hi to everyone again
ok here's my question, i have been very happily married now for just over a year . i want to adopt my 11 yr old niece and have her live permanently with us in the uk. i have read the ukba website etc etc but the issues seems vague and cloudy at best!
can anyone here please explain the law in a straight forward way! and if possible in a step by step way
many thx and hope you'r all well and getting ready for xmas!, john
I have a quick look and assuming I understand it correctly the process is you first have to adopt in the Philippines, then apply for a visa so your niece can enter the UK, then apply for adoption through a UK court, and then if successful the child could register as a British citizen.
http://www.ukvisas.gov.uk/en/howtoap...tedchildren#Q2
How does my adopted child qualify to join me in the UK?
You, or your child, must show that he or she:
- cannot support themselves financially, is not married and is not living independently away from their parents
- is under 18 years of age
- was adopted when both parents lived together abroad or when one or the other parent was settled in the UK
- has the same rights as any other child of the adoptive parents
- was adopted because their birth parents could not care for them and there has been a full and genuine transfer of parental responsibility
- has broken all ties with their birth family, and
- was not adopted just to make it easier to enter the UK.
Unless your wife moves to the Philippines for at least for a short while I guess you may have problems adopting and meeting points 1 and 3. Depending on the reasons for the adoption you may have problems meeting points 5,6 and 7. Understandably the rules seem to be against adopting relatives purely to allow them to come to the UK for education and then obviously work.
If you think you are going to succeed I guess your first job would be to find a decent lawyer in the Philippines to help you with the adoption. That might not be easy!
ive done some more research and it seems you have pinpointed the most relevant points.
at the moment my niece lives with my in-laws and i support her financially. i think i am ok fulfilling the criteria. also i am the one adopting and i live in the uk.
after the phils. adoption it seems i have to apply for the settlement visa and then they allow 12months stay to complete the adoption through the uk courts.
a person has to be interviewed and screened by the local council adoption centre etc here in the uk
Useful information as we're also thinking of adopting Elsa's 2 nieces (she is also god-mother to them).Originally Posted by johnny11
i think this will be a long and costly process
http://www.gov.ph/index.php?option=c...0165&Itemid=40
My sister-in-law has in the past (probably jokingly...) mentioned we should adopt her children which is why I looked in.
One possible problem is this "has broken all ties with their birth family" - pretty impossible condition to meet if trying to adopt a relative when the birth family and adopting family are the same.
in my case the birth mother is not on the scene and does not see her daughter. my niece lives with her lolo and lola which is not her birth family so i think we are ok on that point.
the adoption in the phils. is the part i have to try and research now. there's alot of info on inter-country adoption but that seems to be for people who want to adopt children they have never met and not family members.
the cost for uk adoption throught the courts is £140 for the court fees and expect about another 100 or so in incidental costs
the time frame for the authorities here to complete their checks as to whether you are suitable for adopting a child is about 6 mths( i guess thats why they give you 12mths on the visa)
Hmmm..
http://www.ukvisas.gov.uk/en/ecg/set...ldren#20686439
In the case of UK-based adopters hoping to adopt a child which has been given or 'gifted' to them by relatives abroad, there is very little chance of them being able to bring the child into the UK. The UK's international obligations prevent any acceptance of such practices. Even if a foreign adoption has been completed, the requirements of the Immigration Rules will prevent an entry clearance being issued to such a child.
yes i thought this would not be easy at all, that's why I've probably not heard of anyone else who has done it b4.
also i think it would cost at least 1,000 usd+ for processing fess + other fees, probably also a settlement visa for the child £500+
another option might be to use the European route, as I'm pretty sure a niece would be classed as a family member. you would have to go and live with your wife in another European country for 6 months+, and apply for a family permit for her, but even this is risky, and I'm sure you have to live with her for 6 months....
I've never heard of anyone doing it either, and seems like in most cases it would be impossible unless I guess illness/disaster left the child without close family there.yes i thought this would not be easy at all, that's why I've probably not heard of anyone else who has done it b4.
also i think it would cost at least 1,000 usd+ for processing fess + other fees, probably also a settlement visa for the child £500+
another option might be to use the European route, as I'm pretty sure a niece would be classed as a family member. you would have to go and live with your wife in another European country for 6 months+, and apply for a family permit for her, but even this is risky, and I'm sure you have to live with her for 6 months....
I think you are right the european route may work, though not really possible for most people. The other option I guess if you have the money to pay for a private education is a student visa, though may not leave to permanent settlement.
Below is a link to the UK govt website on intercountry adoption......
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/intercountryadoption/index.shtml
You have to go through the same vetting procedures as domestic adoption, except that you have to pay for it (approx £5k).
Andy
Surrey, UK
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