Adoption and Children Act 2002

137 Extension of the Hague Convention to British overseas territories

(1) Her Majesty may by Order in Council provide for giving effect to the Convention in any British overseas territory.

(2) An Order in Council under subsection (1) in respect of any British overseas territory may, in particular, make any provision corresponding to provision which in relation to any part of Great Britain is made by the Adoption (Intercountry Aspects) Act 1999 (c. 18) or may be made by regulations under section 1 of that Act.

(3) The British Nationality Act 1981 (c. 61) is amended as follows.

(4) In section 1 (acquisition of British citizenship by birth or adoption)—

(a) in subsection (5), at the end of paragraph (b) there is inserted “effected under the law of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom”,

(b) at the end of subsection (5A)(b) there is inserted “or in a designated territory”,

(c) in subsection (8), the words following “section 50” are omitted.

(5) In section 15 (acquisition of British overseas territories citizenship)—

(a) after subsection (5) there is inserted—

“(5A) Where—

(a) a minor who is not a British overseas territories citizen is adopted under a Convention adoption,

(b) on the date on which the adoption is effected—

(i) the adopter or, in the case of a joint adoption, one of the adopters is a British overseas territories citizen, and

(ii) the adopter or, in the case of a joint adoption, both of the adopters are habitually resident in a designated territory, and

(c) the Convention adoption is effected under the law of a country or territory outside the designated territory,

the minor shall be a British overseas territories citizen as from that date.”,

(b) in subsection (6), after “order” there is inserted “or a Convention adoption”.

(6) In section 50 (interpretation), in subsection (1)—

(a) after the definition of “company” there is inserted—

““Convention adoption” means an adoption effected under the law of a country or territory in which the Convention is in force, and certified in pursuance of Article 23(1) of the Convention”,

(b) after the definition of “Crown service under the government of the United Kingdom” there is inserted—

““designated territory” means a qualifying territory, or the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, which is designated by Her Majesty by Order in Council under subsection (14)”.

(7) After subsection (13) of that section there is inserted—

“(14) For the purposes of the definition of “designated territory” in subsection (1), an Order in Council may—

(a) designate any qualifying territory, or the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, if the Convention is in force there, and

(b) make different designations for the purposes of section 1 and section 15;

and, for the purposes of this subsection and the definition of “Convention adoption” in subsection (1), “the Convention” means the Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in respect of Intercountry Adoption, concluded at the Hague on 29th May 1993.

An Order in Council under this subsection shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.”