Adoption Notice: Russia

April 20, 2010

From: U. S. State Department

We have received no official notification that adoptions of Russian orphans by Americans have been suspended, but it is clear the recent controversy has slowed down adoptions in some parts of the country. 

Volcanic ash prevented the U.S. delegation from traveling to Moscow over the April 17^th weekend.  The talks in Moscow between U.S. and Russian officials are now rescheduled for April 29 and 30.  The United States plans to emphasize the importance of this issue, and will discuss our mutual concerns about how to better protect the welfare and rights of children and all parties involved in intercountry adoptions.  Many thousands of Russian children have found loving, safe and permanent homes in the United States through intercountry adoption.  Families in the United States have adopted more than 50,000 children from Russia. 

If you have completed an adoption in Russia and have an immigrant visa appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow: The U.S. Embassy in Moscow is continuing to schedule and issue immigrant visas for adopted children using normal processing procedures.  Contact the Embassy at MoscowConsularR@state.gov to schedule an appointment.  Please also stay in close touch with your adoption service provider. 

If you have a court appointment to finalize your child’s adoption in Russia: Many adoption cases are continuing to move forward in the courts.  We have heard of cases in which a court appointment has been postponed.  If your court appointment is postponed by the court, please provide this information to us by email at RussiaAdoption@state.gov and MoscowConsularR@state.gov.  We will work with the Russian authorities to try to resolve any problems.

If you do not yet have a court date to finalize an adoption in Russia, but are in the process of adopting from Russia:  Please stay in close contact with your adoption service provider, and check the adoption.state.gov website regularly for current information about intercountry adoption from Russia.

The Department of State’s Office of Children’s Issues has established a special e-mail box for inquiries or comments about adoptions from Russia.  Prospective adoptive parents and others with concerns about adoptions from Russia may send their questions to RussiaAdoption@state.gov.  Prospective adoptive parents may also provide complete
contact information for themselves, including full address, phone number, and e-mail information, the name of their adoption service provider (if available) and details about the child they are planning to adopt.

April 15, 2010

From: U.S. State Department

United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) regulations in 8 CFR 204.3(d) require that, in order for Petition to Classify an Orphan as an Immediate Relative (Form I-600) filed by prospective adoptive parent(s) to be approved, the prospective adoptive parent(s) must provide proof of a full and final adoption or custody of the child for emigration and adoption abroad in accordance with the laws of the foreign-sending country. 

The Government of Uganda advised the U.S. Embassy in Kampala on March 16, 2010 that legal orders for guardianship issued by Ugandan courts that do not contain specific language authorizing emigration and overseas adoption should not be construed as sufficient to allow Ugandan children to depart Uganda to be adopted abroad.  In the past, the U.S. Government has treated Ugandan guardianship orders that did not contain such language as sufficient to underpin the approval of the I-600 petition and immigrant visa, but based upon this clarification from the Government of Uganda, explicit language authorizing emigration and adoption abroad must now be included.  Effective immediately, if an I-600 is filed with a guardianship order that does not include authorization for emigration and adoption abroad, the petition will be noted as not clearly approvable and forwarded to USCIS in Nairobi for further adjudication.  However, we understand from USCIS that if the court order does not contain the required language, the petition would not be approved.

Many of you have probably heard the news today that Russia has suspended adoptions to Americans.  We have been notified this morning that the news was aired by mistake, and there has not been an offical announcment about suspension of adoptions in Russia. The delegation from the U.S. State Department is still scheduled to come and discuss the current situation in the Russia Federation next week.   We will be following this situation and will update you as we get further information.  For more information, please go to 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36543759/ns/world_news-europe/

April 14, 2010
Dear fellow FRUA members:

The National Board of Directors of Families for Russian and Ukrainian Adoption, Including Neighboring Countries, is taking the unusual step of contacting you twice in one week because of the potential repercussions of the extraordinary decision by an American parent to return her adopted child to Russia. The incident prompted some top Russian officials to threaten to put a hold on adoptions of Russian children by U.S. families. Sue Gainor, FRUA National Chair, has conducted many media interviews in recent days and has emphasized FRUA’s concern that this one incident could jeopardize the chances of thousands more children in Russian orphanages to join ”forever families” and to thrive, as the overwhelming majority of adoptees have to date.

