About 2,000 foreign children are adopted by citizens or permanent residents
of Canada every year. Canada's immigration system works to deal with these
adoptions as quickly as possible. However, international adoption can be a long
process. This article describes the process of Immigrating and Adopted Children
to Canada. While the process may seem long, it is necessary to protect adoptive
children.
Before you apply
You must complete two processes for an international adoption. You need to
understand the steps in both of these processes if you are thinking about
adopting a child from overseas.
1) The Adoption Process
- The provincial and territorial governments are responsible for adoptions
in Canada. Your first step should be to contact your
Provincial and Territorial Government Offices to get information about
adopting a child.
- Some provinces and territories use licensed agencies to handle most of the
adoption process. Your provincial or territorial government office will tell
you if you will need to contact a licensed agency.
- If you want to adopt a child from a foreign country, you must obey the
laws of that country about adoption. Make sure you understand the laws before
beginning the adoption process. Your province or its licensed adoption agency
can advise you on these requirements.
- The
Hague Convention governs international adoptions in many
countries, including Canada. Your provincial government office will explain
the requirements if your adoptive child is coming from a country that follows
the Hague Convention. Follow the Hague Convention link
avbove to learn more.
The Immigration Process
- You must meet all of the immigration requirements before Citizenship and
Immigration Canada (CIC) can issue a visa for your adoptive child to come to
Canada. You must also meet all of the requirements of your province, and of
your adoptive child's home country.
- There are two parts to the immigration process:
- applying for sponsorship
- applying for permanent residence
- See
Who
can apply and
How to
apply for more information.
- You may complete the application yourself or hire a professional immigration consultant to complete your application.
Additional Information:
You need to obtain a a permanent resident visa in order to bring an adopted
child to Canada. A permanent resident visa is a document that allows an
adoptive child to enter Canada to live permanently. When the child enters
Canada, he or she must present the visa to an immigration officer at the point
of entry. The permanent resident visa is needed to grant the child permanent
resident status in Canada, and is issued when all immigration requirements are
met. This visa will expire one year after the medical examination of the child
and must be used to bring the child into Canada before that date. You cannot
bring your child to Canada until you are notified that the child's permanent
resident visa has been issued.
If you
