Archive for the ‘US embassy’ Category

Adoption Alert: Ethiopia

Thursday, December 16th, 2010

Adoption Processing at the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa

December 7, 2010

The Department of State continues to be concerned about reports highlighting adoption related fraud, malfeasance, and abuse in Ethiopia, and acknowledges the concerns expressed by families over the integrity of the adoption process.  The U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa actively tracks all adoption visa cases, incorporating information provided by adoption agencies and the Government of Ethiopia, to ensure that the adoption process continues to operate transparently and ethically.

The Ethiopian government requires that adoptive parents must appear at the Ethiopian federal court hearing for their adoptive child in order for the adoption to be approved.  If there are two adoptive parents but only one parent can attend the hearing, special permission from the federal court must be obtained in advance,* and the attending parent must have a power of attorney from the other.  It generally takes three weeks or more after the court date for the adoption agency to obtain the documentation necessary for an immigrant visa application, including the adopted child’s birth certificate and Ethiopian passport.  Adoptive parents can expect to wait at least one month after the court hearing for a visa interview appointment.

Adoptive parents should be aware that in all adoption visa cases worldwide, an I-604 investigation must be completed in connection with every I-600 application.  Depending on the circumstances of the case, this investigation may take several weeks or even months to complete.  Additional information may be required to determine the facts surrounding a child’s relinquishment or abandonment and whether a child meets the definition of an orphan under U.S. immigration law.   The Embassy strongly recommends that adoptive parents who return to the U.S. after the court hearing not travel again to Ethiopia for the immigrant visa process until they have confirmed with their adoption agency that the Embassy has scheduled a visa interview.  Those who plan to stay in Ethiopia between the court hearing and interview should obtain Ethiopian visas in advance of travel, and ensure the validity of their visas to avoid immigration proceedings and/or significant fines.

* If only one parent meets the adoptive child before the court date, the child will qualify for an IR-4, not an IR-3 visa (which means that the child will not become a U.S. citizen upon entry to the United States and will have to be re-adopted in the United States).

The Embassy’s Adoptions Unit can be reached at consadoptionaddis@state.gov. Please continue to monitor http://adoption.state.gov/ for updated information.

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Ukraine Adoptions

Thursday, December 9th, 2010

December 9, 2010

On November 3, 2010, a proposed bill that would place a moratorium on intercountry adoptions from countries without bilateral agreements, including the United States passed a first reading in the Ukrainian parliament.  On December 7, the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv learned the proposed moratorium bill has been scheduled for a second reading during the upcoming plenary session on December 16.  As the plenary session does have several important agenda items, this schedule may be subject to change depend­ing on the progress of each issue.

Additionally, the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv was informed that a slight, but possibly important, change was made to the text for the second reading.  The bill originally stated, “intercountry adoptions will not be allowed for the citizens and permanent residents of the countries with which Ukraine does not have bilateral adoption agreements.” The change eliminates the word “bilateral,” which may allow the possibility of multilateral agreements, like the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption, to take the place of bilateral agreements.

The Ukrainian State Department for Adoptions (SDA) has indicated that adoption processing will be conducted as usual until mandated by a change in legislation.

The Department of State cannot predict the outcome of the second reading. However, the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv is active in encouraging its counterparts to consider the Hague Adoption Convention as the best means to address concerns in the adoption process and to safeguard cases in progress.  The Embassy is monitoring the situation closely.  Any prospective adoptive parents with cases currently open in Ukraine are encouraged to contact the U.S. Embassy Kyiv Adoption Unit.  The Embassy maintains a listserv to communicate with U.S. citizen prospective adoptive parents and will use this to send updates as information is available.

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USCIS fees change for I-600

Thursday, December 2nd, 2010

This is to advise that effective November 23, 2010 the adjusted fee for filing the I600 for a non-sibling group will be $720. For more information please visit the USCIS website at www.uscis@state.gov .

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Adoption Notice: Ethiopia

Tuesday, September 7th, 2010

Adoption Processing at the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa
August 27, 2010

 This notice serves as a reminder that as of May 9, 2010, the Ethiopian government requires that adoptive parents must appear at the federal court hearing for their adoptive child in order for the adoption to be approved.  If there are two adoptive parents but only one parent can attend the hearing, special permission from the federal court must be obtained in advance.  If approved, the attending parent must have a power of attorney from the other.  However, please note that if only one parent meets the adoptive child before the court date, the child will be eligible for an IR-4, not an IR-3 visa. This means that if the child qualifies for the issuance of an adoption visa, the child will not become a U.S. citizen upon entry to the United States, but will become a legal permanent resident.

Please be advised that while the Embassy prioritizes adoptions cases, it cannot guarantee expedited processing.  It generally takes three or more weeks after the court date for adoption agencies to obtain the documentation necessary for an immigrant visa application.  In addition, the Embassy is required by law to conduct an I-604 review (Determination on Child for Adoption) in advance of the interview.  Depending on the circumstances of the case, this review may take up to several weeks or even months to complete.

Due to the procedures outlined above, we do not recommend that adoptive parents travel to Ethiopia for an immigrant visa appointment until they have verified with their adoption agency that their visa interview appointment has been confirmed.

We strongly recommend that adoptive parents who plan to stay in Ethiopia between the court hearing and interview obtain an Ethiopian visa in advance of travel, and ensure the validity of their visa to avoid immigration proceedings and/or significant fines.

The Embassy’s Adoptions Unit can be reached at adoptionsaddis@state.gov.

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Change in processing I-600 in Russia

Thursday, March 26th, 2009

We received notice from the US Embassy in Moscow that they will be changing their processing procedures for the I-600 approval. The task of approval has been the responsibility of the USCIS but had been passed on to the State Department employees stationed at the embassies. The USCIS will be reassuming this responsibility as of April 1, 2009 in Moscow. What this means to families presenting their adopted children for final approval and requesting visas to bring their children home is that they will have an additional step than those prior. We hope this will not mean delays but it could possibly lengthen your final trip. What families need to be aware of is that there will be more scrutiny of the medical issues, ages, gender, and number of chilldren matching their home study approval. If they do not match a home study update will be required and a new I-171H given by their local USCIS. We are currently working on procedures to streamline this process.

Posted in I-600, International adoption, Russia, US embassy, USCIS, home study | No Comments »