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International adoption. Applications for adoption. By countries

International adoption. Applications for adoption. By countries Catalonia. 2023
Value Variation (%)
Applications for adoption 207 43.8
Total Europe 18 20.0
Bulgaria 7 75.0
Hungary 2 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Lithuania 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Moldavia 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Czech. R 1 0.0
Poland 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Romania 0 -100.0
Russia 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Ukraine 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Rest of Europe 8 33.3
Total Africa 45 136.8
Burkina Faso 0 -100.0
Cameroon 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Cape Verde 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Ivory Coast 8 14.3
Gambia 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Ethiopia 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Guinea Bissau 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Mali 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Madagascar 14 40.0
Nigeria 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Morocco 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Congo 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Democratic Republic of Congo 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Senegal 23 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Rest of Africa 0 -100.0
Total America 77 51.0
Bolivia 31 106.7
Brazil 3 200.0
Colombia 21 40.0
Costa Rica 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
El Salvador 1 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Ecuador 1 -50.0
Guatemala 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Haiti 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Honduras 6 100.0
Mexico 1 -50.0
Panama 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Nicaragua 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Peru 12 50.0
Dominican Republic 1 -66.7
Venezuela 0 -100.0
Chile 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Rest of America 0 -100.0
Total Asia 67 13.6
Philippines 2 0.0
India 7 -12.5
Kazakhstan 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Nepal 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Thailand 4 33.3
Sri Lanka 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Vietnam 54 20.0
China 0 -100.0
Rest of Asia 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Total Oceania 0 .. Confidential data, low reliability or not available
Source: Institut Català de l'Acolliment i de l'Adopció.
(..) Confidential data, low reliability or not available.

Last update: February 21, 2024.

Methodological note

Definition of concepts

Adoption
Legal situation accorded judicially that leads to a parent-child relationship with identical effects to that produced naturally and that provides a family to a non emancipated minor or exceptionally to an adult or an emancipated child and person older than 25 years or a married couple or de facto couple, as long as there is a difference of 14 years in the ages of the adopted and the adopters. However, international adoption presents peculiarities such as the need for the adoption process to be in keeping with the legislation of the country of origin of the minor and the inscription of the full resolution of the adoption in the Central Civil Register, which produces plenary executive rights to the Spanish state as well as the acquisition by the minor being adopted of Spanish nationality.

Methodological aspects

Fostering and adoption

The Institut Català de l'Acolliment i de l'Adopció (Catalan Institute for Fostering and Adoption - ICAA, Ministry of Social Welfare and Family), with the purpose of helping to drive forward a general policy on adoption and basic placement in foster families, to streamline the process to assess suitability of people or families applying to foster or adopt, and to process international adoptions when required.

Adoption is the legal, psychological and social process of fully and definitively integrating a child in a family into which he/she was not born. It is a child protection measure that provides a parent-child relationship with the same legal effects as biological parenthood, and at the same time ends the legal bond with the family of origin, always in the best interests of the child.

The legislation that governs the adoption process is as follows: Law 25/2010, of July 29, of the second book of the Civil Code of Catalonia, on the person and the family. This legislation establishes in article 235 point 30 the requirements that persons wishing to adopt must comply with:

  • Be in full exercise of their civil rights.
  • Be older than twenty-five years and be at least fourteen years older than the person being adopted.
  • Adoption is only admitted for more than one person in the case of the spouses or partners living stably together. In these cases, it is sufficient for just one of the persons to be at least twenty-five years old.

International adoption

This is the legal process of adopting children from other countries on the basis of the Hague Convention of 29 May 1993 on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption. This Convention ensures that:

  • The adoption is for the benefit of the child.
  • The child has been declared adoptable.
  • The applicant family has a certificate of suitability.
  • No person that is not the actual child can benefit improperly from this adoption.

The assignation of a child to a family depends exclusively on the sovereign decisions of the child's country of origin.

The Catalan Institute of Fostering and Adoption is certified in the quality management system for the activities of: processing the resolution of suitability for international adoption in accordance with the requirements of regulation ISO 9001: 2008.