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Roman's Corner March / April 2008

For the past 2 years, Ukraine has been the seventh-largest country for intercountry adoptions and the number of Adoptions from Ukraine in 2007 and 2006 was 606 and 460, respectably. (per US State Department.)

We are pleased to state that the previously established 2008 quota of foreign adoptions from Ukraine has been rescinded.  On January 13, 2008, Ukraine’s State Department for Adoption and Protection of the Rights of the Child (SDAPRC) announced it would accept 1,453 adoption dossier applications from all foreign adopters in calendar year 2008.  Furthermore, this number will not be subdivided by country or by specific categories of children.

Ukraine is a very dynamic adoptive environment.  There is much more information that we could share with you about the present situation and the direction of where adoptions are moving toward in Ukraine.

Thank you for visiting the Embrace A Child website.  We not only want to help you with your Ukrainian adoption but to make it as stress-free as possible while introducing you to the Ukrainian culture.  Please do not hesitate to contact me at 330-659-2123 if you require assistance with adopting a child from Ukraine.

Sincerest regards,

Roman Kwit

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Embrace A Child - Ukrainian Adoptions LLC. strives to streamline the adoption process by making it as a predictable, comfortable, and as stress-free as possible.

Let us help you begin your journey of completing your family.

Thank you for visiting our web site.

Please contact us today.

Roman Kwit, Adoption Facilitator Specialist

(office) 330-659-2123

(mobile) 330-590-0373 Facilitator@embraceachild.com

Ukraine Rescinds Adoption Quotas for 2008 (Jan 14 2008) On December 18, 2007 the Ministry for Family, Youth and Sports issued Decree #4939 approving the number of new adoption dossiers from foreign citizens that can be accepted by the Ukrainian State Department for Adoption and Protection of the Rights of the Child (SDAPRC) during calendar year 2008. According to this Decree, the total number of the dossiers that can be accepted from all foreign citizens during calendar year 2008 is 1,453 dossiers. Decree #4939 cancels Decree #4137, which limited the number to 460 and issued country and age subdivisions. For full announcement, see US State Department website (http://www.travel.state.gov/family/adoption/country/country_3928.html) or the US Embassy in Ukraine (http://kiev.usembassy.gov/amcit_adoptions_notice_0115_eng.html).

Adoption Quotas Established for 2008– (Dec. 21, 2007)  The U.S. Department of State issued a public notice regarding adoption quotas in Ukraine based on Decree#4137. This Decree limited to 460 the number of dossier submissions to parents from the United States for calendar year 2008. Additionally, the total number of the dossier submissions was divided among five categories of children which considered age and number of siblings.  For the full announcement, refer to the notice if the US State department (http://www.travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3909.html) or the US Embassy in Kiev (http://kiev.usembassy.gov/amcit_adoptions_notice_1212_eng.html)

Hague Adoption Convention - Update on Implementation by the USCIS (11/26/2007)  On November 16, 2007, the President signed the instrument of ratification for the Hague Adoption Convention. The State Department intends to file this ratification on December 12, 2007 at which time it will also announce the date on which the Hague Adoption Convention will enter into force for the United States - projected to be April 1, 2008.  Title III of the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000, will enter into force on the same date as the Hague Adoption Convention and the interim rule that USCIS published in the Federal Register on October 4, 2007 will become operational -  all cases filed on or after April 1, 2008 where a U.S. citizen seeks to adopt and bring to the United States a child habitually resident in any country that has ratified the Hague Adoption Convention,  must follow the Hague process.  Prospective adoptive parents who filed Form I-600A or Form I-600 prior to the effective date may continue to process their adoptions under the current orphan regulations, unless the country of child's origin requires processing under the rules of the Hague Convention no matter when the case was initiated.  For the full announcement see: http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/HagueUpdate112607.pdf

