International adoption

src: www.howtoadopt.org

International implementation (also referred to as inter-state adoption or transnational adoption ) is a type of adoption in which an individual or spouse becomes a legitimate and permanent parent (s) ) of a child who is a citizen of a different country. In general, prospective adoptive parents must meet the requirements of adoption of the law of their country of residence and the country of which their child's nationality is owned.

International adoption is not the same as cross-cultural or inter-racial adoption. However, the fact is that families will often become transcultural or interracial families over adoption of an international child.

Laws of states vary in their willingness to permit international adoption. Some countries, such as China and South Korea, have relatively established rules and procedures for international adoption, while other countries expressly prohibit it. Some countries, especially many African countries, have extended residency requirements for adoptive parents who essentially rule out most of the international adoption.

Video International adoption

Ikhtisar proses

The requirements required to start the international adoption process may vary depending on the country of the adoptive parents. For example, while most countries require prospective adoptive parents to first obtain consent to adopt, in some agreements can only be given thereafter. Often a â € Å"yatimâ € is a child whose living family has approved an adoption. Some describe the orphanage as a "nursery" or "children's home" because many of the children's parents do not approve of adoption of their children. It is common for parents to place children in a child's room while they are dealing with poverty or work. The orphanage is considered a charity back, or wants to take advantage of educational opportunities at the orphanage. Because institutions often provide education, they function more like a subsidized boarding school.

Prospective parents of internationally adopted persons are waiting to get a referral for a child, which often means waiting until one of the parents of these children at the nursery school approves the adoption. Bureaucracy is often blamed for the slow process required for a prospective parent to get a child, but often to blame is that demand for children in the third world outstrips supply. A senior adviser on child protection with UNICEF, Alexandria Yuster, argues that international adoption is now more about finding children for first-world parents than finding homes for children. Susan Bissell, also from UNICEF, said she is not against international adoption, but believes it is better for abandoned children to be taken back by their families before and advises the government to provide small monetary incentives to families willing to do so.

In the United States, usually the first stage of the process is to choose a licensed adoption agency or a lawyer to work with it. Each agent or lawyer works with a different country, although some focus on only one country. Under the terms of the Hague Adoption Convention (international treaties relating to adoption) adoption or attorney agencies should be accredited by the US government if the child's country is also a participant of the Hague Convention. If the child's country is not a participant then the Hague Rules are not applicable, and special laws of the parent country and their adoptive parents must be followed. Even when The Hague is not applicable, a research at home and USCIS (US Citizenship and Immigration Service, formerly INS, Immigration and Naturalization) approval is a requirement. The Hague is discussed below.

A prepared document containing a large amount of information about the prospective adoptive parents required by the child's country. This usually includes financial information, background checks, fingerprints, home study studies by social workers, reports from adoptive parenting physicians on their health, and other supporting information. Again, requirements will vary greatly from country to country, and even region to region in big countries like Russia. Once complete, the file is submitted to the appropriate authority in the child's country for review.

Once the documents are reviewed and the parent candidate is approved for adoption, they are matched with eligible children (except in some countries like India, which does not allow "matching" of a child to (a) prospective parent (s)). Parents usually send information about children, such as age, gender, medical history, etc. These are generally called referrals. Travel dates are usually provided at a later time in most of the adoptions. However, some countries may also provide travel dates at the time of reference, notifying parents when they can travel to meet children and signing up additional documents needed to receive referrals. Some countries, such as Kazakhstan, do not allow referral until the prospective parent travels to the country on their first journey. This is called a "blind" reference.

Depending on the country, parents may have to make more than one trip abroad to complete the legal process. Some countries allow a child to be escorted to the adoptive foster home country and the adoptive parent does not need to travel to the country of their adopted child.

There are usually some requirements after this point, such as a document to make the child a legitimate citizen of adopting a parent country or re-adopting them. In addition, one or more follow-up (or "post placement") visits from a social worker may be required - either by the placement agency used by the adoptive parent or by the laws of the country from which the child is adopted. In the United States, citizenship is automatically granted to all children born overseas when at least one adoptive parent is a US citizen, in accordance with the Child Citizenship Act of 2000. Depending on the state of adoption, a citizenship grant takes place when a child enters the United States as a immigrant or adopted child in the jurisdiction of a parent's home.

