Archive for May 23rd, 2011

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Changes to Ukrainian adoption laws

May 23, 2011

As some of you dear readers no doubt have considered adoption in Ukraine, certainly looking at my historical posts on the issue, the statistics seem to show there is an interest, the laws defining who can and cannot adopt a Ukrainian child/citizen have changed.

No dramatic changes as far as foreigners are concerned –

Interfax-Ukraine
The Ukrainian parliament has banned from adopting children by people who cannot be left without someone’s care, stateless persons and persons who got married to those people who cannot adopt under Ukrainian law.

On May 19 the parliament endorsed amendments to the Family Code of Ukraine.

The law establishes a ban on adoption of children by people who cannot be left without someone’s care, stateless persons and persons who got married to those people who cannot adopt under Ukrainian law.

The law permits adoption without the consent of parents if they did not take a child for two months.

The law says that a child who is a citizen of Ukraine can be adopted by foreigners if the child is on files of a central executive power body empowered to settle adoption issues and protection of children rights and if the child reaches five-year age.

According to the law, the adoption can be finished before the said term expires and before the child reaches five-year age if the adoptive father or mother is a relative of the child and if the child suffers from a disease that is put on a list of diseases approved by the Health Ministry. The adoption also can be finished before the said term expires and before the child reaches five-year age if all brothers and sisters are adopted by one family and if foreigners want to adopt a child who is a brother of a sister of their earlier adopted child.

It seems the procedure has not really changed other than insuring the child you wish to adopt is on the central register.