Below is a Call to Action issued by the Joint Council on International Children’s Services, whose members include many of the adoption agencies authorized to operate in Russia. The FRUA Board wants to make you aware of the initiatives embodied in the Call to Action in the event that you would like to participate in any or all of them. The message in the petition is consistent with FRUA’s general support for measures to avert a suspension of adoptions. The Tell Your Truth request for adoption stories echoes the Love Letters campaign that FRUA sponsored several years ago. Those poignant stories were well-received by Russian officials and media alike.

FRUA will continue to emphasize that our families feel fortunate to have our children and are grateful to their birth countries for entrusting them to our care.

From: Joint Council of International Children’s Services

We Are The Truth

A Campaign and Call to Action

The outrageous treatment of Artyem by his adoptive family has rightfully resulted in outrage by the Governments of Russia and the United States and all who care about children.  The tragedy has cast a light on intercountry adoption that says it is not safe, the system failed and adopted children cause insurmountable problems.  The heartbreak of Artyem Saviliev’s abandonment has once again elevated a singular incident to a level which may result in the suspension of intercountry adoption.  Suspending adoption, even temporarily, will only cause thousands of children to suffer the debilitating effects of life in an orphanage.

You, the community of adoptees, adoptive parents, adoptive grandparents, child welfare professionals and child advocates know that the outrageous and indefensible actions of one parent are not indicative of how children are treated by adoptive families.  You know that families who encounter difficulties do not simply abandon their child.  You know that help is available, that solutions are found and that families can thrive.  And you know that suspending adoption does not protect children but only subjects them to the depravity of an institution…and an entire life without a family. 

You, the adoption community know the truth.  You live the truth.  You are the truth.

Join our campaign to bring the truth to light and help children in need find a permanent and safe family.

What You Can Do

1)      Sign the letter to President Medvedev and President Obama: The letter asks both Presidents to ensure that intercountry adoption continues uninterrupted and to aggressively investigate and prosecute anyone involved in the abuse of children.  You can sign anytime, but doing so before Tuesday night would help us get the letters to both Presidents before President Medvedev leaves the U.S.   To sign the letter, click here.

2)      We Are The Truth – an adoption blogger day: To ensure the world knows about every successful adoption, on Thursday, April 15, 2010 blog about your adoption or the adoption of someone you know.  It doesn’t matter if your adoption is with Russia, domestic or otherwise international.  Let the world know your truth! 

3)      Tell Your Truth with Video – make sure the world sees, hears and feels the thousands of successful adoptions from Russia by:

1. Send Joint Council your successful Russian adoption video via email to alexa.m@jcics.org. 
   • Video should be a maximum of 3 minutes.
   • A release must be sent to Joint Council or we cannot accept your video. For a copy of the release, click here. 
2. Joint Council will translate the video into Russian and post it on our YouTube Channel. 

4)      Tell Your Truth with Words and Photos

1. Send Joint Council your successful Russian adoption story via email to alexa.m@jcics.org.  Send us your stories through:
   • Photos (please do not send more than 10) 
   • Essays (maximum 500 words)
   • A release must be sent to Joint Council or we cannot accept your story and/or pictures.  For a copy of the release, click here. 
2. Joint Council will then compile the stories and pictures, translate them into Russian and post them on our website and/or blog.

5)      Share Your Truth

1. Joint Council will post, forward and share your stories via Facebook, Twitter, and blogs.   Joint Council will be updating our YouTube Channel and Facebook page as the stories get compiled and translated, please subscribe to us on YouTube, Twitter and Fan us on Facebook.
2. You do the same by posting on your Facebook, Twitter, blog and website!

