232B.4  Application of chapter — determination of Indian status.
  1.  This chapter applies to child custody proceedings involving an Indian child whether the child is in the physical or legal custody of an Indian parent, Indian custodian, or an Indian extended family member or another person at the commencement of the proceedings or whether the child has resided or domiciled on or off an Indian reservation.
  2.  The court shall require a party seeking the foster care placement of, termination of parental rights over, or the adoption of, an Indian child to seek to determine whether the child is an Indian child through contact with any Indian tribe in which the child may be a member or eligible for membership, the child’s parent, any person who has custody of the child or with whom the child resides, and any other person that reasonably can be expected to have information regarding the child’s possible membership or eligibility for membership in an Indian tribe, including but not limited to the United States department of the interior.
  3.  A written determination by an Indian tribe that a child is a member of or eligible for membership in that tribe, or testimony attesting to such status by a person authorized by the tribe to provide that determination, shall be conclusive. A written determination by an Indian tribe, or testimony by a person authorized by the tribe to provide that determination or testimony, that a child is not a member of or eligible for membership in that tribe shall be conclusive as to that tribe. If an Indian tribe does not provide evidence of the child’s status as an Indian child, the court shall determine the child’s status.
  4.  The determination of the Indian status of a child shall be made as soon as practicable in order to serve the best interest of the child and to ensure compliance with the notice requirements of this chapter.
2003 Acts, ch 153, §5