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INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION

BOLIVIA

July 2006

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. Federal 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.

Prospective adoptive parents are advised to fully research any adoption agency or facilitator they plan to use for adoption services.  For U.S.-based agencies, it is suggested that prospective adoptive parents 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 NOTE:  Bolivia does not allow intercountry adoptions to countries that have not ratified the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption, including the United States.  U.S. citizens who are also citizens of Bolivia, or who are legal residents of Bolivia, may adopt Bolivian children.  American citizens interested in adopting from Bolivia should contact the Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy in La Paz via e-mail at consularlapaz@state.gov.

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

Fiscal Year	Number of Immigrant Visas Issued
FY 2005	8
FY 2004	5
FY 2003	11
FY 2002	14
FY 2001	35

All of the children counted in the table above adopted by American Citizens resident in Bolivia

ADOPTION AUTHORITY IN BOLIVIA:  The governmental authority responsible for adoption matters in Bolivia is the Vice-Ministry of Gender and Generational Affairs(Viceministerio de Género y Asuntos Generacionales), which may be reached via the following contact information:

Av. 16 de Julio #1219
La Paz, Bolivia
Telephone: 591 – 2 - 212 4725; 591- 2 –212 4727
Email: vicejunite@alamo.entelnet.bo

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTIVE PARENTS:   Bolivia allows both married and single people to adopt.  Prospective adoptive parents must be between 25 to 50 years of age or 15 years older than the adopted child to adopt a child in Bolivia.   

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS:U.S. citizens must be legal residents of Bolivia in order to adopt in Bolivia.

TIME FRAME:  Bolivian adoptions can be time-consuming.  Recent experience suggests that the total time required will be several months to over one year.  When a married couple is adopting, it is sufficient for one spouse to remain in Bolivia for the duration of the adoption process; it is not necessary that both do so.  However, both adoptive parents must be present for the preliminary hearing on provisional placement, the evaluation, and the ratification of the adoption by the court.  At least one prospective adoptive parent should plan to stay in Bolivia for approximately four to six weeks.  Adoptive parents are advised NOT to make travel plans for an adoptive child until they have the child’s U.S. visa.  The Immigrant Visa Unit at the U.S. Embassy in La Paz will do its best to process adoption visa paperwork quickly; however, unexpected delays in the adoption process are possible.  The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service and consular officials have no authority to intervene in any Bolivian legal process.

ADOPTION AGENCIES AND ATTORNEY Due to the current restrictions on intercountry adoptions in Bolivia, there are currently no licensed adoption agencies in Bolivia handling the adoption of Bolivian children by U.S. citizens.  The U.S. Embassy in La Paz maintains a list of attorneys who may be able to help U.S. citizens who are legal residents of Bolivia or U.S.-Bolivian dual nationals pursuing adoptions.

Please see Important Notice Regarding Adoption Agents and Facilitators at our Web site travel.state.gov.>

ADOPTION FEES IN COUNTRY:: The U.S. Embassy in La Paz estimates the average attorney and legal fees for an adoption in Bolivia to be between $5,000 and $7,000.  >

ADOPTION PROCEDURES:  Bolivia has two types of adoptions: national and intercountry.  However, Bolivia does not allow intercountry adoptions to countries that have not ratified the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption, including the United States. 
 
The following information is provided for use in cases in which the adoptive parents are resident in Bolivia or hold dual U.S.-Bolivian nationality.

In order to be eligible for adoption, a Bolivian child must be “abandoned.”  Abandonment is a legal finding made by the Bolivian court, and must occur before the child is assigned to prospective adoptive parents.  In effect, this prohibits so-called “direct” adoptions, in which the birth parent gives a child directly (or via an intermediary) to specific prospective adoptive parents for adoption.  In addition, this effectively bars adoptive parents from searching for and locating a child on their own.  Prospective adoptive parents must work with the Vice-Ministry of Gender and Generational Affairs to locate a child that is eligible for adoption.

Once the prospective adoptive parents are matched with a child, they must then  apply to the Bolivian court that has jurisdiction over the child.  A Bolivian attorney must submit the request for adoption to the Vice-Ministry of Gender and Generational Affairs along with a copy a social worker’s report of the prospective adoptive child. 

Adoption proceedings can, by law, take from 25 to 45 working days from the date of the first hearing, although it is not uncommon for the procedures to take even longer.  The length of the process often depends on which court has jurisdiction over the case. 

Once the final adoption decree has been issued, the adoption is recorded in a national registry maintained by the Vice-Ministry of Gender and Generational Affairs.  At this point, at least one of the adoptive parents will need to go to the Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy in La Paz to file an I-600 petition.  The Consular Section in La Paz forwards the petition to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office in Lima, Peru for adjudication and approval.  If approved, the petition is then returned to the Consular Section’s Immigrant Visa (IV) Unit for visa processing.  The Immigrant Visa Unit will then coordinate with the adoptive parents to arrange an immigrant visa interview on behalf of the child.  For further information regarding U.S. immigration requirements and how to apply for a visa for adoptive children, please see the sections below entitled “U.S. Immigration Requirements” and “Applying for a Visa for Your Child at the U.S. Embassy in Bolivia.”

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR ADOPTION IN BOLIVIA:  The following is a general list of documents that are required for adoption in Bolivia.  Prospective adoptive parents should be aware that other documents may be required.  Prospective adoptive parents are advised to have several extra copies of each document on hand when traveling to Bolivia.  Documents to be submitted by the prospective adoptive parents include (but are not limited to) the following:

• The adoptive parents’ birth certificates;
• The adoptive parents’ marriage certificate(s), if applicable;
• Home study conducted by an approved adoption service provider;
• Physical and psychological health certificates;
• Financial and employment certifications;
• 2-3 Personal references and police clearances;
• Evidence that prospective parent(s) has participated in and completed a parenting workshop (this may be undertaken in the United States).
• Each document must be authenticated in the United States (see the following section for information regarding the authentication of documents).

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.state.gov/m/a/auth/.

BOLIVIAN EMBASSY AND CONSULATES IN THE US: >

Embassy of Bolivia
3014 Massachusetts Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
Tel: (202) 483-4410

Bolivia also has Consulates General in Houston, Miami, New York, Oklahoma City and Seattle.

US Immigration Requirements

Prospective adopting parents are strongly encouraged to consult USCIS publication M-249, The Immigration of Adopted and Prospective Adopting 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 Adoption can be found on the Bureau of Consular Affairs Web site, travel.state.gov, under “International 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 BOLIVIA: 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:

American Embassy - Consular Section
Avenida Arce 2780, between calles Cordero and Campos
La Paz, Bolivia

APPLYING FOR A VISA AT THE U.S. EMBASSY IN COUNTRY: Prospective adoptive parents should advise the U.S. Embassy in Bolivia when Bolivian adoption formalities have been completed and provide the Consular Section with originals and one set of copies of the documents listed below.

1. Original Birth Certificate of the child;
2. Original New Birth Certificate of the child;
3. Medical Certificate of the child;
4. Copy of valid passports of adoptive parents;
5. Copy of child’s Bolivian passport;
6. Final Decree of Adoption of the child; and
7. Other documents as requested by consular officials.

Visa issuance after the final interview can generally be completed the same day as the visa interview. 

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: ../info/info_457.html.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Specific questions about adoption in Bolivia may be addressed to the U.S. Embassy in La Paz. General questions regarding international 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.
• Consular Information Sheets: 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 Consular Information Sheets (CISes) 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 CIS for that country, the State Department may issue a Public Announcement 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 - http://uscis.gov/.