Policies and requirements

Adoption policies for each country vary widely. Information such as the age of adoptive parents, financial status, education level, marital status and history, the number of children dependent on the home, sexual orientation, weight, psychological health, and ancestry are used by the state to determine what parents are eligible to adopt from the country.

Information such as child age, cost and expenditure, and the amount of travel time required in a child's birth state can also vary greatly from country to country.

Each country establishes its own rules, timelines and terms around adoption, and there are also varying rules in the United States for each state. Each country, and often every part of the country, sets its own rules about what to share and how it is shared (eg, Child Drawing, Child Health). Reliability and verification of information are variables.

Most countries require parents to travel to bring the child home; however, some countries allow the child to be escorted to his new homeland.

The US State Department has established two accrediting bodies for organizations that provide inter-state adoption services in the United States and work with sending countries that have ratified the Hague Convention on Child Protection and Co-operation in Respect for Inter-Country Adoption. They are the Board of Accreditation and the Department of Health and Human Services in Colorado. The US Department of State maintains a list of all accredited international adoption providers.

Maps International adoption

Country of origin and major recipient country

Basic demographic data on the countries of origin and receiving countries since the 2000s has recently been analyzed and summarized in special publications.

The country of origin of children

According to one recent study, 6 countries (China, Ethiopia, India, South Korea, Ukraine and Vietnam) remained the main home country for nearly a decade. But there is little change in other countries that send most children.

Primary recipient countries

Based on Selman's research, during the years 1998 and 2007, the top 10 receiving countries of all 23 countries reported, (ranking from big to small), were United States, Spain, France, Italy, Canada, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Australia. Among these 10 countries, the top 5 accounts for more than 80% of overall adoption, and the US are responsible for about 50% of all cases. Although historically the United States has been one of the leaders in adopting children through international adoption, this has changed dramatically over the past decade. In 2004, 22,884 children were internationally adopted, while only 5,648 were adopted by 2015. This was due to a combination of factors: an increase in bureaucracy due to the implementation of the Hague Convention guidelines, changes in law in countries where adoption took place eliminating countries from to adopt , increasing costs, corruption in some foreign courts/orphanages, and the policies of many countries to only free children with significant special needs.

AS (as the largest recipient country)

The most common countries for international adoption by parents in the United States for fiscal year 2012 are China (2,697), Ethiopia (1,568), Republic of Korea (627), Ukraine (395), Democratic Republic of Congo (240), Uganda ( 238), Nigeria (197), Colombia (195), Taiwan (177), Ghana (171), India (159), Haiti (154), and Philippines (125). Other less common countries include Bulgaria, Norway, Australia, Kenya, Canada, Haiti, and Poland. These statistics may vary from year to year because each country changes its rules; Romania, Belarus, Russia and Cambodia are also important until the government's crackdown on adoption to get rid of abuse in the flow-cut system.

The adoption of Ethiopia has become an increasingly popular choice for host families in the US. According to US State Department statistics, the number of people adopted from Ethiopia has risen sharply from 42 (in 1999) to 1568 (in 2012).

Adopted children's gender ratio (AS)

Generally, the US adopts more girls than boys. From 1999 to 2012, about 62% of adoptions by US families were girls, and only 38% were boys. But the differences between women and men adopted gradually declined. In other words, now the sex ratio of adopted girls and boys is more balanced.

It used to be true that China had more women available for adoption, because of Chinese cultural preferences for children in combination with official birth policy planned in 1979. By the early 2000s, about 90-95% of Chinese children were adopted by American families are women. For various reasons, including recent one-child policy amendments, the number of women available to marry, and the increasing prevalence of sex selective abortion, most orphanages in China now accommodate only children with special needs, the majority of whom are men.. Because the heavy preference for women in adopting the most waited family of children in China is boys, since girls with similar needs are quickly matched to the long line of families looking for Chinese daughters. Although India also has available female advantages to adopt (about 70%), on the contrary, South Korea, another East Asian country, has a relatively large advantage of the adopted boys; about 60% are boys.

