[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 22, Volume 1]
[Revised as of April 1, 2004]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 22CFR93.1]

[Page 401-402]
 
                       TITLE 22--FOREIGN RELATIONS
 
                     CHAPTER I--DEPARTMENT OF STATE
 
PART 93_SERVICE ON FOREIGN STATE--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 93.1  Service through the diplomatic channel.




Sec.
93.1 Service through the diplomatic channel.
93.2 Notice of suit (or of default judgment).

    Authority: 22 U.S.C. 2658; 28 U.S.C. 1608(a).


    (a) The Director of the Office of Special Consular Services in the 
Bureau of Consular Affairs, Department of State (``The Managing Director 
for Overseas Citizen Service''), shall perform the duties of the 
Secretary of State under section 1608(a)(4) of title 28, United States 
Code.
    (b) When the clerk of the court concerned sends documents under 
section 1608(a)(4), of title 28, United States Code, the Managing 
Director for Overseas Citizen Service shall promptly ascertain if the 
documents include the required copies of the notice of suit and of the 
summons and complaint (or default judgment), and any required 
translations. If not, he shall promptly advise the clerk of the missing 
items.
    (c) Upon receiving the required copies of documents and any required 
translations, the Managing Director for Overseas Citizen Service shall 
promptly cause one copy of each such document and translation (``the 
documents'') to be delivered--
    (1) To the Embassy of the United States in the foreign state 
concerned, and the Embassy shall promptly deliver them to the foreign 
ministry or other appropriate authority of the foreign state, or
    (2) If the foreign state so requests or if otherwise appropriate, to 
the embassy of the foreign state in the District of Columbia, or
    (3) If paragraphs (c)(1) and (2) of this section are unavailable, 
through an existing diplomatic channel, such as to the embassy of 
another country authorized to represent the interests of the foreign 
state concerned in the United States.
    (d) The documents, when delivered under paragraph (c) of this 
section, shall be accompanied by a diplomatic note of transmittal, 
requesting that

[[Page 402]]

the documents be forwarded to the appropriate authority of the foreign 
state or political subdivision upon which service is being made. The 
note shall state that, under United States law, questions of 
jurisdiction and of state immunity must be addressed to the court and 
not to the Department of State, and that it is advisable to consult with 
an attorney in the United States.
    (e) If the documents are delivered under paragraph (c)(1) of this 
section, the Embassy of the United States shall promptly transmit by 
diplomatic pouch, to the Managing Director for Overseas Citizen Service, 
a certified copy of the diplomatic note of transmittal. If the documents 
are delivered under paragraph (c) (2) or (3) of this section, the 
Managing Director for Overseas Citizen Service shall prepare a certified 
copy of the diplomatic note of transmittal. In each case, the 
certification shall state the date and place the documents were 
delivered. The Managing Director for Overseas Citizen Service shall then 
promptly send the certified copy to the clerk of the court concerned.

(Sec. 1608(a), Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976, Pub. L. 94-583 
(28 U.S.C. 1608(a)); sec. 4, 63 Stat. 111, as amended (22 U.S.C. 2658))

[42 FR 6367, Feb. 2, 1977, as amended at 63 FR 16687, Apr. 6, 1998]