Indian Child Welfare Act

The Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (ICWA, enacted November 8, 1978 and codified at 25 U.S.C. §§ 19011963) is a United States federal law that governs jurisdiction over the removal of American Indian children from their families in custody, foster care and adoption cases.

Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978
Long titleAn Act to establish standards for the placement of Indian children in foster or adoptive homes, to prevent the break-up of Indian families, and for other purposes.
Acronyms (colloquial)ICWA
Enacted bythe 95th United States Congress
EffectiveNovember 8, 1978 (1978-11-08)
Citations
Public law95-608
Statutes at Large92 Stat. 3069
Codification
Titles amended
  • 25 U.S.C.: Indians
  • 43 U.S.C.: Public Lands
U.S.C. sections created25 U.S.C. ch. 21 § 1901 et seq.
U.S.C. sections amended43 U.S.C. ch. 33 §§ 1602, 1606
Legislative history
  • Introduced in the Senate as S. 1214 by James Abourezk (D-SD) on April 1, 1977
  • Committee consideration by Senate Indian Affairs, House Interior and Insular Affairs
  • Passed the Senate on November 4, 1977 (Passed)
  • Passed the House on October 14, 1978 (Passed, in lieu of H.R. 12533) with amendment
  • Senate agreed to House amendment on October 14, 1978 (Agreed)
  • Signed into law by President Jimmy Carter on November 8, 1978
United States Supreme Court cases

It gives tribal governments exclusive jurisdiction over children who reside on, or are domiciled on a reservation. It gives concurrent, but presumptive jurisdiction over foster care placement proceedings for Native American children who do not live on the reservation.

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