EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued on the authority of the Attorney-General
Subject- Family Law Act 1975
Family Law (Child Abduction Convention)
Regulations (Amendment)
1989 No. 206
Subsection 125(1) of the Family Law Act 1975 (the Act) empowers the Governor-General to make regulations, not inconsistent with this Act, prescribing all matters that are required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed or are necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.
Section 111B of the Act provides that the regulations may make such provision as is necessary to enable the performance of the obligations of Australia, or to obtain for Australia any advantage or benefit, under the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction signed at The Hague on 25 October 1980 (the Convention). Principal Regulations were made in relation to the Convention on 22 April 1986.
The purpose of the proposed amendment is to extend the list of countries in Schedule 2 to include countries which have acceded to the Convention since the making of the Principal Regulations. There are now 12 countries with which Australia has obligations to under the Convention.
The new Regulation 2(a) includes in Schedule 2 the date the Convention came into force for each country and includes any reservations a country may have.