Country suspend/or suspended adoption by US family

There are already several countries (including certain major sending countries) that in no way or only partially accept inter-country adoption requests from US families for some reason.

• Russia: In December 2012, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law of action effective January 1, 2013, banning the adoption of Russian children by US families. The ban is seen as a diplomatic revenge for the passage of the Magnitsky Act in the United States, while popular support in Russia is focused on incidents of harassment of candidates by US families. In January 2013 about 20,000 people marched against the law in Moscow.
• India (temporary)

The US also suspends adoption relationships with selected countries, due to the Hague Convention or other reasons.

• Vietnam, temporarily suspended for alleged corruption and baby sale
• Guatemala, adoption closed in 2007 to be adopted after allegations of corruption, families were forced and children abducted to meet US demand. (See also: Adoption in Guatemala)
• Nepal: Although Nepal has not closed its doors for adoption, the United States government has suspended adoption from Nepal. The document presented documenting the neglect of these children in Nepal is known to be unreliable and suspicion of neglect can not be verified due to obstacles in the investigation of individual cases.

src: www.workingmomsagainstguilt.com

International legal framework

At the international level, the main legal instrument on inter-country adoption is the Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respecting the Inter-State Adoption (hereinafter the Convention of The Hague Convention, 1993). Yet other relevant international legal instruments exist to ensure that the child's best interests and concern for his well-being inform the practice of inter-country adoption. For example, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) contains specific references to inter-country adoption. The Declaration of the Social and Legal Principles relating to the Protection and Welfare of Children, with Special References to Support Placement and Adoption Nationally and Internationally (1986) calls on Member States to adopt effective policies, legislation and controls for the protection of children, children involved in inter-country adoption.

All these instruments have some general principles:

• The principle of subsidiarity by inter-state adoption should only occur when a suitable parent host can not be identified in the child's home country
• The child's best interests should be the most important consideration
• Child placement must be done through a competent authority or institution with the same protection and standards as national adoption
• In any case, there is no adoption result in incorrect financial gain for those involved.

According to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (art 21) and the United Nations Declaration on the Protection and Welfare of Children (art 17) and the Hague Adoption Convention (Opening and Art 4), international adoption should be considered an option if other arrangements (with priority for family and adoptive families ) can not be satisfactorily arranged for a child in their home country (the principle of subsidiarity between national and international adoption). But the international community still disagrees on the point whether the option to be placed in a permanent family setting through international adoption should prevail on an alternative placement of children at a domestic care agency. The UN Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (2000) is an additional international instrument requiring States Parties to ensure that forced adoption is criminalized under national law irrespective of whether the offenses are committed domestically or transnationally, on an individual or organized basis.

UN Declaration on Child Welfare (1986)

United Nations Declaration on Principles of Social and Law relating to the Protection and Welfare of Children, with Special Reference to Support Placement and Adoption Nationally and Internationally adopted by General Assembly resolution 41/85 of the UN Declaration of December 3, 1986. Relating to Child Welfare the child shall, if possible, grow in care and under the responsibility of his or her parents and, in any case, in an atmosphere of affection and moral and material security. "Article 17 confirms the principle of subsidiarity in these terms: "If a child can not be placed in orphanages or foster family or can not in an appropriate way be treated in the country of origin, inter-country adoption may be considered as an alternative means of providing the child with the family." Article 24 requires Member States to consider the background and cultural and aga interests ma child. The Declaration encourages States not to accelerate the adoption process. Article 15 states, "Sufficient time and adequate counseling shall be given to the child's own parents, the prospective adoptive parent and, as appropriate, the child to reach a decision on the future of the child."

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child marks a turning point in international law on the rights of children who recognize the child as an active subject of international law whose views must be considered when dealing with matters affecting him (art.12). The principle of the child's best interests should be a primary consideration in all actions concerning children, whether committed by public or private social welfare agencies, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies (art. 3). This same principle will be the most important consideration as well when States Parties recognize and/or permit an adoption system. In particular, article 21 requires that States Parties "ensure that the adoption of a child is only authorized by the competent authorities to determine that adoption is permissible in view of the status of children concerning parents, relatives and legal guardians and that, where necessary, persons have placed their informed consent for adoption, and the placement of children should also not result in unfair financial benefits to those involved (article 21.d).

