Convention (No.34) on the issue of multilingual and coded extracts from civil-status records and multilingual and coded civil-status certificates
signed at Strasbourg on 14 March 2014
The signatory States to this Convention, members of the International Commission on Civil Status ("ICCS"),
Having regard to the ICCS Convention on the issue of certain extracts from civil-status records for use abroad, signed at Paris on 27 September 1956,
Having regard to the ICCS Convention on the issue of multilingual extracts from civil-status records, signed at Vienna on 8 September 1976,
Having regard to the Protocol to the Convention on the international exchange of information relating to civil status signed at Istanbul on 4 September 1958, signed at Patras on 6 September 1989,
Having regard to the ICCS Convention on the coding of entries appearing in civil-status documents, signed at Brussels on 6 September 1995,
Having regard to the ICCS Convention on the use of the International Commission on Civil Status Platform for the international communication of civil-status data by electronic means, signed at Rome on 19 September 2012,
Being desirous of extending the scope of the above-mentioned 1976 Convention to other events affecting civil status and of adapting the models of civil-status documents to the evolution of family law,
Being desirous of improving the rules on the issue of multilingual and coded civil-status documents, notably when they are intended for use abroad,
Being determined to facilitate the international circulation of civil-status documents for persons required to furnish proof of their civil status in a country other than the State of registration,
Being concerned to avoid any requirement of translation and legalisation between the Contracting States,
Being aware of the fact that facilitating the international circulation of civil-status documents depends on the mutual confidence of the Contracting States in the reliability of the system used for registration and for issuing extracts in each of the Contracting States,
Have agreed as follows:
Having regard to the ICCS Convention on the issue of certain extracts from civil-status records for use abroad, signed at Paris on 27 September 1956,
Having regard to the ICCS Convention on the issue of multilingual extracts from civil-status records, signed at Vienna on 8 September 1976,
Having regard to the Protocol to the Convention on the international exchange of information relating to civil status signed at Istanbul on 4 September 1958, signed at Patras on 6 September 1989,
Having regard to the ICCS Convention on the coding of entries appearing in civil-status documents, signed at Brussels on 6 September 1995,
Having regard to the ICCS Convention on the use of the International Commission on Civil Status Platform for the international communication of civil-status data by electronic means, signed at Rome on 19 September 2012,
Being desirous of extending the scope of the above-mentioned 1976 Convention to other events affecting civil status and of adapting the models of civil-status documents to the evolution of family law,
Being desirous of improving the rules on the issue of multilingual and coded civil-status documents, notably when they are intended for use abroad,
Being determined to facilitate the international circulation of civil-status documents for persons required to furnish proof of their civil status in a country other than the State of registration,
Being concerned to avoid any requirement of translation and legalisation between the Contracting States,
Being aware of the fact that facilitating the international circulation of civil-status documents depends on the mutual confidence of the Contracting States in the reliability of the system used for registration and for issuing extracts in each of the Contracting States,
Have agreed as follows:
Article 1 - Scope
1. This Convention applies to the issue of multilingual and coded extracts from civil-status records concerning births, acknowledgments of a child, marriages, registered partnerships or deaths.
2. This Convention also applies to the issue of a multilingual and coded certificate confirming the registration of a partnership by a public authority other than a civil registrar.
Article 2 - Issue of the extracts and certificates
1. At the request of an interested party or a competent authority, notably when their use would have necessitated translation or legalisation, the extracts from civil-status records and the certificates referred to in Article 1 shall be prepared in conformity with Article 3 of this Convention.
2. Such extracts and certificates shall be issued only to those persons or competent authorities who are entitled to obtain verbatim copies in accordance with the rules of domestic law of the issuing State.
Article 3 - Preparation of the extracts and certificates
1. The extracts from civil-status records and the certificates referred to in Article 1 shall be prepared on the basis of the original entries and the subsequent annotations.
2. Such extracts and certificates shall be prepared in conformity with the ICCS models appearing in Appendix 1 to this Convention. The standard entries appearing therein shall bear the code numbers appearing in Appendix 2.
3. The rules applicable to the ICCS models appear in Appendix 3.
Article 4 - Deposit of translations and list of symbols
1. Before ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding to this Convention or making the declaration of provisional application provided for in Article 13, each State must deposit with the ICCS Secretary General the translation into its official language or languages of the standard entries which must appear in the extracts and certificates in conformity with Appendix 2 to this Convention and also the translation of the applicable rules appearing in Appendix 3. Any modification of these translations must be deposited with the ICCS Secretary General. These translations and any subsequent modifications must be adopted by the ICCS Bureau.