Ukraine Annual Adoption Quota for U.S. Reached for 2007 (11/1/07) According to the State Department for Adoptions and Protection of the Rights of the Child, the annual quota for submission of the U.S. dossiers (558) has been exhausted. From now until December 1, 2007 no more dossiers from the U.S. citizens will be accepted, except for the following categories of children for which there are no limitations: special needs children, children 13 and older, and siblings of the previously adopted children (re-unification of siblings). The procedures and paperwork requirements remain unchanged. From December 1, 2007 until January 15, 2008 (approximately), no adoption dossiers will be accepted by the SDAPRC. After January 15, 2008, the SDAPRC must resume acceptance of regular adoption dossiers. The information about the quotas for the next calendar year (2008) has not been announced yet.  For a link to this announcements see the US State Department website http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3833.html ) or the Kiev US Embassy website (http://kiev.usembassy.gov/amcit_adoptions_notice_1031_eng.html)

Change in Procedure for Transmission of Adoption Files from USCIS to U.S. Embassies and Consulates Abroad (10/15/07) The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs and the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) instituted new procedures for the transmission of all approved immigrant visa petitions, including I-600A and I-600 orphan petitions, from USCIS District Offices to U.S. embassies and consulates abroad.  Effective July 5, 2007, all approval notices, approved petitions, and accompanying documents, will be sent BY MAIL from USCIS District Offices to the Department of State’s National Visa Center (NVC) in Portsmouth, New Hampshire who will forward the files by DHL to the appropriate U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad for visa processing. USCIS will no longer fax or email Visa approval notices directly to posts and the NVC will not forward approval notices to posts electronically. Consular officers will only be able to process an adoption case to completion once they have received the complete paper file from the NVC. Prospective parents will not be able to file their I-600 with embassies or consulates unless the embassy or consulate for the country of origin has received the I-600A approval notice from NVC directly. USCIS may continue to send I-600A approval notices to prospective parents, however, such approval notices will not be sufficient for embassies or consulates to begin processing an I-600 for the child. The embassy or consulate must receive the USCIS approval notice and complete file from NVC. Link to this announcement: http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3834.html.

Update procedure for submission of documents for visa (08/13/2007)  The Consular Section Adoption Unit of the US Embassy in Ukraine announced that effective September 4, 2007, the procedure to submit documents for visas for adopted children will change. Parents are required to leave all required documents at the Consulate no later than noon on the business day prior to day of the actual visa interview. Visa interviews will take place at 2:00 pm on the day designated, but only if all the required documents have been received. The Consulate will try to issue the visa on the next business following the interview.  Note: If the adopted child is 16 years or older, additional checks are required and will delay visa issuance by up to 72 hours.  For a link to the announcement, see  http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3760.html .  or http://kyiv.usembassy.gov/amcit_adoptions_notice_0813_eng.html

Update on Ukrainian Passport Issuance - August 3, 2007 Parents adopting from Ukraine should expect increased wait time when applying for Ukrainian passports for their children. The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv announced the delay on August 3, and now estimates a minimum 20-day wait to process an application. The Ukrainian passport issuance for adopted children will take a minimum of ten business days in addition to the required ten-day waiting period after the adoption has been finalized. For the US embassy announcement, please see: http://kiev.usembassy.gov/amcit_adoptions_notice_0803_eng.html

Possible Delays in Issuance of New Ukrainian Passport 7/25/07   On June 26, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that a new foreign passport had been introduced as well as a new centralized procedure for issuing passports. Regional passport offices will act as data gathering points and a central office in Kyiv will print and issue all passports. The old passport books are no longer in production and will no longer be provided to local passport issuing offices. Currently valid passports will remain valid until their expiration date. For more information, see: http://kiev.usembassy.gov/amcit_adoptions_notice_0725_eng.html   For US State Department announcement see: http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/info/info_3735.html

Paperwork Fees Changing   Effective July 30, 2007, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will increase fees for both the I600 (Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative) and I600A (Application for Advance Processing or Orphan Petition), from $545 to $670. The fingerprint processing fee will also increase, from $70 to $80. Read more about the new USCIS fee schedule here: uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/FinalUSCISFeeSchedule052907.pdf.