The Hague Adoption Convention (1993)

Recognizing some of the difficulties and challenges associated with international adoption, and to protect those involved from the occasional corruption, violation and exploitation, in 1993 the Hague Conference on Private International Law developed the Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respecting Adoption of Inter-States. This Convention came into force in May 1995.

As of March 2013, there are 90 States Parties to the Convention. Korea, Haiti, Nepal and the Russian Federation are signatories but have not yet ratified them.

In light of previous multilateral instruments, which include several provisions on inter-country adoption, the Hague Adoption Convention is the main multilateral instrument governing international adoption. It calls for direct coordination and cooperation between countries to ensure that appropriate safeguards promote the best interests of the child (Article 1) and prevent the kidnapping, selling, or trafficking of children.

The Convention also requires that all processes be endorsed by the central adoption authority appointed by the contracting states. (Chapter III of the Convention outlines the roles and responsibilities of this authority.) If it is fully implemented at the national level, the Convention also offers a risk-protection framework that is potentially implicit in personal adoption (when adoptive parents establish provisions of direct adoption with biological parents or with institutions children stationed in the home country, without recurrence to an accredited adoption service provider).

The Convention allows the state to decide which public institutions are central adoption authorities (whose oversight and authorization are necessary to continue adoption (Article 17) and which other bodies should be accredited as adoption service providers (Article 9) If implemented at the national level, the Convention also offers a framework of protection against potentially implied risks in private adoption (when adoptive parents set direct adoption requirements with biological parents, without recurrence to accredited agencies).

Implementation and Operation of the 1993 Interagency Adoption Convention ****: A Guide to Good Practice provides guidance for the operation, use and interpretation of the Convention. The Convention is very important because it provides international and intergovernmental international recognition of inter-country adoption, working to ensure that adoption under the Convention is recognized in other countries.

To comply with international standards, many changes have been introduced in national laws that enact legislation to criminalize acts of improper advantage from inter-country adoption. But examples of children's trade and sales for adoption purposes continue to take place in many parts of the world. Particularly during emergency situations, natural disasters or conflicts, it has been found that children are adopted without following appropriate legal procedures and are at risk of becoming victims of trafficking and sales. It has also been raised the issue that excessive bureaucracy of the adoption process - following the implementation of the Hague Adoption Convention - may set additional barriers to the placement of children.

src: highlightsalongtheway.com

Domestic and regional legal orders

Africa

Much interest is shown for international adoption cases in Africa especially after published stories about African adoption of children by celebrities such as Madonna and Angelina Jolie. The legal framework of adoption in general and international adoption is particularly available throughout Africa and may vary from country to country. The following description of legal provisions applied by African countries reflects a diverse but not comprehensive view of how international adoption questions are addressed on the African continent. The focus is on countries with direct accessible bibliographic sources.

Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

On 25 September 2013, the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo imposed a deferred exit consent for the adopted children of Congo that prevented adopted children from being allowed to leave the country with their adoptive parents. Although the Congolese courts continue to issue new adoption decisions, this is currently not recognized by the Congolese immigration service, Direction Generale de Migration (DGM), which controls entry points. Congolese officials say the suspension will remain in effect until parliament enacts a new law reforming the adoption process. Due to suspension, the US State Department announced on October 6, 2014, that it is strongly advised not to adopt from the current DRC.

According to the DRC Family Code, adoption has the same rights as a biological child in a host family. Links with the original family are maintained. This regime is applied for simple adoption. As far as international adoption is concerned, the DRC Act does not provide specific definitions; but judicial practice adopted the adoption of Congolese children by foreign parents. The basic principles for adoption are determined by Law no. 09/001 starting January 10, 2009 regarding child protection, as follows:

• All children are entitled to adoption
• Adoption of a child by a stranger can only occur when the authorities of the country of origin:

