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Country Status
Liberia
is currently CLOSED
to adoptions by US citizens.
For a list of Joint
Council agencies working in Liberia, please consult our
Country Programs page.
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April 26, 2010
The U.S. Department of State has
issued an announcement regarding intercountry adoption in
Liberia. The text of the announcement follows.
Notice Concerning
Adoption Processing In Liberia
On January 26, 2009, the
Government of Liberia suspended adoptions because of allegations
of mismanagement and corruption in the adoption process. The
U.S. Department of State cautions American citizens against
filing an
application to adopt a child from
Liberia while the moratorium on adoption remains in effect. The
U.S. Embassy remains in frequent contact with adoption
officials, but there is no indication when the moratorium might
be lifted.
Since the suspension went into
effect, the Liberian Government has formed an Ad-hoc Central
Adoption Authority to have oversight over adoptions and is
working to pass adoption legislation focused on strengthening
existing laws and preventing abuses of the system. The U.S.
government strongly supports the Liberian Government’s efforts
to strengthen its adoption laws and regulations to provide
greater transparency and safeguards for prospective adoptive
children, their birth parent(s) and prospective adoptive
parents.
The Government of Liberia has
informed the U.S. Embassy that it will not process any adoption
cases during the suspension, including those that were in
progress before the suspension was announced, and that it will
not permit adopted children depart Liberia. They have also
indicated that no new adoption applications should be accepted
by adoption service providers, no referrals of children to
prospective adoptive parents made, and no adoption petitions
filed with the Liberian court while the suspension is in
effect. The Liberian Government has made no provisions for the
grandfathering of cases under the existing laws. Therefore any
case in which a full and final adoption had not been completed
prior to January 26, 2009 is effectively on hold.
The U.S. Embassy in Monrovia has
been informed by the Government of Liberia that it will issue
exit clearances, on a case-by-case basis, to children whose full
and final adoption had been completed prior to January 26, 2009
and approved by Liberia’s Ad-hoc Central Adoption Authority.
Prospective adoptive parents who believe their case might fall
into this category should contact the Consular Section at
adoptionsmonrovia@state.gov to discuss next steps in the
visa process and any gaps in their adoption file. Additionally,
the Government of Liberia is requiring that all adoptive parents
appear personally for the exit clearance interview. Processing
the visa and obtaining the exit clearance takes about a week of
time, but adoptive parents are advised to purchase open-ended
return tickets, as there is no guarantee as to how quickly the
exit clearance can be obtained.
Prospective adoptive parents and
adoption service providers are reminded that a consular officer
is required, by law, to complete a For I-604 (determination of
orphan status) before issuing a visa in all IR-3 and IR-4
adoption cases. In some cases, this may require only a
conversation with the birth parent, but in others it may require
a full field investigation, possibly lasting several weeks.
Since verifying the parent-child relationships in Liberia is
difficult, we also expect that in most cases where the child was
relinquished by the birth parent, DNA testing will be
recommended in order to establish a blood relationship between
the adopted child and claimed birth parent(s).
April 7, 2010 - Update from the
Department of State
The U.S.
Embassy in Monrovia has been informed by the Government of Liberia that
it will issue exit clearances, on a case-by-case basis, to children
whose full and final adoption had been completed prior to January 26,
2009 and approved by Liberia’s Ad-hoc Central Adoption Authority.
Prospective
adoptive parents who believe their case might fall into this category
should contact the Consular Section at
adoptionsmonrovia@state.gov
to discuss next steps in the visa process and any gaps in their adoption
file. Additionally, the Government of Liberia is requiring that all
adoptive parents appear personally for the exit clearance interview.
Processing the visa and obtaining the exit clearance takes about a week
of time, but adoptive parents are advised to purchase open-ended return
tickets, as there is no guarantee as to how quickly the exit clearance
can be obtained.
Prospective
adoptive parents and adoption service providers are reminded that a
consular officer is required, by law, to complete a For I-604
(determination of orphan status) before issuing a visa in all IR-3 and
IR-4 adoption cases. In some cases, this may require only a
conversation with the birth parent, but in others it may require a full
field investigation, possibly lasting several weeks. Since verifying
the parent-child relationships in Liberia is difficult, we also expect
that in most cases where the child was relinquished by the birth parent,
DNA testing will be recommended in order to establish a blood
relationship between the adopted child and claimed birth parent(s).
