U.S. designates Korea as noncompliant country of child abduction convention for fifth consecutive year
Published: 21 Apr. 2026, 13:22
Updated: 21 Apr. 2026, 16:52
![Annual Report to Congress on International Child Abduction issued by the U.S. Department of State [SCREEN CAPTURE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/04/21/e5e411cb-6fe8-423f-937f-b98cec821db2.jpg)
Annual Report to Congress on International Child Abduction issued by the U.S. Department of State [SCREEN CAPTURE]
The U.S. government designated Korea as a nation that failed to comply with an international convention to protect children’s rights for five consecutive years, according to a recent report from the U.S. State Department on Sunday.
Korea — along with Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Egypt, Honduras, India and seven other nations — was named a noncompliant country of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction by the Office of Children’s Issues under the Bureau of Consular Affairs, which in turn is overseen by the U.S. Department of State.
The international multilateral convention, which Korea joined in December 2012, mandates signatories to return children to their country of habitual residence when one parent wrongfully removes or retains them across international borders. The act helps parents exercise their visitation rights and arrange their children’s return if their children are forcibly taken to another country.
Korea’s domestic governing law was enacted in March 2013.
Korea has been listed as a noncompliant country since 2022 and labeled a “child abducting nation.” Last year alone, the country had a total of nine such cases comprising 14 children, according to the latest U.S. report.
The State Department added that it received four initial inquiries from parents regarding possible child abductions to Korea over that same period and that Seoul’s authorities “regularly failed to enforce return orders rendered by the judicial authority in abduction cases.”
“[Korean authorities] failed to take appropriate steps to locate children after a Convention application was filed, which contributed to a pattern of noncompliance,” the report read, pointing to one case that has been pending for more than 12 months.
In another case, which has remained unresolved since 2019, the U.S. authority claimed that Korea failed to execute a court-ordered return of a child for the seventh time last year.
The report said that Korea’s law enforcement cited the reason for noncompliance as a “delay in processing cases.”
However, last year, two abduction cases were settled through voluntary means.
![Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, left, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrive for a photo before their meeting at the State Department in Washington on Feb. 3. [REUTERS/YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/04/21/3878864a-4fc3-40f0-83b6-359ea2270902.jpg)
Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, left, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrive for a photo before their meeting at the State Department in Washington on Feb. 3. [REUTERS/YONHAP]
While noting the “strong and cooperative relationships” between authorities in Washington and Seoul, the State Department said that it will maintain “robust engagement” with Korea’s local authorities and “consider using the full range of tools contained in the Goldman Act,” referring to the Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act of 2014.
The act prescribes solutions ranging from public condemnation to cancellation of official bilateral visits and suspension of U.S. security assistance.
“Although a Korea-based court ordered the return of a child 14 times, the person [without due parental rights] and their relatives [...] have possessed the child for seven years,” said Seong Jae-hyeok in a phone interview with the JoongAng Ilbo. Seong is involved in an ongoing lawsuit to bring back the child.
“It is questionable how such a thing could happen in a democratic country,” Seong said.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY SHIM SEOK-KYONG, LEE SOO-JUNG [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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