I am pleased to announce that the United States today deposited its instrument of ratification for the Convention in The Hague.  I was the Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee when the Senate unanimously gave its advice and consent to ratify the Child Support Convention, so today's delivery is especially meaningful.  The Convention will enter into force for the United States on January 1, 2017. 

This Convention will help families through numerous groundbreaking provisions that, for the first time on a worldwide scale, will establish uniform, simple, fast, and inexpensive procedures for the processing of international child support cases.  The United States already has a comprehensive system to establish, recognize, and enforce domestic and international child support obligations.  The Convention requires that all treaty partners have similar systems in place.  As a result, more children in the United States and abroad should receive more support, more expeditiously than ever before.

Ratification of the Convention demonstrates that the Administration, Congress, and the states can work together to help families in the United States and globally.  I'm proud of that record and its strong commitment to their well-being.