Want to help more?

• Are you willing to speak to the media about your Russian adoption?  If so, please email betheanswer@jcics.org with the following:
  • Your name(s)
  • City, State of residence
  • Contact Phone Numbers
  • Contact Email
  • Short 4 sentence bio about your adoption
• Do you speak Russian?
  • We are in need of individual volunteers who can help our staff translate the videos and text quickly.   If you are interested in helping, email Joint Council at intern@jcics.org.
• Do you live in the Alexandria, VA area?
  • Joint Council is in need of short term volunteers over the next two weeks, email rebeccah@jcics.org if you would like to volunteer.

Dear Families:

As all of you likely know there has been a call for a moratorium on adoptions from Russia to Americans as a result of this woman in Tennessee, who sent her child back to Russia.  Many of you have asked what you can do to promote continuation of the adoptions.  Please see the link to the petition that is being supported in the US promoting this cause.  I encourage all of to review this and if you agree to sign this petition. I have received multiple inquiries from families that have completed their adoption asking what they can do to support the continuation of adoptions.  This brought an outpouring of support. 

On another positive note yesterday in Russia one of their major TV channels aired a panel discussion in regards to this proposed moratorium.  The panel was led by the person in charge of all international adoptions for Russia.  The ultimate conclusion of the panel was supportive.  The head of adoptions was clearly recommending continuation of adoptions to Americans.  This is a very powerful statement supporting our cause.

Please let me know if you have any questions.  I will keep updating you as I gather more information.

Warm regards,

Brent E. Yoder, LCSW

Executive Director

http://www.gopetition.com/online/35485.html

Adoption Options is aware of Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov’s recommendation to put a freeze on adoptions to American families until Russia and the USA sign an international agreement on the conditions for adoptions.  This urging from the Foreign Minister comes after the news that an 8-year-old adopted Russian boy was sent alone on a one-way flight back to Russia with a note from his adoptive mother saying that she was returning him due to severe psychological problems. 

Despite these events, adoptions were completed on Friday and today and Russian adoptions have not been officially closed.  We are monitoring the situation closely and will update all of you if anything changes. 

Our Executive Director, Brent Yoder, met with the KUSI San Diego local news team to discuss the situation in Russia. The segment will air today at 6pm and at 10 pm on KUSI Channel 9.

April 8, 2010

Change in Processing Timeline for Adoption Cases in Ghana

From: U. S. State Department

The U.S. Embassy in Accra, Ghana wishes to advise adoptive parents of procedural changes that may increase the processing time for some adoption cases.   Adoptive parents should be aware that an I-604 (Determination on Child for Adoption, sometimes referred to as “orphan investigation”) must be completed in connection with every I-600 application.  Depending on the circumstances of the case, this investigation may take up to several weeks or even months to complete.  Therefore, adoptive parents should not plan to travel to Ghana until they have confirmed with the U.S. Embassy that their visa interview appointment has been confirmed.

Prospective adoptive parents and adoption service providers are reminded that a consular officer is required, by law, to complete a Form I-604 (determination of orphan status) before issuing a visa in all IR-3 and IR-4 adoption cases.  In some cases this may require only a conversation with the birth parent, but in others it may require a full field investigation possibly lasting several weeks.  Since verifying the parent-child relationships in Ghana is difficult, we also expect that in some cases where the child was relinquished by the birth parent, DNA testing will be recommended in order to establish a blood relationship between the adopted child and claimed birth parent (s).

Adoption agencies are encouraged to submit case paperwork to the U.S. Embassy for review before the Embassy schedules the immigrant visa appointment.  In some cases the I-604 determination could take several weeks or more from the time a case is submitted to the U.S. Embassy to the scheduling of a visa interview appointment.  We understand that in such cases this will result in a longer period before parents are able to bring their adopted children to the U.S.  However, this additional scrutiny is required to ensure that the adoption is legal under both U.S. and Ghanaian law.  The U.S. Embassy will work with adoptive parents and their adoption agency to ensure that each case is processed in the most expeditious manner possible in accordance with laws and regulations.  Families should continue to work through their agency and the Embassy to schedule immigrant visa appointments and answer questions regarding pending cases. 