2. Before ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding to this Convention or making the declaration of provisional application provided for in Article 13, each State must deposit with the ICCS Secretary General a list of the symbols which it utilises for the subsequent annotations that may appear in the space "1-4-4 Other entries" in ICCS models 1, 3 and 4. Any modification of this list must be deposited with the ICCS Secretary General. This information will be reproduced by the Secretary General in the table appearing in Appendix 4.
3. Completion of the formalities referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 will be object of an attestation by the Secretary General.
Article 5 - Evidential value of the extracts and certificates
1. The extracts and certificates issued pursuant to this Convention shall have same evidential value as extracts from records and certificates issued in accordance with the rules of domestic law of the issuing State.
2. Such extracts and certificates shall be accepted without legalisation or equivalent formality in each of the Contracting States.
3. In case of serious doubt as to the authenticity or the content of an extract or certificate issued pursuant to this Convention, the authorities of the State where that document is being used may request the issuing authority to effect a verification of its authenticity or its content or, in case of an error, to send to them a new extract or certificate. The exchanges between these authorities shall take place directly.
Article 6 - Charging of fees
Without prejudice to the international agreements providing for issue free of charge, the charges payable for extracts or certificates issued pursuant to this Convention may not be higher than those payable for extracts or certificates prepared in conformity with the rules of domestic law of the issuing State.
Article 7 - Obtainment of verbatim copies
This Convention shall not prevent the obtainment of verbatim copies of records prepared in conformity with the rules of domestic law of the State in which those records were drawn up or transcribed. It shall not prevent the issue of other civil-status documents.
Article 8 - Signature, ratification, acceptance and approval
1. This Convention is open to signature by the ICCS member States.
2. The Convention shall be ratified, accepted or approved. The instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval, accompanied by the attestation referred to in Article 4, paragraph 3, shall be deposited with the Swiss Federal Council.
Article 9 - Accession
1. Any ICCS member State may accede to this Convention.
2. Any other State may accede to this Convention after its entry into force.
3. The instrument of accession, accompanied by the attestation referred in Article 4, paragraph 3, shall be deposited with the Swiss Federal Council.
Article 10 - Objection to an accession
An accession by a State which is not a member of the ICCS shall have effect only as regards the relations between the acceding State and a Contracting State which has not raised an objection to the accession in the five months following the notification provided for in Article 19, paragraph 1 (a). Such an objection may also be raised by any State at the time when it ratifies, accepts, approves or accedes to the Convention after an accession. Any objection shall be notified to the Swiss Federal Council.
Article 11 - Reservations
1. At the time of signature, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, any State may reserve the right not to apply this Convention to extracts or certificates concerning :
(a) marriages of persons of the same sex ;
(b) registered partnerships or one or more forms thereof.
(a) marriages of persons of the same sex ;
(b) registered partnerships or one or more forms thereof.
2. No other reservation shall be permitted.
3. Any State may at any time withdraw a reservation made pursuant to paragraph 1. The withdrawal shall be notified to the Swiss Federal Council and shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month following the month of receipt of the notification.
Article 12 - Entry into force
1. This Convention shall enter into force on the first day of the fourth month following the month of deposit of the second instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession by two ICCS member States.
2. In respect of an ICCS member State ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding after its entry into force, the Convention shall enter into force on the first day of the fourth month following the month of deposit by that State of the instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.
3. In respect of a State which is not a member of the ICCS, the Convention shall enter into force, between the acceding State and the States that have not raised an objection to the accession, on the first day of the third month following the expiry of the five-month period referred to in Article 10.
Article 13 - Provisional application
1. Pending the entry into force of this Convention in its respect in the conditions laid down in Article 12, an ICCS member States that has signed the Convention may at any moment declare that the provisions of this Convention shall apply to it on a provisional basis. The period of provisional application shall not exceed five years.
2. Any declaration made pursuant to paragraph 1, accompanied by the attestation referred to in Article 4, paragraph 3, shall be notified to the Swiss Federal Council. It will take effect on the first day of the fourth month following the month of receipt of the notification.
Article 14 -Territorial application
1. At the time of signature, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession or at any later date, any State having several territorial units may declare that the Convention shall extend only to one or more of them.
