| 释义 |
intercountry adoption
The adoption of a child from one country by adopters in another. There are two types of intercountry adoptions: so-called Convention adoptions and overseas adoptions. Convention adoptions are those regulated by the 1993 Hague Convention on International Adoption. Under the Hague Convention, each contracting state is obliged to set up a central authority; in the UK there are three separate authorities, for England, Wales, and Scotland. Each authority is under a duty to collate and exchange information about the situation of the child and its prospective adopters, to facilitate and expedite hearings, to promote development of adoption counselling and post-adoption services, and to respond to requests from other central authorities for information about a particular adoption situation (Article 9). Persons wishing to adopt must apply to the central authority of their contracting state (the Receiving State) who will check their eligibility and suitability to adopt and transmit the request to the state where the child is resident (the State of Origin). If both states agree, an adoption order is made in the Receiving State. Overseas adoptions are non-Convention adoptions that are from designated countries now contained in the Adoption (Recognition of Overseas Adoptions) Order 2013. These include many Commonwealth countries, all Western European countries, and the USA. There are over 80 such countries in all. These adoptions are automatically recognized in England and Wales, and there is not therefore a need to re-adopt domestically. The children concerned do not automatically acquire British citizenship. |