1. It has been verified, after checking the social conditions in the home country that adoption should be done in the best interests of the child.
2. Have confirmed that:
   1. Approval for adoption is not granted in return for any kind of payment or compensation and that this agreement is not taken later.
   2. Children's wishes and opinions have been calculated according to their age and maturity level
   3. The consent disclosed by the child to their adoption, when required, is declared freely in the manner required by law, and that this agreement is given or recorded in writing

As to the conditions to be fulfilled in the host country for a valid international adoption, article 19 of the Child Protection Code makes it clear that the host country must state that:

• Future parents are eligible and able to adopt children
• The adopted child is authorized to enter and stay permanently in the host country

However, although international adoption is permissible in meeting the above-mentioned requirements, section 20 of the DRC Child Protection Code denies the right to adoption to homosexuals, pedophiles and mentally ill persons.

Ethiopia

Existing data show that, in Africa, Ethiopia has the highest number of adoptions into US families. Ethiopia does not make short or long residencies in Ethiopia, the precondition for adoption of children. However, the Ethiopian authorities usually expect a prospective parent to travel to Ethiopia before completing the adoption process before a local court. The main requirements for international adoption in Ethiopia include:

• Age limit: Foster parents in the future must be at least 25 years of age and maximum 65 years old. Also, the age difference between adopted children and adoptive parents should not exceed 40 years.
• Marriage: prospective adoptive parents who married for more than 5 years may have a better chance of adopting a child in Ethiopia. Unmarried women have recently been given the right to adopt a child in Ethiopia but unmarried men can not adopt unless they are of Ethiopian descent.
• Financial Capacity: parents who want to adopt a child in Ethiopia must prove their financial ability before a local court. However, no minimum level of income is required at this time.

As in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the adoption of children by gay or lesbian or couples individuals is prohibited under Ethiopian Law.

Burkina Faso

As part of the Hague Convention on Child Protection and Cooperation in Respecting the Inter-States Adoption (Ad Hado Adoption Convention), international adoption in Burkina Faso is carried out in accordance with the Hague Convention and its implementing regulations in Burkina Faso. The requirements for adoption in Burkina Faso are as follows:

• Residency: there is no residency requirement for parents living abroad. For those living in Burkina Faso, a 2-year residency minimum is required
• Age: adopt parents must be 32 to 55 years old and at least 15 years older than the child they want to adopt.
• Marriage: To adopt a partner must be legally married for at least 5 years.
• Earnings: Parents who are trying to adopt a child must include in their application proof of sufficient funds to care for the child.

In common practice, homosexuals are forbidden for adoption of children in Burkina Faso even though they are not specifically written in the law.

Asia

According to recent research, certain Asian countries have become a major source of inter-country adoption, China, India, the Republic of Korea (South Korea), Vietnam, etc. But Asian countries have different legal frameworks of inter-country adoption.

Mainland_China_and_Hong_Kong_SAR "Mainland China and Hong Kong SAR

Since China has been a party to the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respecting the Intergovernmental Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention) from 1 January 2006, all adoptions between China and other countries must comply with the requirements of the domestic Convention and domestic legislation. Membership Adoption The Hague Convention is also applied to the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong as it is the territory of the People's Republic of China.

At the international level, China also has bilateral agreements with certain countries, including Australia (Family Law (Bilateral Agreement - Inter-country Adoption) Regulation 1998) etc.

Domestically, China has two main legislation directly responsible for international adoption. One is the Adoption of the Law of the People's Republic of China (Revised), which deals with general adoption issues. Article 21 is specifically concerned with international adoption. Another document is the Action for the Adoption of Adoption of Children by Foreigners in the People's Republic of China, which deals only with the issue of international adoption. In addition, Article 26 in the Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China, also defines adoption in China in general. Other relevant documents are Steps from the China Center for Adoption of Affairs for Overseas Adoption Organization Authorization to Locate Adoptive Families for Children with Special Needs By law, the Chinese Child Welfare and Adoption Center (CCCWA) (different from the Chinese Adoption Center (CCAA ) is the only institution authorized by the Chinese government to regulate and process all intercountry adoptions from China, and China requires that all inter-country adoptions be addressed through governmental approval, not individual applications.

Taiwan

Has been one of the main sources of adopted children, but Taiwan does not take sides with the Hague Convention on Child Protection and Cooperation in Respecting Inter-City Adoption (Ad Hoc Adoption Convention).