If families have concerns about their adoption, we ask that they share this information with the Embassy, particularly if it involves possible fraud or misconduct specific to your child’s case.  The Embassy takes all allegations of fraud or misconduct seriously. 

The best way to contact the Embassy is by email at Accraadoption@state.gov.  Please include your name, your child’s name, your adoption agency, the date of the adoption (month and year), and, if possible, the immigrant visa case number for your child’s case (this number begins with the letters ACC followed several numbers and can be found on any document sent to you by the National Visa Center).  Please let us know if we have your permission to share concerns about your specific case with Ghanaian government officials.

We strongly encourage you to register any complaint that you may have about an adoption agency in the following ways:

• You may file a complaint with the state licensing authority where your adoption agency is licensed and conducts business.  The Child Welfare Information Gateway, which is maintained by the Department of Health and Human Services, provides such a list.
• You may also file a report with the state’s Better Business Bureau. 
• If your agency is a Hague-accredited adoption service provider, you are encouraged to file a complaint on the Hague Complaint Registry located at the link below.  This information will be used by the accrediting entities to evaluate the agency in connection with the renewal of its accreditation status.  

The U.S. Embassy continues to work with the Government of Ghana to ensure that appropriate safeguards exist to protect prospective adoptive children, their birth parents, and prospective adoptive parents.  Please continue to monitor adoption.state.gov for updated information.

April 8, 2010

From: U. S. State Department

The Department of Social Development and Welfare (DSDW) has announced that it will not accept new inter-country adoption requests made directly through DSDW for “healthy” orphans from Thailand for 2010.  According to DSDW, there are not many orphans available for intercountry adoption in this category in need of placement.  Therefore, new inter-country adoption requests made directly to DSDW are closed in Thailand for 2010.  Intercountry adoption cases that are currently pending and ongoing may still proceed with the finalization of the adoption, but those cases may experience some delays in matching.  DSDW intends to clear all pending cases before proceeding with any new intercountry adoptions.

DSDW does not believe that the U.S. applicants will be affected because most of the adoption requests by U.S. citizens are submitted through the four non-government organizations, which are not affected by the change.  

Furthermore, the announcement does not affect the following cases:

2010 new requests directly made through DSDW for (a) special needs children (those with Health prolems) and (b) older orphans (ages 5 years and older) – These two orphan categories are still available for intercountry adoption requests that can be made directly to DSDW in 2010.  These categories of orphans receive the fewest number of requests and DSDW has informed the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok that it can continue to process these cases.  Orphans under licensed agencies’ quotas, regardless of special needs (health problems, grown-up orphans ages 5 years and older) – These agencies have a separate quota of orphans available for intercountry adoption.  Therefore, adoption requests made through these licensed agencies will likely not be affected by this policy.  However, this is dependent on each licensed agency’s total number of orphans available for adoption.

Please continue to monitor adoption.state.gov for updated information.

Adoption Options is aware of Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov’s recommendation to put a freeze on adoptions to American families until Russia and the USA sign an international agreement on the conditions for adoptions.  This urging from the Foreign Minister comes after the news that an 8-year-old adopted Russian boy was sent alone on a one-way flight back to Russia with a note from his adoptive mother saying that she was returning him due to severe psychological problems. 

Despite these events, adoptions were completed today and Russian adoptions have not been officially closed.  We are monitoring the situation closely and will post updates as they come.

The Federal Adoption Tax Credit has been improved and extended until December 2011. The maximum credit will increase from $12,150 to $13,170 per eligible child. This credit applies to both domestic and international adoptions and to both special needs and non -special needs adoptions. 

To read the legalese in the bill itself, see page 903 of 906 here.