Cross-Border Jurisdictional Protocol
The Marshall Islands acceded to the Hague Service Convention on July 29, 2020, with entry into force on February 1, 2021 — one of the more recent Pacific accessions. Notably, when it first acceded, the Marshall Islands had made no declarations and designated no Central Authority; both were added shortly afterward, with the Attorney-General of the Marshall Islands ultimately designated as Central Authority, and declarations filed touching Articles 8 and 10(a). Documents served under Article 5 must be in, or translated into, English.
We prepare and submit the Hague request to the Attorney-General of the Marshall Islands, the designated Central Authority, for execution through the local court system.
Start a Marshall Islands Central Authority filing →As an English-language jurisdiction, Marshall Islands filings avoid the certified-translation costs common in many other Hague jurisdictions.
Prepare your filing →Given how recently this accession matured with declarations and a Central Authority in place, we track filings closely and provide realistic timeline guidance.
Request active case tracking →Complete National Jurisdiction
Active network of local agents, court officers, and Central Authority specialists covering every administrative region.
All international document handoffs are executed pursuant to local sovereignty statutes and returned with court-certified evidentiary declarations.
Judicial Knowledge Base
It acceded on July 29, 2020, with the Convention entering into force domestically on February 1, 2021.
When it first acceded, the Marshall Islands had made no declarations and had not yet designated a Central Authority; both followed shortly after, with declarations touching Articles 8, 10(a), 15, and 16 filed within weeks.
The Attorney-General of the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
Documents served under Article 5 must be in, or translated into, English — which is already the Marshall Islands' working language for U.S.-originated filings.
The Marshall Islands has a Compact of Free Association with the United States, giving the two countries a close relationship, though this is separate from and doesn't substitute for the Hague Convention process.
Consult with our international legal support specialists about service of process in Marshall Islands.