Adoptions

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Here we will find the necessary information to carry out the corresponding processes.

Items

Legal norms  (espanol/lineas_de_accion/english/adoption2.html)
Adoption (espanol/lineas_de_accion/english/adoption3.html)
Gratuitousness of the adoption
General considerations on the adoption
General conditions to follow an adoption
Who can adopt according to the legal regime
Who can be adopted
Documents which are required to be attached to the request of adoption so that they are studied by the ICBF and institutions authorized to develop the program of adoption
Other information on the process
Form
Places of general information
Countries which are part of the HAYA agreement regarding the child protection and the cooperation in the matter of international adoption
Countries that agreed the APOSTILLE CONVENTION regarding the proceeding suppression
Organisms accredited and international agency for the central authority in Colombia with authorization to accredit adoptions
Statistics of the program of adoptions year 2007 to may 09, 2008 

Orientation guide for adoption in Colombia

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Legal Forms

1. Political Constitution of Colombia Art. 44
2. Decree 2737 of 1989 of the Minor Code
3. International Convention of the Children Rights, and the Agreement Regarding the Children Protection and the Cooperation in the matter of International Adoption undersigned in The Hague.
4. Internal rules of the ICBF 

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Adoption

The concept of adoption is found in article 88 of Decree 2737 of 1989 – Minor Code – defined as: “a protection measure through which under the supreme surveillance of the State, the paternal- filial relation between the people which do not have it by nature, is established in an irrevocable way.”

Adoption is a mechanism which intents to materialize the right of the minor to have a family and therefore, the institution is structured around the superior interest of the child, which rights prevail on those of the others  - CP Art. 42- .

The aim of the adoption is “the establishment of a true family such as the one that exists between the people united by blood  links with all the rights and duties that they share, since “because of the adoption, the adopting party is obliged to take care and assist the adoptive child, to educate him, support him, to love him and to supply to him all the conditions necessary to grow in a welfare environment, affection and solidarity.- sentences C 562 of 1995, C. 477-1999.The Constitutional Court.

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Gratuitousness of the adoption
 
The Colombian norm sets forth by the Minor Code the following prescriptions to be strictly fulfilled:

 “…Neither the Colombian Family Welfare Institute nor the Authorized Institutions by this one to develop adoption programs can collect directly or indirectly any retribution for the handling of a minor to be adopted. In any event, any compensation can be given to the parents because of the giving their children to be adopted or to perform any pressure on them to obtain their consent…”

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General considerations on the adoption
 
The adoption has two stages:
The administrative one which is followed before the ICBF to declare the child adoptable.
Judiciary: the adoption is decreed through a judiciary sentence in the Family Courts which sentence duly executed establishes the paternal- filial relation.
The technical alignments are a tool through which the ICBF has the possibility to select the families who will guarantee a stable and sure home with a harmonic development for the child.

A high priority proceeding is given to those requesting children with physical, mental or sensorial disabilities, the groups of more than two children, the native children who enjoy  of special protection and the ones older than 7 years, all of them enjoy of a high priority and  immediate proceeding for their family assignment.

Adoption is irrevocable

The adoptive child will bear the last names of the adoptive parents
Through the adoption, adopting and adoptive will cease to belong to their biological family and all consanguinity kinship is extinguished.
The processes which will be followed in the ICBF regarding the adoptions are totally free. 

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General conditions to follow an adoption

• To be twenty five years old
• To have at least 15 years more than the adoptable child
• To guarantee physical, mental, moral and social aptitude enough to supply a sure and stable home to the children

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Who can adopt according to the legal regime

• The spouses
• The couple conformed by a man and a woman
• The adopting parties who have legitimate children, extra-marriage or adoptive do not have any prohibition to request an adoption.
• People who are 25 years old.

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Who can be adopted?

Minors of less than 18 years declared in an abandon situation or those which adoption has been allowed previously by their parents or authorized by the family defender, when the minor is not placed in an abandon situation and is lacking of a legal representative.

Minors of less than 18 years also, whenever and when the adopting party has had the personal care of the adoptable before this one turned to be 18 years old. Art. 92 of the Minor Code.

The child of one of the spouses can be adopted by the other one.

The pupil – adoptable – can be adopted by his caretaker once that the accounts have been approved.

