Chapter 7 - Required Order of Immigration and Adoption Steps
A. General
The prospective adoptive parent (PAP) must follow the adoption and U.S. immigration process in a specific order.[1] Specifically, a PAP should not adopt or obtain legal custody of a child for purposes of emigration and adoption before completing certain steps in the Hague Adoption Convention process.[2] The list below highlights the key steps and the order in which they must generally be completed.[3]
| Step | Description |
|---|---|
| Step 1 | The PAP chooses a U.S. accredited or approved adoption service provider. |
| Step 2 | The PAP obtains a home study from a home study preparer authorized to complete an intercountry adoption home study.[4] |
| Step 3 | The PAP files a suitability application with USCIS to be found suitable and eligible to adopt a child from a Convention country.[5] |
| Step 4 | The PAP obtains a proposed adoptive placement for a child who is eligible for intercountry adoption with the Central Authority of the child’s country of origin. |
| Step 5 | The Central Authority of the child’s country of origin matches the child with the PAP, issues an Article 16 letter,[6] and the PAP accepts the match. |
| Step 6 | The PAP files a petition[7] with USCIS to have the child found provisionally eligible to be classified as a Convention adoptee under U.S. immigration law.[8] |
| Step 7 | After USCIS provisionally approves the petition, the PAP applies to the U.S. Department of State (DOS) for an immigrant visa for the child. |
| Step 8 | DOS reviews the petition and visa application to determine whether there appear to be any visa ineligibilities and whether the placement took place in compliance with the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 and with the Hague Adoption Convention. |
| Step 9 | DOS notifies the Central Authority of the child’s country of origin of the Step 8 determination by issuing an Article 5/17 letter, indicating that the adoption may be proceed and the child appears authorized to enter and reside permanently in the United States.[9] |
| Step 10 | After DOS issues the Article 5/17 letter, the PAP completes the adoption or obtains legal custody of the child for the purposes of emigration and adoption. |
| Step 11 | The Central Authority of the child’s country of origin certifies that the adoption or grant of custody occurred in accordance with the Convention.[10] |
| Step 12 | After the PAP completes the adoption or obtains legal custody of the child, DOS reviews and issues a Hague Adoption Certificate or a Hague Custody Certificate and issues final approval of the petition if it is clearly approvable. If DOS cannot issue final approval, the DOS consular officer returns the case to USCIS as not clearly approvable. |
| Step 13 | If the PAP resides in the United States, the PAP obtains a U.S. immigrant visa and brings the child to the United States.[11] |
B. Out-of-Order Adoption or Legal Custody Order
1. Obtaining Legal Custody or Adoption Out of Order
If the PAP adopts or obtains legal custody of the child out of order, before the required immigration processing steps take place, USCIS considers the adoption or custody order to be premature. If the PAP obtained an adoption or custody order prematurely, USCIS generally must deny the petition.[12] USCIS considers an adoption or custody order to be premature when the PAP adopted the child, or obtained custody for purposes of emigration and adoption, before USCIS provisionally approved the petition or before DOS issues the Article 5/17 letter.
The PAP must show that an order obtained prematurely was voided, vacated, annulled, or otherwise terminated, for USCIS to provisionally approve a petition.[13] USCIS may provisionally approve the petition if the PAP can establish that an order obtained prematurely was terminated[14] (no longer in effect) at the time of filing the petition or that laws of the jurisdiction where they obtained the order prevent an adoptive family from terminating a previously finalized adoption.
2. Additional Evidence
If the PAP obtained an order prematurely, the officer should send a Request for Evidence (RFE) or a Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID) asking the PAP to submit:
- A copy of the applicable law governing the termination of adoption and custody orders, as well as a certified English translation of that law; and
- Evidence showing the following:
- The order is no longer in effect, as demonstrated by an order from a competent authority terminating the adoption or custody order; or
- Why the order cannot be terminated (order is still in effect) and why the PAP did not follow the proper sequence.
The PAP may demonstrate the order cannot be terminated by providing both:
- A statement from the Central Authority of the child’s country of origin indicating that, under the law of that country, the petitioner is not able to obtain an order terminating the adoption or custody order; and
- A statement from the PAP, signed under penalty of perjury under U.S. law, explaining why, despite the clearly stated requirements[15] and the warnings on the form instructions,[16] the PAP obtained the adoption or custody order before receiving provisional approval of the (immigration) petition.
If the PAP submits evidence that the order obtained prematurely was terminated, the officer may provisionally approve[17] the petition, if it is otherwise approvable.
Some countries may not have readily available legal mechanisms for terminating adoption or custody orders. If the PAP’s response establishes that the PAP is not able to obtain an order terminating the adoption or custody order obtained prematurely, USCIS adjudicates the petition in light of the fact that the adoption or custody order appears to have been obtained without compliance with the Hague Adoption Convention requirements and related U.S. laws[18] and regulations.
The officer must deny the petition if the evidence of record establishes that the PAP knowingly obtained the adoption or custody order before filing the petition with the specific intent to circumvent the Convention’s requirements, U.S. immigration laws, and the implementing regulations.[19]
Footnotes
[1] If the child is in the United States and will apply for adjustment of status instead of consular processing, also see Volume 7, Adjustment of Status [7 USCIS-PM].
[2] See Articles 4, 5, 16, 17, and 23 of the Hague Adoption Convention (PDF).
[3] For more information, see DOS’s Convention Adoption Process webpage.
[4] See Part A, Adoptions Overview, Chapter 5, Authorized Adoption Service Providers [5 USCIS-PM A.5].
[5] See the Application for Determination of Suitability to Adopt a Child from a Convention Country (Form I-800A)
[6] See Article 16 of the Hague Adoption Convention (PDF).
[7] See the Petition to Classify Convention Adoptee as an Immediate Relative (Form I-800).
[8] The PAP must have an approved Form I-800A before they can file a Form I-800.
[9] See Articles 5 and 17 of the Hague Adoption Convention (PDF).
[10] See Article 23 of the Hague Adoption Convention (PDF).
[11] However, if the child is in the United States and will apply for adjustment of status instead of consular processing, see Volume 7, Adjustment of Status [7 USCIS-PM].
[12] See 8 CFR 204.309(b)(1).
[13] See 8 CFR 204.309(b)(1).
[14] For purposes of this section, the terms terminated, terminating, and termination all refer to adoption or custody orders that are voided, vacated, annulled, or otherwise terminated under the Convention country’s laws.
[15] See 8 CFR 204.309(b)(2).
[16] See instructions for Application for Determination of Suitability to Adopt a Child from a Convention Country (Form I-800A) and Petition to Classify Convention Adoptee as an Immediate Relative (Form I-800).
[17] USCIS may only deem the premature order voiding requirement at 8 CFR 204.309(b)(1) to be met for purposes of provisional approval.
[18] See Section 301(b) of the Intercountry Adoption Act, Pub. L. 106-279 (PDF), 114 Stat. 825, 837 (October 6, 2000).
[19] See 8 CFR 204.309(b)(1).