History

1924 establishment of the International Social Service (ISS)

With the efforts to help families from Central and Eastern Europe who were "stuck" or separated at the French ports on the Atlantic coast with the aim of emigrating to the USA, individual case work began, the principles of which still apply to ISS today. In 1924, the General Secretariat in Geneva founded the Organization with the name "International Migration Service".

1937 removal of the association's political impartiality

With the incorporation into the National Socialist “Volkswohlfahrt”, which takes over large parts of the financing and also the chairmanship, the statutes are amended and the impartiality is removed. As a result, the ISS as a whole questions its formal affiliation and later separates from the German branch. However, relationships remain at a working level and attempts continue to be made in individual cases to cooperate with branches in other countries, at least in France, Poland and Australia.

1946 resumption of activity

After the Second World War, the need for cross-border cooperation in the context of child protection and family support is enormous. In addition to repatriations, the specialists associated with ISS activities in Germany support in particular the disturbing cases of non-German children, often descendants of forced laborers who were abducted to Germany, who are placed in foster families in Germany or Austria and whose parents or close relatives are found abroad.

1956 new foundation

While many working relationships were already being used intensively again in the early 1950s, it was not until 25 June 1956 that the new association was founded and on 27 August 1956 that it was entered in the register of associations in Frankfurt am Main. The association moved into the premises of the association “Deutscher Verein für öffentliche und private Fürsorge e.V.”, which had already been a member in the 1930s and with which there was a close connection from then on.

1979 focus on unaccompanied minor refugees

Migration is the founding issue of the ISD and plays a key role in its work after the Second World War. In 1979, the ISD is appointed by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs as the coordination center for unaccompanied minor refugees as a result of the sharp rise in the number of refugees, particularly from Vietnam and Cambodia. Since then, the ISD has worked continuously to develop standards, provide training and support the development of legislation.

1980 Hague Abduction Convention

The 1980 Hague Convention on Child Abduction (HCCA) is a milestone in international cooperation in the context of child abduction. It makes it possible for the first time to apply for the return of abducted children from the country of origin. In Germany, the HCCA was ratified in 1990 and it took several more years for it to be implemented. A major step towards this is the introduction of 18 concentration courts for Germany and thus the opportunity for specialization and better training of judges. The ISS has always been involved in these training courses run by the Federal Office of Justice.

ISS traditionally has observer status at the Hague Conference and is heavily involved in the drafting of international conventions.

1996 Hague Child Protection Convention

ISS also plays a key role in the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children. The Hague Convention creates a basis under international law for cooperation between its member states in cases of cross-border child protection and custody matters. It allows for significantly simplified recognition of decisions from abroad, making many cases much easier and quicker.

2001 Fusion with the association Deutscher Verein

The ISD is now no longer an independent association, but is formally integrated into the association Deutscher Verein (DV), with which it has long been spatially and professionally connected. From now on, the ISD is a field of work within the DV, although some special features are retained, which are also reflected in the DV's statutes. As a German member of the ISS network, the ISD continues to fulfill the tasks and statutory purposes of ISS. Its specialist committee, the "Standing Committee ISD", is also the board of ISS Germany, and its chairman acts as president of the ISD in the overall association.

2004 Relocation to Berlin

In 2004, the joint relocation from Frankfurt am Main to Berlin takes place. This means a considerable change for the ISD, as only very few employees make the move in order to continue their work in the capital. As a result of these personnel changes, some of the work content is changed or restructured.

2005 Transfer of adoption to fif

The relocation of the ISD office to Berlin and the associated change of a large part of the staff leads to the spin-off of the former ISD work area "Individual case work in adoption and tracing". In 2005, this was handed over to the association Familie Frankfurt International e.V. (fif), which was newly founded by former ISD employees and also became a member of ISS. Fif is still a licensed adoption agency today and supports those affected in their search for a family of origin. However, the basic work on the topic of adoption, e.g. monitoring current legislative projects, remains part of the ISD's work.

2011 ZAnK mandate

Since the ISD in the DV was mandated as the central point of contact for cross-border family conflicts (ZAnK), the range of advisory services for private individuals continues to be expanded and intensively advertised. ZAnK assumes a guiding function in cases of cross-border family conflicts. As a result, the number of consultations increases, particularly for parents on the topics of child abduction, prevention, custody and contact disputes.

2020 90 years ISD

The ISD is planning to celebrate the 90th anniversary of ISS in Germany with a major conference. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, however, this will have to be postponed. However, a small celebration of this anniversary will take place in 2022 in the context of the German Welfare Day in Essen.

2024 100 years ISS

The International Social Service network has been in existence for 100 years and now has working partners all over the world. The core of the work was and is the support of families and especially children who are affected by cross-border migration. Over this long period of time, the network has been affected by enormous change and has overcome many challenges. However, ISS is here to stay and the need for this organization will not diminish over the next 100 years.