Domestically, Taiwan has enacted the Protection and Child Rights and Child Rights Act since May 30, 2012. And in accordance with the Act, all adoption cases in Taiwan must consider national adopters as a priority. In addition, all cases of international adoption should be matched through law enforcement matching service agents. Unless the colleague is almost the same in the six-degree kinship of the relative and the five-degree kinship of a relative with a marriage, or one of the spouses adopts the other party's children. Taiwan organizations that provide international adoption services work with foreign agencies or government authorities, not individuals.

Republic of Korea (South Korea)

The Republic of Korea (South Korea) is not a party to the Hague Adoption Convention. South Korean law requires the adoption of an adoption agency for the overseas adoption of all Korean orphans, and requires it to be authorized by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs.

On May 24, 2013, he signed the Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect for Inter-State Adoption (Convention). This is the first step for South Korea to become a partner of the Convention. Adoption between the United States and South Korea, however, has not been subject to the requirements of the Convention and relevant implementing laws and regulations. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, which will be designated as South Korean Central Authority, no date is set when South Korea will submit its instruments of ratification or when the Convention will come into force in connection with South Korea.

Domestically, the Special Republic Adoption Act of the Republic of Korea (ROK), which regulates inter-state adoption of South Korea, entered into force on 5 August 2012. This law prioritizes domestic adoption and efforts to reduce the number of South Korean children adopted abroad. Under the Special Adoption Act, any inter-country adoption requires the consent of the ROK Family Court.

India

India is a party to the Hague Convention on Child Protection and Cooperation in Respecting the Interbational Adoption (The Hague Adoption Convention).

In January 2011, India implemented a new procedure to provide more centralized inter-country adoption processing. In addition to the new guidelines, prospective adoptive parents must be aware of all Indian laws applicable to inter-country adoption. A child may be legally placed with a prospective adoptive parent under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act of 1956 (HAMA), The Guardians and Wards Act of 1890 (GAWA), or Juvenile Justice (Care and Child Protection) Act of 2000 (JJA).

Vietnamese

Vietnam is a party to the Hague Convention on Child Protection and Cooperation in Respecting the Inter-Country Adoption (Ad Hoc Adoption Convention).

Domestically, the Government of Vietnam has announced the Adoption Law and entered into force from 1 January 2011. It contains 53 Articles, and discusses both domestic and inter-state adoption. Article 14 of Vietnam law outlines the requirements for adopting users, which also applies to foreign adoptive parents.

Europe

Since the 1970s, European countries such as Spain, France, Italy and some Scandinavian countries have experienced a considerable increase in demand for adopted children from non-European countries as a result of the number of national children available for adoption. Gender studies also show that this is the result of a modern trend in Northern North that delayed the conception of the first child, which increases the risk of diminished fertility and demand for adoption. However, recent data suggest a stabilization or even decline of inter-country adoption. From one side it has been argued that this is the result of decreasing causes of neglect, the implementation of social policies for the sake of families, the lack of stigmatization of unmarried mothers, economic development and increased national adoption in key source countries.. On the other hand it has also considered the outcomes of new regulations and policies adopted by some countries of origin (eg Romania) aimed at regulating the flow of children and preventing trafficking in children. But the trend is different from one country to another. Between 2000 and 2005, for example Spain, France and Italy have increased international adoption by 70%, while in Switzerland and in Germany they have declined and in Norway remained stable.

European Council

Enforcement and enforcement of international standards and the laws governing adoption depend on how the authorities in each contracting country interpret international instruments and implement their provisions. European rules and practices on this matter vary from country to country. Efforts to harmonize adoption laws among the Member States of the Council of Europe were made with the European Convention on Adoption of Children (1967), which came into force in April 1968. In 2008 a revised version of the European Convention on Adoption of Children was prepared by the Party The work of the Family Law Expert Committee under the authority of the European Committee on Legal Cooperation within the framework of the Council of Europe. The Convention was opened for signature on November 27, 2008. In November 2013, the 1967 Convention was ratified by 18 of the 46 Member States of the Council of Europe, while 3 Member States were but not yet ratified. As for the revised Convention, only 9 countries have signed and 7 are signed and ratified. The European Convention establishes general principles that should govern adoption. The Convention sets out procedures that affect its adoption and legal consequences to reduce difficulties in promoting the welfare of adopted children caused by differences in laws and practices among European countries. Among the important provisions, the Convention stipulates that adoption should be provided by competent judicial or administrative authorities (art. 4), that biological parents should freely approve adoption (art. 5) and that adoption should be in the best. interests of the child (art.8). Any ill-advised financial benefits arising from the adoption of a child are prohibited (art.15).

