting, the group produced a several page document that has become known as the “Washington Declaration.” It provides guidance and principles that add clarity and uniformity in how cases of international family relocation are assessed. Now, fifteen years later, the Hague Conference reconvened experts in Washington, D.C., hosted by the Embassy of Canada, and in collaboration with the International Academy of Family Lawyers to see what progress has been made globally on this topic. The concern, of course, is that without clear laws and processes on international child relocation (and, sometimes, lengthy and expensive proceedings), parents may be persuaded to remove their child, and unilaterally relocate them, without the proper permission of the other parent or the court. This leads to accusations of parental child abduction. Speakers shared a wide range of reasons for why a parent may seek permission to relocate, ranging from the breakdown of a relationship, need for financial and emotional support in a home country, jobs, new partners, immigration, and even to remove the parent or child from an otherwise violent family situation. Going forward, the Hague Conference will be conducting a survey of its Members and seeking more information on international child relocation, and the use (or not) of the Washington Declaration. The Washington Declaration remains as relevant today as it was 15 years ago, perhaps even more so.

You can read the Washington Declaration here, and learn more about the event hosted in Washington, D.C. last week on international child relocation here.

Join Melissa Kucinski & Carolina Marin Pedreno for a free webinar on April 23, 2025 at 11 AM ET for more information on the Washington Declaration and international child relocation. Click on this link to automatically join the Zoom at the start time.

*Melissa Kucinski was a member of the Planning Committee for the event in Washington, D.C. last week, and moderated two panels where speakers shared insight into their own jurisdiction’s legal developments on the law of international child relocation.