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email INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION
CANADA
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.
PLEASE NOTE: The U.S. embassy and consulates in Canada have limited information on adoption services in Canada. Americans who are interested in adopting in Canada should direct inquiries to the appropriate Canadian Federal/Provincial government office (see list below), and/or utilize the services of an attorney who can provide more specific information on practices and procedures for adoptions in Canada.
PATTERNS OF IMMIGRATION OF ADOPTED ORPHANS TO THE U.S.:
| Fiscal Year | Number of Immigrant Visas Issued |
| FY 2004 | 6 |
| FY 2003 | 0 |
| FY 2002 | 3 |
| FY 2001 | 2 |
| FY 2000 | 0 |
ADOPTION AUTHORITY IN CANADA:
In Canada, the provinces are responsible for setting and administering adoption policies and procedures. The following is contact information for federal and provincial adoption authorities, who can provide specific information on adoption in Canada:
Government of Canada
Human Resources Development Canada
Inter-country Adoption Services Unit
Child, Family and Community Division
Tel.: (819) 997-1562
Fax: (819) 953-1115
http://www.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/hrib/sdd-dds/cfc/content/interAdopt.shtml
Alberta
Alberta Children's Services
Program Manager, Adoption Services
Tel.: (780) 422-5641
Fax: (780) 427-2048
http://www.child.gov.ab.ca/whatwedo/adoption
British Columbia
Ministry for Children and Families
Adoption Branch
Tel.: (250) 387-3660
Fax: (250) 356-1864
http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/adoption
Manitoba
Manitoba Family Services
Child and Family Services
Intercountry Adoptions Specialist
Tel.: (204) 945-6964
Fax: (204) 945-6717
http://www.gov.mb.ca
New Brunswick
Family and Community Services
Adoption Consultant
Tel.: (506) 444-5970
Fax: (506) 453-2082
http://www.gov.nb.ca
Newfoundland
Department of Health and Community Services
Director of Child, Youth Policy and Programs Services Branch
Tel.: (709) 729-6721
Fax: (709) 729-6382
http://www.gov.nf.ca/health
Nova Scotia
Department of Community Services
Manager of Adoption and Foster Care
Tel.: (902) 424-3205
Fax: (902) 424-0708
http://www.gov.ns.ca/coms/files/adopint.asp
Northwest Territories
Department of Health and Social Services
Coordinator, Child and Family Services Unit
Tel.: (867) 873-7943
Fax: (867) 873-7706
http://www.gov.nt.ca
Nunavut
Department of Health and Social Services
Tel.: (867) 975-5700
Fax: (867) 975-5705
http://www.gov.nu.ca
Ontario
Ministry of Community, Family and Children's Services
Adoption Unit, Central Services
Tel.: (416) 327-4742
Fax: (416) 212-6799
http://www.cfcs.gov.on.ca
Prince Edward Island
Department of Health and Social Services
Child, Family and Community Services Division
Tel.: (902) 368-6514
Fax: (902) 368-6136
http://www.gov.pe.ca
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan Social Services
Adoption Program Consultant
Tel.: (306) 787-5698
Fax: (306) 787-0925
http://www.gov.sk.ca
Quebec
Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux
Secrétariat à l'adoption internationale
Tel.: (514) 873-4747 or 1 (800) 561-0246
Fax: (514) 873-1709
http://www.msss.gouv.qc.ca
Yukon
Family and Children's Services
Placement and Support Services
Tel.: (867) 667-3473
Fax: (867) 393-6204
http://www.gov.yk.ca
ELIGIBILITY AND RESIDENCE REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTIVE PARENTS: Eligibility and residence requirements may vary by province. U.S. citizens who are interested in adopting in Canada are encouraged to inquire with the appropriate Canadian Federal/Provincial government office (see list above), and/or to utilize the services of an attorney who can provide more specific information on practices and procedures for adoptions in Canada.
TIME FRAME AND FEES: Adoption procedures, and any associated fees, are determined by the individual provinces. Please contact the relevant provincial authority for information on local adoption procedures and fees.
ADOPTION AGENCIES AND ATTORNEYS : Americans who are interested in adopting in Canada are encouraged to make inquiries to the appropriate Canadian Federal/Provincial government office (see list above). You may also view a listing of attorneys prepared by the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Canada . These lists are available at the private commercial web page http://www.amcits.com/ for which the U.S. Embassy and the U.S. Department of State assume no responsibility.
Prospective adopting 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 adopting parents contact the Better Business Bureau and licensing office of the Department of Health and Family Services in the state where the agency is located.
Please see Important Notice Regarding Adoption Agents and Facilitators at our Web site travel.state.gov .
AUTHENTICATING U.S. DOCUMENTS TO BE USED ABROAD:
Canada is not a party of the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement for Legalization of Foreign Public Documents, so the Legalization Convention “apostille” certificate should not be used for documents to be presented in Canada.
Instead, the “chain authentication method” will be used to authenticate documents for Canada. This process involves seeking the proper authorities to attest to the validity of a succession of seals or signatures beginning with the seal on your document, proceeding to the U.S. Department of State Authentications Office , and ending with the seal of the Canadian Embassy or Consulate in the United States .
Three Types of Documents for Authentication:
- Civil Records and Notarized Documents: Civil Records (birth, death and marriage certificates) must be issued under the seal of the custodian of the state records . Certified true copies of civil records executed before a notary public are not acceptable to foreign governments. The appropriate
official in the state government must authenticate civil records or notarized documents. This is usually in the state Secretary
of State's office. To locate this office in the state in which your document was issued, please see the National Association of State Secretaries of State , Notary Public Administrators Section .
