INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION


CAMBODIA



June 2007


DISCLAIMER: The following is intended as a very general guide to assist U.S. citizens who plan to adopt a child from a foreign country and apply for an immigrant visa for the child to come to the United States.  Two sets of laws are particularly relevant: 1) the laws of the child’s country of birth govern all activity in that country including the adoptability of individual children as well as the adoption of children in country in general; and 2) U.S. immigration law governs the immigration of the child to the United States.

The information in this flyer relating to the legal requirements of specific foreign countries is based on public sources and our current understanding.  It does not necessarily reflect the actual state of the laws of a child’s country of birth and is provided for general information only.  Moreover, U.S. immigration law, including regulations and interpretation, changes from time to time.  This flyer reflects our current understanding of the law as of this date and is not legally authoritative.  Questions involving foreign and U.S. immigration laws and legal interpretation should be addressed respectively to qualified foreign or U.S. legal counsel.

PLEASE NOTE: SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES FOR CAMBODIA

On December 21, 2001, the then-Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) announced an immediate suspension of the processing of adoption petitions for Cambodia.  This decision was based on numerous concerns related to the fraud environment in Cambodia as well as the lack of a sufficient local legal framework and other safeguards to protect the children’s best interests.  On January 25, 2002, the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs verbally notified the U.S. State Department that it would suspend the issuance of adoption documentation to American families in acknowledgement of trafficking concerns and other problems in the adoption process.  From early 2002 until August 31, 2004, all immigrant visas for adoption cases in progress were processed under a joint State Department-Department of Homeland Security Task Force.  No further Cambodian orphans, including siblings of previously adopted orphans, can be processed for immigrant visas to the United States until the Department of Homeland Security (as the follow-on agency to the INS) lifts the suspension of orphan petitions.  At this time, it is not clear whether or when the moratorium might be lifted. 

Since 2001, the United States Government has consistently urged the Royal Government of Cambodia to amend its adoption laws and implement an effective, transparent child welfare system to protect children, birth parents and prospective adoptive parents.  Cambodia has begun this process with its accession to the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption in March 2007.  However, the U.S. Government continues to wait for Cambodia to take further steps towards Convention implementation as well as to make progress on updating its overall child welfare system.  The U.S. Government will continue to urge Cambodian officials to develop significant and much needed reforms that could eventually lay the groundwork for a resumption of intercountry adoptions between Cambodia and the United States. 


PATTERNS OF IMMIGRATION OF ADOPTED ORPHANS TO THE UNITED STATES:  Recent U.S. immigrant visa statistics reflect the following pattern for visa issuance to Cambodian orphans:


Fiscal Year       Number of Immigrant Visas Issued
FY 2006                                     2
FY 2005                                     5
FY 2004                                     47
FY 2003                                   124 (Pipeline cases only)
FY 2002                                   285 (Moratorium imposed 12/21/2001)



ADOPTION AUTHORITY IN CAMBODIA: 

Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans & Youth Rehabilitation (MOSAVY)

No. 788, Preah Monivong Blvd.,
Sangkat Boeung Trabek,
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
855-23-725-191 or 725-891


ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTIVE PARENTS:  If married, prospective adoptive parents must between the ages of 25 and 55.  If single, they must be between 40 and 50.  No prospective adoptive parents may have more than two children already.


RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS:  There are currently no Cambodian government-imposed residency requirements for prospective adoptive parents.


TIME FRAME:  Cambodian adoptions take a minimum of four to six months, but are frequently subject to delay.


ADOPTION AGENCIES AND ATTORNEYS:  The Government of Cambodia does not allow adoption agencies and attorneys to operate in that country.  However, American prospective adoptive parents may still wish to employ the services of a U.S. adoption agency to assist them with the U.S. aspects of the intercountry adoption process.  If they pursue this option, prospective parents should fully research any agency or facilitator they plan to use for adoption services.  For U.S.-based agencies, it is suggested that they contact the Better Business Bureau and/or the licensing office of the appropriate state government agency in the U.S. state where the agency is located or licensed.  Please see Important Notice Regarding Adoption Agents and Facilitators at the Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs web site http://travel.state.gov.


ADOPTION FEES:  In addition to their own travel expenses and those for the child eventually to travel to the United States, prospective adoptive parents should expect to pay the child’s Cambodian passport fee of $100.  The Cambodian government does not currently charge fees for its other bureaucratic or administrative procedures associated with intercountry adoptions.  However, voluntary contributions to MOSAVY for the benefit of newborns and other orphans are also permitted. 


ADOPTION PROCEDURES:  As stated in Sub-Decree No. 29, issued 14 March 2001:

  • A newborn or orphan child to be adopted must be under age 8, live in an orphanage or center managed by MOSAVY for at least three months before the adoption, have a birth certificate and have a medical certificate.
  • A child is identified by MOSAVY and applicants asked to accept or decline
  • Applicants may visit child before deciding
  • Applicants send file to Embassy of home country
  • Embassy forwards dossier to Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA)
  • MFA examines dossier for completeness; if incomplete, refuses case or asks for additional information
  • MFA forwards file under letter to MOSAVY
  • MOSAVY examines dossier
  • If approved, MOSAVY forwards file under letter to Council of Ministers
  • Council of Ministers examines dossier and approves for Royal Government
  • If approved, returns file under letter to MOSAVY with adoption decree
  • If approved, MOSAVY notifies Embassy that applicants must come to Cambodia
  • Approved applicants participate in handing-over ceremony at MOSAVY
  • MFA and MOSAVY require post-adoption reporting until the child turns age 18