European Union

In European Union regulations, references to inter-state adoption are made in article 4 of the 2003/86/EC Council Directive on 22 September 2003 on the right to family reunification. This article regulates the immigration of third-country children who adopt as long as the parent is established as a third citizen within the EU. EU Member States permit admission and adoption of adopted children in accordance with a decision taken by the competent authority of the Member State concerned. Entries may also be authorized by decisions that are automatically enforceable due to international obligations of Member States or must be recognized in accordance with international obligations (art. 4 (b)). With ratification and adoption of the Hague Adoption Convention, European countries have developed training for social workers in charge of providing services related to international adoption. They have appointed competent specialists and created a centralized control system (eg Italy and Germany). In Switzerland, on the other hand, procedural bureaucratization has been deemed to have slowed down the process leading to a decline in the number of adopted children. Traditionally in Spain, France and Switzerland, adoptive parents may choose between two paths to implement international adoption: refers to the intermediation of accredited bodies - most of the time private organizations - and with the supervision of the central adoption authorities appointed by the state, or opt for personal adoption without reference to intermediaries. In Italy and Norway the second option, considered a "personal adoption", is prohibited. In Italy for example, all international adoptions must be regulated by a competent body accredited by national law. The only exceptions are granted to the prospective adoptive partner in which one spouse is a native of the child's home country, or to an Italian family who has lived a long time in the country and has a significant relationship with the culture. In both cases their demand for international adoption can be sent to the International Social Service, an international non-profit organization active in more than 100 countries through branch networks, affiliated bureaus and correspondents, without recurring to accredited national corpses. France and Germany have recently adopted the third path, creating public bodies that simultaneously carry on the role of formal intermediaries and in practice carrying out the functions of central adoption authorities. The data show that in all European countries, both legally banning and letting it, private adoption practices are widespread and have raised concerns especially in relation to the risks of child trafficking. Many European countries have signed bilateral agreements with children's adopted nations (eg Spain with Philippines and Bolivia, France with Vietnam). By law, bilateral agreements can not ignore the guarantees afforded by the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Hague Adoption Convention.

North America

United States

The United States (US) is bound by both domestic and international law regarding adoption of children. The law covers US families who adopt children from abroad, and families abroad who adopt US-born children. Many US children are adopted abroad. Families in the US adopted 8,668 children from abroad in 2012.

There are several international agreements and conventions governing the adoption of children between countries. If possible, the US prefers to enter into multilateral agreements on bilateral agreements, due to difficulties in getting the Senate to ratify international treaties.

• The Inter-American Convention on Legal Conflict Regarding the Adoption of Underage Children, 1984 (US not signed or ratified)
• US bilateral agreement with Viet Nam on September 1, 2005
• United Nations General Assembly Declaration on Social and Legal Principles Relating to the Adoption and Stipulation of National and International Placement of Children (adopted without a vote)
• The Hague Adoption Convention on Child Protection and Cooperation in Respecting the Interbational Adoption (The Hague Adoption Convention). The US has agreed (signed) but the Senate has not ratified the Hague Convention. The United States also makes a statement that this Convention does not replace Title 18, United States Code, Section 3190 relating to documents submitted to the United States Government to support extradition requests.
• United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The US signed (February 16, 1995) but the Senate has not ratified because of the state's right to execute children (minors are tried as adults). This was deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2005, but the Senate has not reversed its position.

The US State Department makes a list of related legal documents on adoption. In particular, the 2000 Inter-American Adoption Act incorporates the Hague Convention into domestic law. The law provides for requirements for internationally adopted US children. Paragraph 97.3 (Ã,§97.3) sets out the requirements for an internationally adopted US child in a country which has also ratified the Hague Convention.