Employers offer adoption benefits (Asbury Park Press 06/25/07, USA Today 06/26/07) The number of employers offering adoption assistance is soaring. Read more here: http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070625/BUSINESS/706250305 and http://www.usatoday.com/money/workplace/2007-06-20-adopt-benefits-usat_N.htm?csp=34

Adoption Law Isn't Changed 06/13/07 Ukrainian adoption law still hasn't changed.  Ukrainian President Yushchenko vetoed bill 2562. This bill would have made adoption by single men and women illegal. And would have restricted adoptive parent's ages (+45 rules).  Read more here: http://eng.for-ua.com/news/2007/06/14/113035.html

Notice on Resumption of Acceptance of Dossiers 4/26/07  On April 16, 2007 the State Department for Adoptions and Protection of the Rights of the Child resumed acceptance of new adoption applications from U.S. citizens.  All the rules and requirements have remained in place.  Read more here: http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3230.html

Notice on New I-604 Requirements 4/6/07  The United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has advised U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide to begin using the new version of Form I-604, Determination on Child for Adoption (previously referred to as "Request for and Report on Overseas Orphan Investigation").   The new version, which went into effect on October 30, 2006, requires consular officers to certify that the adopted child fits the suitability criteria noted in the home study report, Visas 37 cable/I-600A approval notice, or approved I-600 as appropriate for age, gender, special needs, number of children, etc.  Since Ukraine does not allow pre-selection of children eligible for inter-country adoption, most American prospective adoptive parents do not know the exact age, gender, health condition and sometimes even the number of their prospective adopted child (children)).   The U.S. Embassy in Ukraine recommends that adoptive parents initiate the process of obtaining an amended USCIS approval as early as possible. Read more here:  http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3214.html

Resignations and a Temporary Halt on Acceptance of Dossiers 4/5/07 On March 20, 2007 the SDAPRC Director Ludmyla Volynets, her First Deputy Ludmyla Balym, Deputy Director Inna Savchuk and Head of the Intercountry Adoption Unit Olena Remen resigned.  New leadership has not yet been appointed.  Currently, the SDAPRC is not accepting any new dossiers from foreign citizens. Read more here: http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3212.html

Quota for 2007: Number of Dossiers to be Accepted 3/23/07  According to the U.S. State Department SDA issued Decree #16 on Feb. 24, 2007, giving the numbers of adoption dossiers which SDA will accept from abroad during 2007. The top three are the U.S. (558 dossiers), Italy (494) and Spain (380).  Read more here:  http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3184.html

Single Parents Unwelcome in Ukraine: Changes in Adoption Requirements for Ukraine 3/23/07  Parliament of Ukraine passed bill #2562 On Legislative Amendments to Ukraine's Laws (regarding adoptions). This bill introduces the following major changes to current Ukrainian legislation: the minimum age of prospective adoptive parent must be at least 21 years old; the maximum age difference between adoptive parents and adopted children cannot exceed 45 years; unmarried foreign citizens cannot adopt Ukrainian children. The law is not retroactive.  Read more here: http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3175.html

Public Notice on SDAPRC's Resumption of Acceptance of Adoption Dossiers 2/05/07

Public Notice on Voluntary Registration of Foreign Organizations in Ukraine 10/20/06

Public Notice Re-Registering with SDAPRC 10/20/06

Public Notice on Ukraine Adoptions, September 5, 2006

Update on Ukraine Adoption, July 05, 2006

Update on Opening of New Ukrainian Adoption Authority, June 14, 2006  

U.S. Urges Parental Follow-up Reports for Intercountry Adoptions

Ukraine-New Adoption Authority March 29, 2006

Notice to American Citizens Who Have Previously Adopted from Ukraine

Ukraine 1/31/2006 Update on Ukraine adoptions

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