For a number of years adopting in the USA has been one of the most popular choices for our clients. It is one of the few options for adopting a newborn infant. After the USA ratified the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption on April 1, 2008, there was a great deal of uncertainty about if and how this could continue. We are pleased to say that this has now been favourably resolved.
One of the principles in the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption is that reasonable efforts must be made to find a family for children within their home country before they are eligible for foreign adoption. The US authorities have recently clarified that there is an exception for situations in which birth parents have personally chosen to place a child with a particular foreign family.
Some features of the process now will be:
- The birth parents must choose the adopting parents. Agency staff cannot do this.
- A judge in the USA must issue an order permitting the child to leave the country for the purpose of adoption.
- An adoption agency accredited by the Hague Central Authority in the US must consent to the foreign adoption placement.
- The Hague Central Authority in B.C. must agree to the adoption and issue a Notification of Agreement to Immigration Canada.
For more information on our US program please see the Intercountry USA page.