Who Can Adopt a Haitian Child?
Haiti is not party to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention). Therefore, when the Hague Adoption Convention entered into force for the United States on April 1, 2008, intercountry adoption processing for Haiti did not change.
Haitian law does not allow for a Haitian child to travel to the United States to be adopted. Therefore, prospective adoptive parents must obtain a full and final adoption under Haitian law before the child can immigrate to the United States. Prospective adoptive parents can expect a lengthy process to adopt a child in Haiti.
Haitian courts, in some jurisdictions such as Port au Prince, require American prospective adoptive parents to travel to Haiti to appear before a justice of the peace in consent proceedings before the adoption is finalized. The U.S. Government does not require adoptive parents to travel to Haiti at any time during the adoption and immigrant visa process. While It is our understanding that this should only take one trip to Haiti to complete the process, the number of trips will depend heavily on the local agents in scheduling and planning on behalf of their clients, the availability of the consenting parties, and of course on the availability of the magistrates.
Updated: January 2010
Haitian law does not allow for a Haitian child to travel to the United States to be adopted. Therefore, prospective adoptive parents must obtain a full and final adoption under Haitian law before the child can immigrate to the United States. Prospective adoptive parents can expect a lengthy process to adopt a child in Haiti.
Haitian courts, in some jurisdictions such as Port au Prince, require American prospective adoptive parents to travel to Haiti to appear before a justice of the peace in consent proceedings before the adoption is finalized. The U.S. Government does not require adoptive parents to travel to Haiti at any time during the adoption and immigrant visa process. While It is our understanding that this should only take one trip to Haiti to complete the process, the number of trips will depend heavily on the local agents in scheduling and planning on behalf of their clients, the availability of the consenting parties, and of course on the availability of the magistrates.
Updated: January 2010
Hope for Haiti's Orphans is the Haitian outreach of Hope for Families, a Florida licensed private adoption agency. We currently work with a specific orphanage in Haiti which is Christian in faith and as such, they have requested that their adoptive eligible children be placed in homes that are practicing the Christian faith. For this reason, we would ask you to provide a statement of your faith for the orphanage to review, together with a recommendation letter from your Pastor, Priest or Minister. We respect the right of the orphanage to place their children into a home that is in harmony with their faith. After all, they are giving their lives to save these children and love them as if they were their own. We ask that you please respect this request of the orphanage as you consider a Haitian adoption.
To bring an adopted child to United States from Haiti, you must be found eligible to adopt by the U.S. Government. The U.S. Government agency responsible for making this determination is the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
In addition to these U.S. requirements for prospective adoptive parents, Haiti also has the following eligibility requirements for prospective adoptive parents:
Residency Requirements: Haitian law does not require prospective adoptive parents to reside in Haiti, although Haitian courts and/or the Institut du Bien Etre Social et de Recherches (IBESR, the Haitian adoption authority) may require American prospective adoptive parents to travel to Haiti before the adoption is finalized. The U.S. Government does not require adoptive parents to travel to Haiti at any time during the adoption and immigrant visa process.
Age Requirements: Under Haitian law, the prospective adoptive parent must be 35 or older. For married couples, one prospective adoptive parent may be under age 35, provided the couple has been married for ten years and has no biological children. The adoptive parent must be at least 19 years older than the child they intend to adopt. These restriction can be waived with permission from the President of Haiti.(please see note below on “Waiver of Ineligibility.”)
Marriage Requirements: Adoptions by married couples require the consent of both spouses. This restriction can be waived with permission from the President of Haiti. (please see note below on “Waiver of Ineligibility.”)
Note: U.S. immigration procedures still require the signature of both spouses on the USCIS Form I-600 (Petition to Classify Orphan as Immediate Relative).
Other Requirements: Haitian law permits adoptions by single parents, provided they meet the age requirements.
Waiver of Ineligibility: While Presidential waivers of ineligibility are sometimes issued, they are difficult to obtain and require a lengthy period of time to process. Prospective adoptive parents who do not fit the guidelines should consider not adopting in Haiti.
It is the mission of HOPE FOR FAMILIES ADOPTIONS to fully inform you so that you can make the best choices for your vision of family and life circumstances. After considering the previous information, please request information or ask us specific adoption questions by clicking on the link below so we can help you
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call at (772) 429-3334
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