The primary functions in inter-country case work are :

• To coordinate efforts of agencies within a particular country and those abroad in order to find a solution to a presenting social or socio-legal problem with an international dimension and, in this regard,
• To interpret unfamiliar rules, regulation, culture and customs and
• To facilitate communication through qualified, multilingual and multicultural staff in resolving these problems. 

ISS receives referrals from : 

• Youth welfare offices
• Social and health centers
• Courts
• Independent welfare associations
• Individuals or families 

Services provided include :

A) Permanency planning for children 

• Home studies
• Social evaluations concerning:




The majority of ISS cases are concerned with the protection and care of the children

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Foster placement
Adoption
Child abduction
Child abuse
Child neglect

• Custody evaluations

B) Counselling about : 

• Inter-cultural marriages
• Divorce procedures

C) Tracing of : 

• Separated family members
• Biological roots

D) Reunification and/or repatriation
 
E) Legal aid for asylum seekers 
(especially unaccompanied minors)

F) Community work with migrant 

G)  Ethnical minorities
(offered in some countries) 

H) Child maintenance obligation 

I)  Obtaining official documents
 

Who asks for help from ISS

Families and individuals may approach an ISS branch or affiliated bureau directly; however, it is usually agencies who ask for assistance with a case because they are familiar with the specialization of ISS.

These agencies include governmental family and child welfare offices, prisons, health services, specialized schools, psychiatric clinics, family and children's courts, embassies, independent welfare organizations and voluntary family service groups.

The General Secretariat in Geneva provides service when a case involves countries without an ISS branch or affiliated bureau.

Facts and figures

Most cases are concerned with

Ensuring the well-being of unaccompanied and separated children
Tracing and interviewing parents of unaccompanied minors
Parental conflicts around custody, child abduction and visiting rigths
Adoption home-studies and Adoption counselling
Search for roots for adopted adolescent or adults
Foster placement for separated children
Refugees and asylum seekers
Marriage and divorce counselling for people from different cultural backgrounds

What makes ISS unique

• All ISS activities are based on a fundamental respect for the individual and for cultural differences. To encourage this, ISS branch management and staff are predominantly indigenous to their country.

• The role of ISS is to bring together all parts of a problem, allowing the individuals or families involved to see all options available to them, thus helping them to make the most appropriate choices.

• Worldwide contacts gathered through more than 77 years of working with agencies and governments facilitate case handling and contribute to an unparalleled understanding of different legal procedures and systems.

• The large number of branches, affiliated bureaux and correspondents constitute a unique inter-country network of resources. They are a model of non-governmental and governmental organizations working together, as well as an example of true North-South cooperation.

• The General Secretariat coordinates operations and seeks to promote uniform practices and the highest professional standards within this network. The organization’s approach relies on sharing all pertinent knowledge as well as impressions about the problem, flexibility in communication, mutual recognition of gaps and difficulties in local service and a willingness to bring about change.

• The multitude of data gathered during its case handling allows ISS to help intergovernmental organizations develop international conventions. These data also allow ISS to alert appropriate authorities at all levels when changes seem necessary in laws or conventions.