2. If a State makes no declaration under paragraph 1, the Convention shall extend to all territorial units of that State.
3. A declaration made pursuant to paragraph 1 may be modified or withdrawn by a new declaration.
4. Any declaration made pursuant to paragraphs 1 or 3 shall be notified to the Swiss Federal Council. It shall take effect when the Convention enters into force for the State concerned or, subsequently, on the first day of the fourth month following the month of receipt of the notification.
Article 15 - Revision of the Appendices
1. Appendices 1 to 3 of this Convention may be modified by a resolution adopted by a simple majority of the ICCS member States and by a simple majority of the Contracting States, meeting in an ad hoc General Assembly. Any modifications adopted shall be binding on all the Contracting States.
2. Any resolution adopted pursuant to paragraph 1 shall be deposited with the Swiss Federal Council. It shall take effect on the date which it fixes.
Article 16 - Duration and denunciation
1. This Convention shall remain in force indefinitely.
2. However, any State party to this Convention shall have the option of denouncing it at any time after the expiry of a period of one year from the date of entry into force of the Convention in respect of that State. Denunciation shall be notified to the Swiss Federal Council and shall take effect on the first day of the seventh month following the month of receipt of that notification. The Convention shall remain in force among the other States.
Article 17 - Relationship with the Convention of 8 September 1976
1. On its entry into force, this Convention shall replace the Convention on the issue of multilingual extracts from civil-status records, signed at Vienna on 8 September 1976. However, the Convention of 8 September 1976 shall remain in force between the States party thereto as long as one of them continues to be bound by that instrument alone.
2. On the entry into force of this Convention, any new ratification, acceptance or approval of or accession to the Convention of 8 September 1976 shall be excluded.
Article 18 - Relationship with the Patras Protocol of 6 September 1989
In the relations between States party to the present Convention and to the Protocol, signed at Patras on 6 September 1989, to the Convention on the international exchange of information relating to civil status, signed at Istanbul on 4 September 1958, the ICCS models 3 and 5 in Appendix 1 to the present Convention shall be regarded as models referred to in Article 1 of the said Protocol.
Article 19 - Obligations of the depositary
1. The Swiss Federal Council shall notify the ICCS member States and any other State that has acceded to this Convention of :
(a) the deposit of any instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession ;
(b) any date of entry into force of the Convention ;
(c) any objection raised pursuant to Article 10 ;
(d) any reservation made pursuant to Article 11, paragraph 1, or its withdrawal, together with the date on which the withdrawal will take effect ;
(e) any declaration made pursuant to Article 13, paragraph 1 ;
(f) any declaration made pursuant to Article 14, paragraph 1, its modification or its withdrawal, together with the date on which the declaration, the modification or the withdrawal will take effect ;
(g) any resolution adopted pursuant to Article 15, paragraph 1, together with the date on which it will take effect ;
(h) any denunciation of the Convention made pursuant to Article 16, paragraph 2, together with the date on which it will take effect.
(a) the deposit of any instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession ;
(b) any date of entry into force of the Convention ;
(c) any objection raised pursuant to Article 10 ;
(d) any reservation made pursuant to Article 11, paragraph 1, or its withdrawal, together with the date on which the withdrawal will take effect ;
(e) any declaration made pursuant to Article 13, paragraph 1 ;
(f) any declaration made pursuant to Article 14, paragraph 1, its modification or its withdrawal, together with the date on which the declaration, the modification or the withdrawal will take effect ;
(g) any resolution adopted pursuant to Article 15, paragraph 1, together with the date on which it will take effect ;
(h) any denunciation of the Convention made pursuant to Article 16, paragraph 2, together with the date on which it will take effect.
2. The Swiss Federal Council shall inform the ICCS Secretary General of any notification made pursuant to paragraph 1.
3. On the entry into force of this Convention, a certified copy shall be transmitted by the Swiss Federal Council to the Secretary General of the United Nations for the purposes of registration and publication, in accordance with Article 102 of the United Nations Charter.
In witness whereof, the undersigned, duly authorised to this end, have signed this Convention.
Done at Strasbourg on 14 March 2014 in a single copy in the French language, which shall be deposited in the archives of the Swiss Federal Council and a certified copy of which shall be transmitted, through diplomatic channels, to each of the ICCS member States and to the acceding States . A certified copy shall also be sent to the ICCS Secretary General.
English version certified by the General Assembly on 22 September 2022. Only the French original is authentic.