What is intercountry adoption?

Adoption is a formal legal process in which all the parental rights and responsibilities relating to a child are transferred to the adoptive parent(s). This means that the adopted child is treated under the law as though the adopter(s) are the child’s birth parent(s).

The adoption of a child from overseas is also known as an intercountry adoption. This is a process that allows a parent(s) who lives in one country to adopt a child who lives in another country enabling them to bring the child to their country of residence.

Who is eligible to adopt a child from overseas?

An individual or a couple habitually resident in England and Wales and over 21 years of age can adopt a child from overseas if:

1. The child cannot be cared for in a safe environment in their own country;
2. The adoption would be in the child´s best interests and would not affect their human rights; and
3. The person(s) has been assessed as eligible and suitable to adopt from overseas by an adoption agency in England and Wales.

The approval process

Intercountry adoption is governed by UK legislation and regulations in order to safeguard children, birth families and prospective adopters. If a person(s) is seeking to adopt a child from overseas, they must either contact an adoption agency that is part of their local council, or a voluntary adoption agency to submit an application.

As part of the adoption process, the social worker will carry out several checks in respect of the adopter(s) and their home. Once the adopter(s) has been assessed as suitable to adopt, the application will be sent to the Department for Education for processing. The Department for Education will then issue a Certificate of Eligibility which will be sent overseas to the country the adopter(s) wish to adopt from and the adopter(s) will be placed on a waiting list.

The approval process can take up to six months and how long a person(s) will wait to be matched with a child will vary. Once matched with a child, the adopter(s) will need to visit the child in their own country on at least one occasion and will also be required to accompany the child into the UK.

The legalities

There are two types of inbound intercountry adoptions:

1. A Convention Adoption whereby the child and the adopter(s) are habitually resident in different countries both of which are contracting states to the 1993 Hague Convention and the adoption is affected under the Convention;
2. “Other” which are intercountry adoptions not effected under the terms of the Convention.  

The Hague Convention provides a framework for the process of intercountry adoptions which is aimed at protecting the best interests of the child and establishes a system of cooperation between contracting countries to prevent the abduction, sale or the trafficking of children.

If the adopter(s) completes an intercountry adoption under the Hague Convention, their legal parentage is usually recognised in other Hague signatory countries and the adopter(s) will be considered the child’s legal parents. Should an intercountry adoption not automatically be recognised, then the adopter(s) will not be considered the child´s legal parents. If the adopter(s) is not automatically recognised, then it will be necessary to seek a Recognition Order or a Domestic Adoption Order under the Adoption and Children Act 2002.

How Pinney Talfourd can help

If you require any assistance, please contact the Family Department at Pinney Talfourd today to arrange a free initial consultation and discuss your next steps.

To contact us, please call 01708 229 444 and we will be happy to address any queries you may have. Alternatively, if you wish to get in contact via email, please direct all correspondence to mail@pinneytalfourd.co.uk.