Please
continue to monitor
adoption.state.gov
for updated information
October 7, 2009 - Adoption Alert from the
Department of State
On
January 26, 2009, the Government of Liberia suspended
intercountry adoptions because of allegations of
mismanagement and corruption in the adoption process. The
U.S. Department of State cautions American citizens against
filing an application to adopt a child from Liberia while
the moratorium on adoption remains in effect. The U.S.
Embassy remains in frequent contact with adoption officials,
but there is no indication when the moratorium might be
lifted.
Since
the suspension took effect, the Liberian Government has
formed an ad-hoc Central Adoption Authority to oversee
adoptions and is working to pass adoption legislation
strengthening existing laws and preventing abuses of the
system. The U.S. government strongly supports the Liberian
Government’s efforts to strengthen its adoption laws and
regulations to provide greater transparency and safeguards
for prospective adoptive children, their birth parent(s) and
prospective adoptive parents.
The
Government of Liberia has informed the U.S. Embassy that it
will not process any adoption cases during the suspension,
including those that were in progress before the suspension
was announced, and that it will not permit adopted children
to depart Liberia. It has also indicated that no new
adoption applications should be accepted by adoption service
providers, no referrals of children to prospective adoptive
parents made, and no adoption petitions filed with the
Liberian court while the suspension is in effect. The
Liberian Government has made no provisions to grandfather
cases under the existing laws. Therefore, any case in which
a full and final adoption had not been completed prior to
January 26, 2009 is effectively on hold.
The
Government of Liberia has indicated that it is willing to
consider granting an exception to certain special needs
children on a case-by-case basis, though further details
have not been provided. Requests may be directed to the
Ad-Hoc Central Adoption Authority :
Cllr. Eva Mappy Morgan
Chair, Ad-hoc Central Adoption Authority
Ministry of Justice
Ashmun & Center Streets
Monrovia, Liberia
Adoptive parents who were granted a full and final adoption
prior to January 26, 2009 may contact the U.S. Embassy in
Monrovia at
AdoptionsMonrovia@state.gov
to discuss the next step in processing their case.
The
Department of State reminds adoptive parents that consular
officers are required by law to conduct an orphan
investigation (I-604) to verify the child’s orphan status
prior to the issuance of an IR-3 or IR-4 immigrant visa.
Depending upon the circumstances of a case, this
investigation may take several months to complete. Adoptive
parents who completed a full and final adoption prior to the
announcement of the suspension should therefore carefully
consider whether to file their Form I-600 Petition to
Classify an Orphan as an Immediate Relative at the USCIS
district office closest to their place of residence in the
U.S. or at Embassy Monrovia and are urged to contact the
U.S. Embassy at
AdoptionsMonrovia@state.gov
before traveling to Liberia. Adoptive parents are reminded
that even if an immigrant visa is issued to their adopted
child, s/he may not be able to depart Liberia at this time.
Please continue to monitor adoption.state.gov for updated
information.
January 30,
2009
The Government of Liberia (GOL) suspended processing of adoptions on
January 26,
2009, on the recommendation of the President's Special Committee on
Adoption. According to the Liberian President’s statement, processing
of adoptions was suspended due to mismanagement. The GOL expects to
resume adoptions this year after its adoption law, policy, and
guidelines have been established.
American citizens have been
alerted that the Government of Liberia suspended
adoption services provided by
the agencies
West African
Children Support Network
(WACSN) and
Acres of Hope
(AOH) on January 22. The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare announced
that it is investigating WACSN and AOH to ensure that the children in
their care are properly cared for and that adoptions are conducted in
accordance with Liberian adoption law. American citizens who have
pending adoption applications with either agency should contact the U.S.
Embassy in Monrovia at
monroviaadoptions@state.gov
before traveling to Liberia.
Please
continue to monitor
Adoption.State.Gov/news/notices.html
for updated information.
January 29, 2009
It is
Joint Council's understanding that the government of Liberia has
suspended intercountry adoptions with the exception of special needs
cases until new rules and regulations can be put into place. This
follows comments made earlier this week by President Ellen Johnson
Sirleaf:
"The gross mismanagement of the
adoption program, by both Liberian and U.S. personnel in the
concerned NGO is the subject of a report by a Special Committee
which I appointed for this purpose. Essentially, we have discovered
that many of the children in these orphanages are not in fact
orphans but children taken from their living parents on the promise
of support and a good life in America. Moreover, we found that
young children were being sexually abused at some of the these
orphanages, while others including officials of government, have
used the program to extort money from potential adoptors. We have
thus suspended the adoption program until laws, policies and proper
guidelines have been established and we have asked our concerned
friends and partners in the United States to be patient as we try to
correct the serious malpractices which exist. We expect the
National Social Welfare Policy and National Adoption Act will be
submitted to you during the course of the year, will provide
guidance and prevent such abuses in the future."
