Withdrawal of U.S. Objection to Accession of Kazakhstan to Hague Convention

DEAR COLLEAGUE LETTER

ACF-OCSS-DCL-24-05

DATE: July 2 , 2024

TO: State and Tribal IV-D Directors

SUBJECT: Withdrawal of U.S. Objection to Accession of Kazakhstan to Hague Convention 

ATTACHMENT: Notification pursuant to Article 65 of the Convention (May 21, 2024)  (PDF)

Dear Colleague:

The United States has withdrawn its objection to the accession of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the Hague Child Support Convention.

On July 30, 2019, the Office of Child Support Services (OCSS) notified child support agencies that the United States had objected to the accession of Kazakhstan to the Hague Child Support Convention.  OCSS objected to the accession because Kazakhstan had not provided the program information required in Article 57 of the Convention.  Therefore, the Convention did not apply between Kazakhstan and the U.S. 

On September 14, 2023, the Hague Conference on Private International Law published Kazakhstan’s Country Profile for the Child Support Convention.  OCSS reviewed the Profile, conducted discussions with the Kazakhstan authorities, and determined that the required Article 57 information has now been provided.  Child support agencies should be able to successfully process Convention cases with Kazakhstan on behalf of the families the child support program serves.

The U.S. Department of State delivered the withdrawal notice to the Convention depositary on May 14, 2024, and the depositary notified all Convention countries on May 21, 2024.

The Hague Child Support Convention is now in force between the United States and Kazakhstan.  States should process any Hague Convention cases with Kazakhstan in the usual way.

If you have questions, please contact ocssinternational@acf.hhs.gov.

SUPERSEDES: DCL-19-06

Sincerely,

Tanguler Gray
Commissioner
Office of Child Support Services