January 31, 2007
Guatemala's Compliance with the Hague Adoption Convention
The United States is nearing completion of its preparations to ratify the Convention and the goal is to do so in 2007. Three months after the United States deposits its instrument of ratification with the Hague Permanent Bureau, the Convention enters into force for the United States. At that point, if Guatemala has not taken the necessary steps to comply with the Convention, the United States will not be able to approve adoptions from that country. It is important to note that U.S. law provides for a transition period and that orphan petitions (I-600A) filed with the Department of Homeland Security before the Convention enters into force for the United States will not be subject to the new regulations implementing the Convention. Find more information at http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3102.html.
December 19, 2006
Ukraine Resumes Acceptance of New Dossiers
This information is based on the official notice received by the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine from the central adoption authority of Ukraine - State Department for Adoptions and Protection of the Rights of the Child (SDAPRC), informing us of the resumption of acceptance of new adoption dossiers from all non-Ukrainian prospective adoptive parents starting December 19, 2006.
The new adoption dossiers can be submitted to the SDAPRC by the local adoption service providers having Powers of Attorney from American prospective adoptive parents. Find more information at http://kiev.usembassy.gov.
October 3, 2006
Ukraine — Temporary Suspension on New Dossiers
Ukraine will not accept any new international adoption dossiers before January 1, 2007. This temporary suspension applies to all adoptions, including applications for biological siblings of previously adopted children. Families whose dossiers were registered with the old adoption authority must resend their applications. Find more information at http://kiev.usembassy.gov.
September 28, 2006
False Rumor that Guatemala Will Halt Adoptions
The Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala have become aware of an unfounded rumor that adoptions in Guatemala will be suspended immediately or by January 1 as part of Guatemalan efforts to implement the 1993 Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption ("the Hague Adoption Convention"). The government of Guatemala has confirmed that there is no truth to this rumor. The Embassy is continuing to process adoption cases.
The Department of State and the U.S. Embassy continue to monitor the situation in Guatemala closely and are in regular contact with Guatemalan officials as they take steps to reform their adoption processes in order to better protect the interests of children and families. The State Department is encouraged by the efforts of the First Lady of Guatemala in preparing a protocol of adoption best practices that promotes protections for children and families in line with the international standards of the Hague Adoption Convention. The Department urges all interested parties to check their website (www.travel.state.gov) for updates on the process of adoptions in Guatemala. For more information on Guatemala and Hague Adoption Convention implementation efforts, please see the Department’s Notices and frequently asked questions on Guatemala at http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/notices/notices_2859.html and http://www.travel.state.gov/family/adoption/notices/notices_2858.html.
September 21, 2005
Ukraine — Adoption Suspension on New Dossiers
On September 21, 2005 the Government of Ukraine informed the U.S. Embassy in Kiev that the National Adoption Center (NAC) of Ukraine was suspending the acceptance of new adoption dossiers from U.S. citizens and citizens of several other countries. According to the NAC, the decision to stop accepting certain dossiers as of September 19 was based in large part on the past non-compliance of some families with post-adoption reports, which are required by Ukrainian law.
March 30, 2005
New Adoption Legislation in Russia
As of January 10, 2005, a new law affecting international adoptions took effect in Russia. This new law requires that orphans must be on the federal data bank for six months before they can be available for release for international adoptions.
We have several families travel in March and April to see their child and to finalize adoption/court.
April 30, 2004
Revised Fee Structure for Immigration Benefits
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a revised fee structure for immigration benefits. The new fee structure will become effective on April 30, 2004.
The current fee for the Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative (I-600 "blue form") is $460. The revised fee will be $525.
We'd like to remind you that when more than one petition is submitted by the same petitioner on behalf of orphans who are brothers or sisters, only one fee will be required. If the orphans are not brothers or sisters then an additional fee of $525 is required for filing I-600 for each orphan beyond the first one.
The regular visa issuance fee ($335) remains unchanged.
September 12, 2003
Important Notice on Guatemalan Adoptions
From the U.S. Department of State web site:
"The Constitutional Court of Guatemala ruling that Guatemala's accession to the Hague Intercountry Adoption Convention is unconstitutional, was published September 12, 2003, in the Diario de CentroAmerica, a Guatemalan government publication. The Guatemalan Solicitor General's office (PGN) has previously indicated that it will process adoptions using the notarial system once the ruling becomes official after publication. Prospective adoptive parents should expect delays due to the large backlog of pending cases and uncertainties in how long it will take Guatemalan authorities to resume processing. Parents should take this into account when considering whether to pursue an adoption in Guatemala at this time. Effective Tuesday, September 16, 2003, the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS) office in Guatemala City will begin accepting new I-600s for approval, which includes the resumption of DNA testing, shortly after the Constitutional Court ruling is officially published.
