Notice of Declaration of Foreign Countries as Reciprocating Countries for the Enforcement of Family Support (Maintenance) Obligations, 72555 [E8-28323]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF STATE

[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 230 (Friday, November 28, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Page 72555]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-28323]



[[Page 72555]]

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DEPARTMENT OF STATE

[Public Notice 6434]


Notice of Declaration of Foreign Countries as Reciprocating 
Countries for the Enforcement of Family Support (Maintenance) 
Obligations

AGENCY: Office of the Legal Adviser, U.S. Department of State.
    This notice amends and supplements Department of State Public 
Notice 5868, 72 FR 39127-28 (July 17, 2007).
    Background. Section 459A of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
659A) authorizes the Secretary of State with the concurrence of the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services to declare foreign countries or 
their political subdivisions to be reciprocating countries for the 
purpose of the enforcement of family support obligations if the country 
has established or has undertaken to establish procedures for the 
establishment and enforcement of duties of support for residents of the 
United States. These procedures must be in substantial conformity with 
the standards set forth in the statute. The statutory standards are: 
Establishment of child support orders, including the establishment of 
paternity if necessary to establish the order; enforcement of child 
support orders, including collection and distribution of payments under 
such orders; cost-free services (including administrative and legal 
services), as well as paternity testing; and the designation of an 
agency as Central Authority to facilitate enforcement.
    Once such a declaration is made, support agencies in jurisdictions 
of the United States participating in the program established by Title 
IV-D of the Social Security Act (the IV-D program) must provide 
enforcement services under that program to such reciprocating countries 
as if the request for service came from a U.S. State.
    The declaration authorized by the statute may be made ``in the form 
of an international agreement, in connection with an international 
agreement or corresponding foreign declaration, or on a unilateral 
basis.'' The Secretary of State has authorized either the Legal Adviser 
or the Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs to make such a 
declaration after consultation with the other. As of this date, the 
following countries (or Canadian provinces or territories) have been 
designated foreign reciprocating countries:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Country                           Effective date
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Australia............................  May 21, 2001.
Czech Republic.......................  May 3, 2000.
El Salvador..........................  June 21, 2007.
Finland..............................  Sept. 29, 2007.
Hungary..............................  Jan. 22, 2007.
Ireland..............................  Sept. 10, 1997.
Netherlands..........................  May 1, 2002.
Norway...............................  June 10, 2002.
Poland...............................  June 14, 1999.
Portugal.............................  Mar. 17, 2001.
Slovak Republic......................  Feb. 1, 1998.
Switzerland..........................  Sept. 30, 2004.
Canadian Provinces or Territories:
  Alberta............................  Sept. 4, 2002.
  British Columbia...................  Dec. 15, 1999.
  Manitoba...........................  July 11, 2000.
  New Brunswick......................  Feb. 1, 2004.
  Northwest Territories..............  Feb. 7, 2004.
  Nunavut............................  Jan. 20, 2004.
  Newfoundland/Labrador..............  Aug. 7, 2002.
  Nova Scotia........................  Dec. 18, 1998.
  Ontario............................  Aug. 7, 2002.
  Saskatchewan.......................  Jan. 24, 2007.
  Yukon..............................  May 22, 2007.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and    Dec. 17, 2007.
 Northern Ireland.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Each of these countries (or Canadian provinces or territories) has 
designated a Central Authority to facilitate enforcement and ensure 
compliance with the standards of the statute. Information relating to 
the designated Central Authorities, and the procedures for processing 
requests may be obtained by contacting the United States Central 
Authority for International Child Support, Department of Health and 
Human Services, Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE), 370 
L'Enfant Promenade, SW., 4-East, Washington, DC 20447; phone (202) 401-
9373, fax (202) 205-5927, e-mail: ocseinternational@acf.hhs.gov.
    As of this date, a reciprocity agreement has been signed, but is 
not yet in effect, with Costa Rica.
    The law also permits individual states of the United States to 
establish or continue existing reciprocating arrangements with foreign 
countries when there has been no Federal declaration. Many states have 
such arrangements with additional countries not yet the subject of a 
Federal declaration. Information as to these arrangements may be 
obtained from the individual State IV-D Agency.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions regarding this notice, the 
status of negotiations, declarations and agreements may be obtained by 
contacting Mary Helen Carlson at the Office of the Assistant Legal 
Adviser for Private International Law, Suite 203 South Building, 2430 E 
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20037-2851; phone (202) 776-8420, fax (202) 
776-8482, email: carlsonmh@state.gov.

    Dated: November 17, 2008.
Mary Helen Carlson,
Attorney-Adviser, Office of the Legal Adviser for Private International 
Law, Department of State.
[FR Doc. E8-28323 Filed 11-26-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4710-08-P