The minor code prohibits the adoptions determined except when the adoptive: is a relative of the adopting party until the third consanguinity degree or second degree of affinity or if he was the son of the adopting party – art. 95 of the Minor Code – Also, the son of the permanent companion can be adopted.

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Documents which are required to be attached to the request of adoption so that they are studied by the ICBF and institutions authorized to develop the program of adoption

• Adoption request form, which can be claimed in the Regional Offices and Agencies of the ICBF, institutions authorized to develop the adoption program – Adoption Houses – or through this site 

• Civil birth register of the requesting parties with the corresponding margin notes.

• Marriage civil register or a true evidence of the extra-marriage cohabitation of the requesting parties. In the event of a marital free union of fact, the inscription of the permanent companion in the registers of the family subsidizing health entities or the security or social benefit institutions. The marriage act celebrated before a competent authority of another country with the filling of the conditions set forth by the Civil Procedure Code for the legalization of the documents issued  abroad, inscription in the book of various of the notary of the couple address, with no less than three years of its issuance date.

• Medical certificates, showing clearly that the adopting parties do not have any physical or mental illness and that they are apt to adopt issued by an acknowledged entity by the Social Security System in Health – EPS or pre-paid medicine – or issued by a professional in the area legally authorized.

• In force certificates of criminal background at national level of the adopting parties issued by the competent authority

• Birth civil register of the children adopted by the couple

• Certificate of economic capacity of the place where they work, stating the service time and salary earned in pesos, dollars or euros according to the case.

• If working in an independent way, the adopting parties must send a certification issued by a public account certified or copy of their last income tax return,

• Social and psychological studies of the adopting family which establish physical, mental, moral and social aptitude.

NOTE: When there is a divorce of any one of the requesting parties or a previous fact free marital union, in the social study, the causes which has arisen the separation must be explained.

IF THE ADOPTING PARTIES ARE COLOMBIANS LIVING ABROAD, BESIDES THE ABOVE REQUIREMENTS THEY MUST ATTACH:

• Certification issued by the government authority or private official authorized in which it is certified the engagement to perform a following up of the adoptable minor during at least one year in the country of residence of the adopting parties.

• Authorization of the requesting parties residence country government for the entrance of the adopted minor

• Social and psychological study performed by the Central Authority of the competent official one in the country of residence of the requesting families through professionals apt in the subject – professional of the social and psychological area

• Authorization to adopt awarded by the competent authorities of the country of residence of the requesting parties. Nationality certificate or civil register of the adopted before by the requesting parties Letter of family authorizing the official translator acknowledged in Colombia so that he follows the proceedings of translation and legalization, according to the case.
  

All these documents must be sent in original and duly added – sealed – by the countries which undersigned the Hague Agreement of October 1961, on the abolition of the requirement of the legalization for foreign public documents in force for Colombia after January, 2001, or duly notarized and authenticated in the Colombian consulate in the respective country and then the signature legalized by the Consul of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of Colombia for the country who are of the mentioned Agreement of The Hague and translated by a translator officially acknowledged in Colombia and for this purpose the translator must attach the documents accrediting him as such.

All the documents written in a language different to Spanish must be translated by a translator officially acknowledged in Colombia and for this purpose the translator must attach the documents accrediting him as such.

• Assist to the preparation workshops organized by the respective countries so that the process of adoption is not only limited to contribute a series of documents but the requesting parties are convinced of their decision.

• The answer of the Family on the acceptance or not of the adoption request will be made within the next following 30 working days to the receipt of the documentation.

• The request and the documentation duly approved will enter to the waiting list in a strict chronologic order of approval until the assignment of the child family.

• The appointment or the refusal of the minor will be informed through the central authority, agency of adoption, lawyer or the one who represents the adopting family in Colombia duly authorized stating the exact date in which they must come to Colombia – process that has a duration of approximately 6 weeks, time in which the adopting family must stay in the country - .

• During the time in which both parents stay in Colombia, a public server of the ICBF will accompany the family and the child in the initial process of integration by giving to them the support they require.

• Product of the stage of integration, a certificate is made on the personal integration of the minor with the adopting parties.

• The documents of the child and of the family will be handled by the lawyer appointed and paid by the family so that he shows the request of the adoption before the family court.

• Once that the sentence of adoption is decreed and executed, the new civil register of the minor with the names of the adopting parents ready, they must leave the country with their child. These documents and the minor passport will be required for the leaving of the country.