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 | Guatemala Guidelines
by Kim Phagan-Hansel |
Holding strong in the number three position, despite the temporary shut down last year, Guatemala remains a top country for international adoption. With a relatively easy system to maneuver and many healthy, young infants available for adoption, Guatemala is a popular choice for prospective adoptive parents.
In order to adopt from Guatemala, prospective parents must be 25 years of age and both singles and couples may apply. Even though single parents are accepted, the process has become a little more difficult for them recently due to closer scrutiny, according to Linda Donnovan, international program director at Adoption Alliance in Denver, Colo. Prospective parents may request a specific gender they wish to adopt, however, it does take longer to adopt a girl.
Because of Guatemala’s privatized system, adoptions work a little differently than adoptions in other countries. The adoptions are facilitated through an attorney in Guatemala, who oversees all of the adoption paperwork and foster care provided to the children. Most adoptions are completed through a relinquishment process where a birthmother relinquishes her child in Family Court.
Once an attorney receives a prospective adoptive family’s dossier the documents are translated, legalized and submitted to the Family Court of Guatemala. Then a social worker is assigned to interview the birthmother and visit the child’s foster home. A DNA test is conducted on the mother and child at this time to verify parentage.
Once all of the paperwork is completed the attorney submits everything to the Procuduria General Nacional for final approval. It usually takes about six months to get to Procuduria General Nacional, according to Donnovan. After receiving the approval, a new birth certificate and passport are issued for the child. About three weeks after approval the parents can travel to Guatemala to get their child, or have their child escorted home, which adds about a month to the adoption process.
The adoption is finalized through the power of attorney, so the family never has to appear in court. If parents travel early in the process to meet their child, the child is a U.S. citizen upon arrival in the United States. If parents have not seen the child prior to the adoption being finalized they will have to re-adopt the child once they return to the United States.
Throughout the entire process the child lives in a foster home, which is provided through a monthly payment from the prospective adoptive family. Most of the children available for adoption are infants, but there are children available up to 12 years of age. Through the foster care they receive one-on-one attention and proper medical care.
“Families really do like the foster care,” Donnovan said. “The babies are held a lot and are taken well care of by the foster parents.”
Generally the children come home as healthy infants with few problems other than slight developmental delays. Another aspect the adoptive parents like about Guatemala is that the country is relatively close to the United States and inexpensive to travel to when compared with some other adoptive countries.
Despite all of the positives in adopting from Guatemala, last year things were a little tumultuous for the country as it attempted to implement the Hague Treaty on Intercountry Adoption. Because Guatemala works on a privatized system and the Hague Treaty requires a centralized system, everything was halted when the Hague Treaty was implemented. After some consideration, Guatemala decided not to implement the Hague Treaty and return to the old privatized system. Since then, attorneys have worked diligently to work through the backlog caused by the temporary shutdown and seem to be back on track. However, there is still discussion throughout the country on ways to improve the adoptions from Guatemala to guarantee that all adoptions are being completed ethically.
“There’s always been ups and downs in adoption,” Donnovan said.
While Donnovan recognizes that changes may occur in Guatemala adoptions, for now the adoptions are going smoothly and she keeps a positive outlook for the future.
“Adoptive parents will be able to start adoptions, but things may be slowed down as PGN begins to scrutinize adoptions more closely,” she said.
In the meantime, Guatemala remains a popular choice for adoptive parents, bringing more than 2,000 children home to the United States in 2003.
For more information on Guatemala adoptions, contact Donnovan at (303) 584-9900.
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