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR ADOPTION IN COUNTRY:  As listed in Sub-Decree No. 29, issued 14 March 2001:

  • Application form
  • Adoption authorization from home country authority
  • Home study prepared by a licensed social worker and approved by home country authority
  • Copies of applicants’ birth certificates
  • Copy of applicants’ marriage certificate, divorce decrees, or certificate of celibacy
  • Report on applicants prepared by a psychiatrist and approved by home country authority
  • Certificate of good professional and social conduct from home country authority
  • Financial information and property titles of applicants
  • Proof that under U.S. law that an adopted child has same legal rights as a biological child
  • Pledge to file an annual post-adoption report approved by home country authority
  • Copies of applicants’ passports
  • Certification by the Embassy that the above documents are correct
     

AUTHENTICATING U.S. DOCUMENTS TO BE USED ABROAD:  The language describing the process of authenticating U.S. documents to be used abroad is currently under review. Please click on the following link for more information until the new language is finalized: http://www.travel.state.gov/law/info/judicial/judicial_701.html.


CAMBODIAN EMBASSY IN THE UNITED STATES: 

The Royal Embassy of Cambodia
4530 16th Street, N.W.,
Washington, D.C., 20011,
Tel. 202-726-7742. 


U.S. IMMIGRATION REQUIREMENTS: Prospective adoptive parents are strongly encouraged to consult USCIS publication M-249, The Immigration of Adopted and Prospective Adoptive Children, as well as the Department of State publication, International Adoptions.  The USCIS publication is available at the USCIS web site. The Department of State publication International Adoptions can be found on the Bureau of Consular Affairs web site, travel.state.gov, under “Intercountry Adoption.”

Before completing an adoption abroad, prospective adoptive parents are strongly encouraged to read the requirements for filing Form I-600, Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative.  Please see the flyer “How Can Adopted Children Come to the United States” at the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs web site travel.state.gov.


U.S. EMBASSY IN CAMBODIA: Americans living or traveling abroad are encouraged to register with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate through the State Department’s travel registration website, https://travelregistration.state.gov/, and to obtain updated information on travel and security within the country of travel.  Americans without Internet access may register directly with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.  By registering, American citizens make it easier for the Embassy or Consulate to contact them in case of emergency.  The Consular Section is located at

The Embassy of the United States of America, Phnom Penh
Consular Section
 #1, Street 96,
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Tel. 855-23-728-000
Adoptionscambodia@state.gov



APPLYING FOR A VISA AT THE U.S. EMBASSY IN CAMBODIA:  Due to the continuing U.S. Government-imposed moratorium on the issuance of orphan visas to Cambodian children, neither the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh nor any other U.S. Embassy can currently process this type of visa.

Some American prospective adoptive parents may be able to obtain a different category of visa, known as an IR-2, for their Cambodian adopted children.  However, the circumstances under which this is possible are extremely rare, and they apply only when the American parents reside permanently in Cambodia, with the child in their legal and physical custody.  Prior to applying for an IR-2 visa, the parents must have had the child in their legal and physical custody for a minimum of two years.  Therefore, only families who are willing and able to move to Cambodia for two years will be able to meet the requirements of this visa classification.  In addition, children who might potentially benefit from an IR-2 visa are subject to other legal requirements that do not normally apply to foreign-born orphans.  For all of these reasons, the Department of State strongly urges Americans who believe they may wish to pursue an IR-2 visa to contact either the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh or the Department of State’s Office of Children’s Issues before initiating the process.



ACQUIRING U.S. CITIZENSHIP:  The language describing the acquisition of U.S. citizenship for adopted children is currently under review. Until the new language is finalized, please click on the following link for further information: http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/info/info_457.html.


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Specific questions about adoption in Cambodia may be addressed to the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh via e-mail at adoptionscambodia@state.gov.  General questions regarding intercountry adoption may be addressed to the Office of Children’s Issues, U.S. Department of State, CA/OCS/CI, SA-29, 4th Floor, 2201 C Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20520-4818, toll-free Tel: 1-888-407-4747.

Useful information is also available from several other sources:

Telephone:

  • Toll Free - For information on intercountry adoption and international parental child abduction, call Overseas Citizens Services at 1-888-407-4747. This number is available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays). Callers who are unable to use toll-free numbers, such as those calling from overseas, may obtain information and assistance during these hours by calling 1-202-501-4444.
  • U.S. Department of State Visa Office - recorded information concerning immigrant visas for adopting children, (202) 663-1225.
  • U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services - recorded information for requesting immigrant visa application forms, 1-800-870-FORM (3676).

Internet :

  • Adoption Information Flyers: The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs web site at: http://travel.state.gov/ contains intercountry adoption information flyers like this one and the International Adoptions brochure.
  • Country Specific Information: The State Department has general information about hiring a foreign attorney and authenticating documents that may supplement the country-specific information provided in this flyer. In addition, the State Department publishes Country Specific Information for every country in the world, providing information such as location of the U.S. Embassy, health conditions, political situations, and crime reports. If the situation in a country poses a specific threat to the safety and security of American citizens that is not addressed in the CSI for that country, the State Department may issue a Travel Alert alerting U.S. citizens to local security situations. If conditions in a country are sufficiently serious, the State Department may issue a Travel Warning recommending that U.S. citizens avoid traveling to that country. These documents are available on the Internet at: http://travel.state.gov/ or by calling the State Department's Office of Overseas Citizen Services Toll Free at 1-888-407-4747. This number is available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays). Callers who are unable to use toll-free numbers, such as those calling from overseas, may obtain information and assistance during these hours by calling 1-202-501-4444.
  • USCIS web site