The eligibility of families to adopt from other countries is quite similar to the requirements of domestic adoption, with additions to citizenship, visas, and immigration. This is described in the booklet Inter-Country Adoption from A to Z .

The Department of Foreign Affairs provides an interactive map detailing US adoption rates since 1999 by several categories.

src: adoptionnetwork.com

Reform efforts

Because of the other obvious appeals and difficulties presented by international adoption, the reform movement sought to influence governments to adopt rules that serve the best interests of children and meet the interests of foster and biological family members. Significant progress has been made in upgrading international adoption regulations.

Adopting a family in general has a variety of motivations, including infertility, being the same sex partner or single parent (a family considered by some conservatives unsuitable for raising children), and not wanting to contribute to the overpopulation of the human population. International adoption may have additional motivation, including reducing the likelihood that biological family members will later challenge adoption or interference in a child's life, saving a child from a life of poverty (seen by some as degrading or even neo-colonialist), and "saving" a children in the religious sense convert them to family religion (not necessarily considered beneficial by people of different religions or non-religions). In particular, evangelical Christians have been urged to adopt internationally in addition to having large biological families. International adoption generates additional controversy in which children will be raised in different cultures or religions than they were born, or by parents of different ethnicities, especially where this will be visually obvious to others in society (which can cause children to stigmatization or discrimination). Some adoptions compensate for attitudes or troubled practices in countries of origin, such as neglect of girls and children with disabilities or serious medical problems, or for economic or aesthetic reasons.

Given the adoption in harsh terms of the market, the global demand for adopting babies is higher than the natural supply available; most children available for adoption are school age. This incompatibility encourages international adoption because domestic supply is exhausted, but also creates financial incentives to identify younger children to adopt, especially in developing countries and those with high levels of community corruption or poor law enforcement. Certain aspects of international adoption make it easy for agents and child recruiters to commit fraud, including distance, language barriers, difficulty enforcing international cross-border law, and adoption agency contracts that deny responsibility for faulty biographical details. Harassment that impacts on adoption decisions that legislation, treaties, and reform efforts seek to stop including representing a child as an orphan when the parent is alive, representing an orphaned childless child when there are large family members willing to adopt, representing a child for being poorer than the truth, misrepresenting a child for not having the siblings they will leave behind, representing biological parents that permanent adoption is actually a program to send their children to developed countries for educational opportunities, and not to disclose that biological parents (possibly illegally) are paid to relinquish custody of their children.

src: childrenandthelawblog.com

After disaster

Special notes for international adoption are campaigns for post-disaster adoption such as hurricanes, tsunamis, and wars. Often there is an outpouring of adoption proposals in such cases from foreigners who want to give home to needy children. Although adoption may be a way to provide a stable and loving family for needy children, it is also advisable that immediate adoption after trauma or upheaval may not be the best option. Moving children too quickly into new homes among strangers may be a mistake because it could be that parents are safe and can not find children or there may be relatives or neighbors who can offer housing and homes. Providing security and emotional support may be better in the situation than direct relocation to a new host family. There is an increased risk, immediately after the disaster, that abandoned and/or orphaned children may be more vulnerable to child exploitation and trafficking.

src: allgodschildren.org

See also

• Effect of adoption on the birth mother
• International adoption for South Korean children
• List of international adoption scandals

src: www.hollywoodreporter.com

References

src: allgodschildren.org

Further reading

• Rosenberg, Elinor B., Adoption Life Cycle: their children and family for years , New York: Free Press; Toronto: Maxwell Macmillan Canada; New York: Maxwell Macmillan International, 1992. ISBN: 0-02-927055-3.

src: consideringadoption.com

External links

• adoption101.com
• http://forums.adoption.com/international-adoption/
• The Hague Conference - Convention 29 May 1993 on Child Protection and Cooperation in Inter-City Adoption
• David M. Smolin - Childwashing: How the Interagency Adoption System Legitimizes and Incentives on Buying, Trafficking, Kidnapping and Stealing Kids Practices.

Source of the article : Wikipedia