We are aware the Guatemalan Congress has discussed proposed legislation that would completely revise the intercountry adoption process. We cannot determine what impact such legislation would have on pending and future adoptions. Likewise, it is not possible to estimate how long it would take Guatemala to implement a new adoption process. We continue to urge the government of Guatemala to process all adoption cases as expeditiously and fairly as possible to avoid unnecessary and unreasonable hardship on adopting families and children."
March 1, 2003
INS replaced by BCIS
On March 1, services formerly provided by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) transitioned into the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) under the Bureau of Citizenship & Immigration Services (BCIS). In support of the DHS overall mission, the immediate priorities of the new BCIS are to promote national security, continue to eliminate immigration adjudications backlogs, and implement solutions for improving immigration customer services. The BCIS will continue efforts to fundamentally transform and improve the delivery of immigration and citizenship services.To learn more about the services, mission, strategies, goals, etc. of this bureau, please visit the new BCIS web site at www.bcis.gov.
February 27, 2001
Child Citizenship Act (CCA) becomes effective
The Child Citizenship Act (H.R. 2883), which was signed into federal law last year, became effective today and represents a significant change in U.S. nationality laws. This new law grants automatic U.S. citizenship, upon entry to the United States, to foreign-born children who have been adopted by United States citizens. To benefit from this new law, the following requirements must be met:
- At least one adoptive parent is a U.S. citizen (either by birth or naturalization)
- The child is under 18 years of age
- The child must be residing in the United States in the legal and physical custody of the U.S. citizen parent after having been admitted to the United States as an immigrant
- The adoption of the child has been finalized
For most adoptive parents, this act will eliminate the need to apply to the Immigration and Naturalization Service for Certificates of Citizenship on behalf of their children who did not acquire U.S. citizenship at birth, and permanently protects the adopted children of U.S. citizens from deportation risk.
September 18, 2000
AMI receives Moldovan accreditation
Adoption Miracle International has received official accreditation from the Moldovan government. Agencies must be accredited to facilitate adoptions in Moldova, and the government now requires prospective parents to work through one of these agencies. AMI is one of only a handful of U.S. adoption agencies to receive accreditation so far.
September 2, 2000
Welcome home Aleona and Noelle!
September saw the growth of two additional AMI families. Congratulations to all!
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Aleona, who is 2 years old, now has five brothers and a sister! Her youngest brother, 4-year old Dimitri (pictured at right), was also adopted from Russia in June 1998. |
Baby Noelle, also from Russia, joins parents Julie and Mike
April 3, 2000
Northwest Airlines announces special international adoption fares
Northwest Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines are offering a new "Special Delivery" adoption travel fare. The fare is valid for U.S. originating parents traveling to adopt children from any of over 100 international locations NWA and KLM serve throughout Asia, Africa, Europe, India and the Middle East, and also as a one way fare for the child returning home. Special Delivery combines low fares with great flexibility to meet an adopting family’s unique needs:- No advance purchase required
- No cancellation or change penalties
- Open returns and stopovers permitted
For more details (including qualification requirements) or to make a reservation, visit the NWA web site or call reservations at 1-800-322-4162.
March 28, 2000
Russian government to make adoption changes
The new Russian government has announced it will reform the country's adoption policies, in an attempt to 1) curb the corrupt financial deals that currently plague the industry in Russia, and 2) ensure that children are being placed into appropriate environments.
Foreign adoption agencies will have to apply for registration and open an office in Russia. This process should take approximately three months from the time the government begins reviewing applications. Agencies must wait until they receive accreditation before placing children with foreign families.
What does this mean for Adoption Miracle International? We will continue, as usual, to work on behalf of the parents and to help the adoption process in Russia go as smoothly and quickly as possible. Parents who have already started the adoption process will not see any changes. Parents just beginning the process may be required to make two short trips to Russia — 1) to visit the child's orphanage and confirm to the Russian officials that they are willing to pursue the adoption, and 2) to attend a court hearing, finalize the adoption in Russia, and bring the child home.
January 2000
News update on baby Grace!
Christine and Tim are happy new parents who have now joined "The parenthood group".
 Christine, Grace and Tim at home ~ Christmas '99 ~ |
 Baby Grace |
Christine and Tim organized a very successful drive to help Russian orphans and delivered much needed donations to Russia. Thank you to everyone who helped in the efforts of donating much needed hats, mittens, shoes, scarves, clothing, blankets, children's medicine and vitamins. This winter was a warmer one for the Russian orphans you have helped!!!
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