State Court Records : Court documents must have an original signature by the judge and seal of the state court. The judge's signature is then certified by the Clerk of the Court prior to being sent to the state Secretary of State's office or other appropriate office for authentication of the seal of the state court. See the National Association of State Secretaries of State for information about how to contact the state office that will authenticate a seal on a state court record. - Federal Documents: These include documents such as certified copies of I-600As and I-600s, other documents from USCIS or other federal agencies other than the U.S. Department of State. To authenticate these documents, first obtain the seal of the agency that issued the documents. Then the documents must be submitted to the U.S. Department of State Authentications Office for use abroad. Finally, the Canadian Embassy can authenticate the seal of the U.S. Department of State Authentications Office . Information about replacing a Certificate of Citizenship or Naturalization is available from U.S.C.I.S. Please see the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for information about the need for original documents.
- U.S. Department of State/Passport Records: These documents include Passport Records, Consular Reports of Birth Abroad (CRBA), and Consular Reports of Death Abroad (CRDA). These are maintained by the U.S. Department of State Passport Office and must be authenticated there. Please see the Passport Service guidance on how to obtain authenticated copies of CRBAs and CRDAs . For information about how to obtain copies of U.S. passport records see the guidance on the Consular Affairs home page .
Please visit our Web site at travel.state.gov for additional information about authentication procedures .
CANADIAN EMBASSY AND CONSULATES IN THE UNITED STATES:
Canadian Embassy
501 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20001
202-682-1740; Fax: 202-682-7701
Canadian consulates are located in the following cities:
Atlanta
Boston
Buffalo
Chicago
Dallas
Denver
Detroit
Houston
Los Angeles
Miami
Minneapolis
New York
Raleigh
San Diego
San Francisco
Seattle
U.S. IMMIGRATION REQUIREMENTS
Prospective adopting parents are strongly encouraged to consult U.S. CIS publication M-249, The Immigration of Adopted and Prospective Adopting Children , as well as the Department of State publication, International Adoptions . The U.S. CIS publication is available at the U.S. CIS Web site . The Department of State publication International Adoptions can be found on the Bureau of Consular Affairs Web site, http://travel.state.gov , under “International Adoptions.”
Adoptive parents are strongly encouraged to read the flyer the requirements for filing I-600 petitions for orphans adopted by U.S. citizens before completing an adoption abroad. Please see our flyer How Can Adopted Children Come to the United States at our Web site http://travel.state.gov/
APPLYING FOR A VISA FOR YOUR CHILD AT THE U.S. EMBASSY IN CANADA: All U.S. immigrant visas are processed at the American Consulate in Montreal.
1155 rue St.-Alexandre
Montreal, Quebec H3B 3Z1
Canada
(514) 398-9695
Note: Visa issuance after the final interview now generally takes 24 hours and it will not normally be possible to provide the visa to adoptive parents on the day of the interview.
U.S. EMBASSY IN CANADA:
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:
CALGARY:
U.S. Consulate General
Suite 1050
615 MacLeod Trail, S.E.
Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2G 4T8
(403) 266-8962
HALIFAX:
U.S. Consulate General
1969 Upper Water Street
Suite 904, Purdy's Wharf Tower II
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3J 3R7
(902) 429-2480
MONTREAL:
U.S. Consulate General
1155 St. Alexander Street
Montreal, Quebec, Canada H5B 1G1
(514) 398-9695
OTTAWA:
U.S. Embassy Consular Section
490 Sussex Drive
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1N 1G8
(613) 238-5335
QUEBEC CITY:
U.S. Consulate General
2 Place Terrasse Dufferin
Quebec, Canada G1R 4N5 -or-
C.P. 939, Quebec, Canada G1R 4T9
(418) 692-2095
TORONTO:
U.S. Consulate General
360 University Avenue
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 1S4
(416) 595-1700
VANCOUVER:
U.S. Consulate General
1095 West Pender Street
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6E 2M6
(604) 685-4311
NATURALIZATION: Under the Child Citizenship Act of 2000, which became effective on February 27, 2001, orphans adopted by U.S. citizens acquire U.S. citizenship automatically when all of the following requirements have been met:
- at least one parent is a U.S. citizen;
- the child is under 18 years of age;
- there is a full and final adoption of the child; and, the child is admitted to the United States as an immigrant.
A foreign–born adopted orphan who enters the United States on an Immediate Relative (IR) –3 visa becomes a U.S. citizen upon admission. A foreign-born orphan, who enters the United States on an IR-4 visa and is adopted in a U.S. court, will become a U.S. citizen when the adoption is finalized in the United States (the child will be a legal permanent resident until then). For further information, please consult with the consular section at the U.S. Embassy or the nearest office of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service. See our Fact Sheet about the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 .
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Specific questions about adoption in Canada may be addressed to the U.S. Embassy in Canada. 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, 4 th 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 international adoption of children 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 .
- DHS Citizenship and Immigration Services - recorded information for requesting immigrant visa application forms, 1-800-870-FORM (3676).
- Internet :
- Adoption Information Flyers: the Consular Affairs web site, at: http://travel.state.gov/ contains international country 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 flier. 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 Hotline 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.
- CIS web site - http://uscis.gov/
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