EL SALVADOR AND CHILD ABDUCTION
El Salvador is now a party to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. On
June 1, 2007, the 1980 Convention on the Civil Aspects of International
Child Abduction entered into force between the United States and El
Salvador. The Convention will not apply to parental child abduction
cases between the U.S. and El Salvador that took place prior to June 1,
2007. Wrongful retentions or removals that occurred after June 1 may
qualify to be Hague Abduction Convention cases. The
Convention cannot be applied retroactively. El Salvador's accession to
the treaty is an important step that will improve the possibility of
resolving future abduction cases. In
general, the Convention has two main provisions: to secure the prompt
return of children wrongfully removed to or retained in any signatory
country; and to ensure that the rights of parents for custody and
access to their children under the law of one signatory country are
respected in other signatory countries.
