UAE NONCOMPLIANCE AS TO INTERNATIONAL CHILD ABDUCTION

by Jeremy D. Morley

The United Arab Emirates UAE does not adhere to any protocols with respect to international parental child abduction and has failed to adopt the Hague Abduction Convention.

The U.S. State Department has determined and reported to the U.S. Congress that, in 2018, the UAE “demonstrated a pattern of noncompliance” within the meaning of the International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act.

Specifically, the State Department has reported that the competent authorities in the UAE “persistently failed” to work with it to resolve abduction cases, and that, as a result of this failure, 100 percent of U.S. requests for the return of abducted children remained unresolved for more than 12 months. Indeed, on average, these cases were unresolved for two years and seven months.

In its July 2019 “Action Report,” the State Department has reported that:

• Throughout the year, officials at the highest levels of the Department pressed the Government of the United Arab Emirates to assist with resolving abduction cases and to accede to the Convention.
• In October 2018, the Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs traveled to the United Arab Emirates where he met with his counterparts to discuss the resolution of existing abduction cases and to encourage the United Arab Emirates to accede to the Convention.
• In December 2018, U.S. Embassy Abu Dhabi delivered a diplomatic note requesting the United Arab Emirates’ assistance in resolving existing abduction cases.
•  Upon release of the 2019 Annual Report, U.S. Embassy Abu Dhabi delivered a demarche to the Emirati government noting that the Department had cited the United Arab Emirates in the 2019 Annual Report for demonstrating a pattern of noncompliance and requesting assistance in resolving existing abduction cases.

Jeremy D. Morley has frequently appeared as an expert witness on international child abduction prevention, international child abduction recovery, international divorce jurisdiction and international family law. He has opined as to the dangers, in terms of potential parental child abduction, of allowing children to visit certain specific countries, including the UAE. 

State Department's Annual Report on International Child Abduction: UAE

The U.S. State Department has recently released their annual report on International Child Abduction. Below is our ninth post in a series here focusing on the nine countries classified as “demonstrating patterns of noncompliance.” Today’s country is United Arab Emirates.

Country Summary: The United Arab Emirates does not adhere to any protocols with respect to international parental child abduction. In 2018, the United Arab Emirates demonstrated a pattern of noncompliance. Specifically, the competent authorities in the United Arab Emirates persistently failed to work with the Department of State to resolve abduction cases. As a result of this failure, 100 percent of requests for the return of abducted children remained unresolved for more than 12 months. On average, these cases were unresolved for two years and seven months. The United Arab Emirates was previously cited for demonstrating a pattern of noncompliance in the 2018 Annual Report.

Initial Inquiries: In 2018 the Department received two initial inquiries from parents regarding possible abductions to the United Arab Emirates for which no additional assistance was requested or necessary documentation was not received as of December 31, 2018. 

Central Authority: In 2018, the competent authorities in the United Arab Emirates regularly failed to work with the Department of State toward the resolution of pending abduction cases due to a lack of viable legal options, which contributed to a pattern of noncompliance.

Location: The Department of State did not request assistance with location from Emirati authorities.

Judicial Authorities: There is no clear legal procedure for addressing international parental child abduction cases under Emirati law, and parents face difficulties resolving custody disputes in local

courts.

Enforcement: The United States is not aware of any abduction cases in which a judicial order relating to international parental child abduction needed to be enforced by the Emirati authorities.

Department Recommendations: The Department will continue to encourage the United Arab Emirates to accede to the Convention.