July 25, 2008
The U.S. Department of State has released
the following update:
The Ministries of Justice and Health and
Social Welfare have indicated that they are carefully reviewing all
adoption cases submitted to them for approval. As a result, adoption
service providers and prospective adoptive parents can expect an
increase in the processing time. The Government of Liberia is concerned
over the increasing number of cases in which adoptive parents have
decided to terminate their parent/child relationship with Liberian
adoptive children. The Ministry learned of two recent cases where
Liberian adoptive children were returned to Liberia and abandoned by
their adoptive parents, or placed in foster care after being adopted.
Additionally, adoption service providers and prospective adoptive
parents should be aware that a revised adoption law was submitted to
Parliament in November 2007. If enacted, the new law would provide
additional safeguards to protect adoptive children, birth parents, and
prospective adoptive parents.
March 19, 2008
The U.S. Department of State has issued the
following update regarding Liberian adoptions:
"On March 14, the director of a U.S. adoption agency and three employees
of the agency were prevented from departing Liberia with recently
adopted Liberian children. The children were in possession of lawful
adoption decrees and valid U.S. immigrant visas, and their escorts had
Powers of Attorney from the adoptive parents of the children which
allowed them to act as escorts. The director of the agency was later
told that adoptive children will not be permitted to depart Liberia with
an escort unless their travel had been cleared by the Ministers of
Justice and Gender. The U.S. Embassy in Monrovia is seeking
confirmation of this new requirement. The Government of Liberia is
currently reviewing its adoption laws and regulations with the aim of
strengthening the current system."
To view the actual post, please visit the
U.S. Department of State website.
October 5, 2004 -
Changes to Liberian Adoption Requirements
The
Liberian Ministry of Health has informed the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia
that effective October 15, 2004, adoptive families must obtain a letter
from the Ministry of Health approving the adoption of a specific child.
This is in addition to obtaining a Relinquishment (Ministry of Health)
and Adoption Decree (Liberian Court). The U.S. Embassy is seeking
clarification as to whether or not adoption cases that began in good
faith prior to October 15 will be grandfathered. This site will be
updated as more information becomes available.
September 30, 2003 - The U.S. Department of State issued at
travel warning for Liberia alerting U.S. citizens of ongoing safety
and security concerns and advises them to defer non-essential travel.
September 18, 2003 - The Office of Children's Issues has released
another notice to prospective adoptive parents adopting from Liberia.
Click here to read the notice.
August 26, 2003 - The U.S. Department of State has issued two
notices to Prospective Adoptive Parents adopting from Liberia. The
first is an update
which was issued on 8/26. The second was issued on
8/29 and addresses humanitarian parole.
August 25, 2003 - We have confirmed
with the U.S. Department of State that the the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia
has resumed investigations and visa processing as conditions permit. At
this time, the U.S. Department of State is still recommending against
travel to Liberia.
August 14, 2003 -
Peacekeepers Move Into Port of Liberian Capital
On August 6, JCICS attended a briefing at
the
U.S. Department of State regarding intercountry adoptions in
Liberia.
There are reportedly close to 30 pending
adoption cases between U.S. Citizens and Liberian orphans, with hundreds
of additional children languishing in orphanages desperate for food and
safe shelter (Newsday
article). All parties involved are concerned about the welfare
of the children and are hoping for a swift resolution to the current
situation. The Department of State maintains that once the
situation is more stable the Consulate Office will work diligently to
process the adoption cases. Currently the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia
has ordered the departure of all
non-emergency personnel. The Embassy's consular services
investigate the legitimacy of an adoption case in Liberia (to ensure the
child meets the U.S. definition of an orphan) and also issues visas for
the adopted child to travel to the United States.
June 19, 2003
The following information is currently posted on the U.S.
Department of State website:
Due to the deterioration
of the security situation in Liberia, the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia
has had to sharply reduce visa services to Liberian citizens. This
includes the processing of orphan petitions and visas for adopted
children.
The Department of State
has ordered the departure of all non-emergency personnel from the
U.S. Embassy in Monrovia and has issued a
traveling
warning advising U.S. citizens against travel to Liberia at this
time.
To visit the State Department's website, please click
here.
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