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Intercountry Adoption > Country Information > Portugal Intercountry Adoption Information
Reissued with obsolete COVID-19 page links removed.
Exercise normal precautions in Portugal.
Read the country information page for additional information on travel to Portugal.
If you decide to travel to Portugal:
Portugal is a party to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Convention). Intercountry adoption processing in Convention countries must be done in accordance with the Convention; the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 (IAA); the IAA’s implementing regulations; and all applicable legislation and regulations of Portugal.
Portugal is not considered a country of origin for intercountry adoption at this time. While adoption is legally possible, children from Portugal are not generally placed for intercountry adoption. No child from Portugal has received a U.S. immigrant visa based on an intercountry adoption in the past nine fiscal years. The information provided is intended primarily to assist in extremely rare adoption cases from Portugal, including adoptions of children from Portugal by relatives in the United States, as well as adoptions from third countries by U.S. citizens living in Portugal. U.S. citizen prospective adoptive parents living in Portugal who would like to adopt a child from the United States or from a third country should contact Portugal’s Central Authority.
Under U.S. law, an accredited or approved adoption service provider must serve as the primary provider in adoptions between the United States and Portugal. Under Portuguese law, foreign adoption service providers must be authorized to provide services in adoptions from Portugal by the Ministry of Justice in conjunction with the Ministry of Employment, Solidarity and Social Security. No U.S. adoption service provider is currently authorized to provide services in adoptions from Portugal. See contact information below.
Please visit the Department of State’s country page for more information on traveling to Portugal and the U.S. Embassy in Lisbon’s website for information on consular services.
Warning: Do not attempt to adopt of a child in Portugal before USCIS has provisionally approved your Form I-800 petition AND a U.S. consular officer issues the “Article 5/17 Letter” for your adoption case.
Remember: The consular officer will make a final decision about a child’s eligibility for an immigrant visa later in the adoption process.
To bring an adopted child to the United States from Portugal, you must meet certain suitability and eligibility requirements. USCIS determines who is suitable and eligible to adopt a child from another country and bring that child to live in the United States under U.S. immigration law.
Additionally, a child must meet the definition of a Convention adoptee under U.S. immigration law in order to be eligible to immigrate to the United States with an IH-3 or IH-4 immigrant visa.
Portugal’s Adoption Authority:
Autoridade Central para a Adocão Internacional, Instituto da Segurança Social, I.P.
Avenida 5 de Outuburo n° 175,
1069-451 Lisbon, Portugal
Tel: +351 300 511 414
Email: autoridadecentralinternacional@seg-social.pt
U.S. Embassy in Lisbon, Portugal
Av. das Forças Armadas, Sete-Rios
1600-081 Lisbon, Portugal
Tel: +(351) (21) 770-2122
Fax: +(351) (21) 727-2354
Email: conslisbon@state.gov
Internet: pt.usembassy.gov/
Office of Children’s Issues
U.S. Department of State
CA/OCS/CI
SA-17, 9th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20522-1709
Tel: 1-888-407-4747
E-mail: Adoption@state.gov
Internet: adoption.state.gov
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
For questions about filing a Form I-800A application or a Form I-800 petition:
USCIS National Benefits Center (NBC)
Tel: 1-877-424-8374 (toll free); 1- 913-275-5480 (local); Fax:1- 913-214-5808
Email: NBC.Adoptions@uscis.dhs.gov
For general questions about immigration procedures:
USCIS Contact Center
1-800-375-5283 (TTY 1-800-767-1833)
Internet: uscis.gov
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