Adoption

Intercountry Adoption

To adopt a child from another country, Manitoba residents must apply through a licensed adoption agency or a Child and Family Services office. You will have to pay fees to the agency, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, organizations in the child's country and possibly for other aspects of the adoption process.

Adoptive parents need to select the country from which they wish to adopt. Intercountry adoptions are regulated under provincial adoption laws, federal immigration laws, and the laws of the child's country of origin.

Usually, the adoptive parents travel to the child's country to receive their child. Most adoptions are completed in the child's country. The adoption laws of the child's country will determine the process to be followed.

Intercountry adoptions that are completed in Manitoba follow the requirements of an Adoption of a Permanent Ward. An adoption social worker with a Child and Family Services office will supervise the placement for at least 6 months. The worker will prepare documentation needed to legalize the adoption in court. A lawyer is not required.

Some intercountry adoptions need the approval of authorities in both countries before they can be completed. In these cases, the Director of Child and Family Services in Manitoba will review and approve the adoption proposal on behalf of the Manitoba applicants.

Adoption authorities in the child's country are responsible for deciding which child to propose to a person or couple. Children eligible for adoption in other countries may be infants, toddlers, or older children. Frequently, children are orphaned or abandoned, often living in orphanages.

While international adoption can be very rewarding, adoptive parents need to be aware that the children have special needs, often due to inadequate prenatal care, not enough interaction with caregivers, health problems, malnutrition or other difficult early life experiences.

After returning to your home with your child, most countries require progress reports of how the child is doing in your family and environment.

People planning to adopt through intercountry adoption must also arrange for sponsorship of a child to Canada through Citizenship and Immigration Canada. This is typically done after your homestudy is approved and you have determined from which country you wish to adopt.

The Hague Convention

In May 1993, Canada was one of 66 countries to reach an agreement on The Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (the Hague Convention). Canada ratified the Hague Convention in December 1996, and it came into force in Manitoba on April 1, 1997; its provisions are law in Manitoba.

The Hague Convention establishes co-operation between the countries of origin of children in need of adoption and their receiving countries to protect the child's best interests. The objective is to prevent abuses such as the abduction, sale of, or trafficking in children or any other improper financial gains. It also ensures proper consent to the adoption, allows for the child's transfer, and establishes the adopted child's status in the receiving country.

The Hague Convention applies only when the child to be adopted lives in a country that has signed the Convention, and when the prospective adoptive parents live in a province or territory, such as Manitoba, that has also implemented the Convention. (View a list of the participating countries and provinces).

Note: In countries that have implemented the Hague Convention, you cannot arrange adoptions privately without the involvement of the Central Authorities in both countries. In Manitoba, the Central Authority is this department's Director of Child and Family Services.

For more information...

If you would like more information on adoption, visit our Frequently Asked Questions page or contact the adoption department of a Child and Family Services agency or a licensed adoption agency. A worker will explain adoption to you in detail, and answer any specific questions you may have.

More information on International Adoption and the Hague Convention is also available on the International Adoption page of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada Web site.