Spain 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 Spain.

Spain is not considered a country of origin for intercountry adoption at this time. While adoption is legally possible, children from Spain are not generally placed for intercountry adoption. Only one child from Spain has received a U.S. immigrant visa based on an intercountry adoption in the past eight fiscal years. The information provided is intended primarily to assist in extremely rare adoption cases from Spain, including adoptions of children from Spain by relatives in the United States, as well as adoptions from third countries by U.S. citizens living in Spain.

Below is the limited adoption information the Department has obtained from Spain. U.S. citizens interested in adopting children from Spain should contact the Central Authority of Spain to inquire about applicable laws and procedures. U.S. citizen prospective adoptive parents living in Spain who would like to adopt a child from the United States or from a third country should also contact Spain’s Central Authority.  See contact information below.

Please visit the Department of State’s country pages for more information on traveling to Spain and the U.S. Embassy in Madrid’s website for information on consular services.

The consular officer will send a letter (referred to as an “Article 5/17 Letter”) to Spain’s Central Authority in any intercountry adoption involving U.S. citizen adoptive parents and a child from Spain if all Convention requirements are met and the child appears eligible to immigrate to the United States. This letter will inform Spain’s Central Authority that the parents are suitable and eligible to adopt, that the child appears eligible to enter and reside permanently in the United States, and that the U.S. Central Authority agrees that the adoption may proceed.

Warning: Do not attempt to adopt a child in Spain 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.

Spain’s Adoption Authority:
Ministerio de Sanidad, Servicios Sociales e Igualdad
Dirección General de Servicios para la Familia y la Infancia
Paseo de la Castellana, 67
28071 MADRID
España
Tel.: +34 (91) 822 6660
Fax: +34 (91) 822 6679
Internet: https://administracion.gob.es/pag_Home/en/Tu-espacio-europeo/derechos-obligaciones/ciudadanos/familia/menores/adopcion.html

Note: Each of Spain’s 17 Autonomous Communities, as well as the two Autonomous Cities of Ceuta and Melilla, serve as the Central Authority for its territory. However, the national-level Central Authority for transmission of communications, Direccion General de Servicios para la Familia y la Infancia, located in Madrid, is responsible for transmitting requests from prospective adoptive parents to the Central Authority in the appropriate Autonomous Community. A complete list of Central Adoption Authorities for the 17 Autonomous Communities is available here.

U.S. Embassy in Madrid, Spain
American Embassy, Madrid
American Citizen Services
C./ Serrano, 75
Madrid, Spain
Tel: 011 34 91 587 2200
Fax: 011 34 91 587 2243
Email:  madridacs@state.gov
Internet: https://es.usembassy.gov/

Office of Children’s Issues
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street, NW
SA-17
Washington, DC 20520
Tel:  1-888-407-4747
E-mail:  Adoption@state.gov
http://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