I had a great conversation today with a prospective adoptive parent who had lost a family member in Pakistan under very tragic circumstances. A child was left orphaned as a result. Over the years I have had many people approach me and ask if they can adopt a relative (often an infant) from a Muslim country. Happily, the answer is a resounding “Yes!”
Pakistan is a “non-Hague” country, as are most predominantly Muslim countries. Also, Pakistan does not issue adoption decrees, but rather guardianship orders. This is the case in most predominantly Muslim countries. These two factors mean that prospective adoptive parents are limited to the I-600 or “orphan visa” process.
The process for adoption of a family member goes as follows:
- Contact a qualified immigration lawyer to determine whether the or not the child is an orphan.
- Complete a home study.
- File an I-600A
- Obtain guardianship and gather supporting evidence.
- File an I-600
The success of the case will hinge on whether or not the children fall under the definition of orphan. Remember that an orphan is not just a child abandoned to a children’s home or orphanage. An orphan is also a child that has been deserted or the child of a single parent. In limited situations, even children and babies with two living and married biological parents can qualify for orphan status.
With careful preparation and appropriate evidence, there is no reason why a child who is a related to the adopted parents cannot qualify for an orphan visa.
But what if my relative is here in the United States? In this case- an entirely different set of rules will come into play. The process will look like this:
1. Obtain an adoption decree in the United States.
2. Wait until you have had two years of legal custody and two years of joint residency.
3. Apply to sponsor your relative as an immediate relative.
Children who are already here in the United States might be better off applying for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status. Remember folks, there are deadlines and age limits for children to receive immigration benefits through adoption or as special immigrant juveniles.
In my case 3 years is the age limit but as usuall Embassy in Islamabad playinga delaying tactic,with Non orphan,petition denial,and lastly 212a5a,will this effect the age limit in my case since the 212a5a has been slaped on me Feb.18,2014 and till now have no information about the package,wether it has been sent or not yet ,or as usuall it comes like a snail speed.Do I have a right to file freedom of information through USCIS ?and other thing which I have observed after 9-11,embassy staff is more rude and a totall non cooperative atmosphere, mostly are Afghani people the one who get more time from embassy staff,to me it looked like I am in Kabul U.S .embassy.
Hi Grace, we have done kinship adoptions from the Republic of Georgia and both presented unique challenges. Both families were adopting nieces and before the children were relinquished by their parents, the CA was able to determine that keeping the children in the care of the bio family during the process was in the best interest of the children and allowed the birth families to become Foster families to the children temporarily. The children had to remain on the domestic register for a period of 8 months, per regulations, prior to being eligible to be adopted internationally, despite the best interest being that the children remain within their extended bio family. We were able to provide evidence of why the relinquishment and adoption were in the best interest, which had to supersede “to have a better life”. We were clearly able to demonstrate that with testimony of teachers, family members, photos of the home, social worker and physicians. Another issue was that the court could not proceed with the parents as citizens of Georgia since that would fall under domestic process and so the adoptive family had to terminate their Georgian citizenship to proceed under inter-country adoption – which is the only way they can proceed to bring the girls to the US. In the midst of all of this – one of the girls turned 18. That is no problem on this end… thanks to the Children’s Citizenship Act as the younger child was under 16. However, the Georgian court does not recognize adoption for adults. Without an adoption decree, there was no way to proceed…. and to save the day Officer Gillen of NBC invoked the Adoption Simplification Act bypassed the full and final decree abroad and allows her to come with her sister and then be adopted as an adult in the state they will reside. So, one family home and the other to be soon coming home thanks to ASA. I think kinship adoption will be easier (aside from UAA requirements) will be much easier despite everything getting much more difficult in inter-country adoption. Robin E. Sizemore, Executive Director, Hopscotch Adoptions, Inc