Adoption

Posted by Aria (1921 days ago)

I am trying to find out information about adopting in Asia. I am an employed expat kiwi and would love to adopt. I have tried the NZ Embassy and have contantly been told that it can not be done. However, I have heard that if you are living as I am in the country you can do it. Has anyone any information or been throught this experience. I would truely appreciate it.
Desperate to adopt.
Aria

(I am based in Hong Kong)

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Posted by Maja (1828 days ago)

Hi, why dont you want to go thru the Adoption Unit of the Social Welfare Dept. in HK???? We are right now in the adoption process with them and feel quite comfortable! Everything is going very well and quite fast compared to other countries and the people are very kind and helpful. Even if you do not want to adopt a child from HK they can give you some advise for international adoption in other asian countries.

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by Maja (1828 days ago)

Dear Aria, where in Vietnam are you living? Our daughter is from Vietnam from an orphanage in Saigon. We adopted her thru an agency 2 years ago.

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by koala48 (1828 days ago)

Hubby -- I am an Australian citizen who adopted two children while living overseas. My advice to you is to first check with the Child Welfare authorities in your home state for their regulations about adopting while overseas. The minimum requirement is to have lived overseas for a certain number of years (I can't remember how many), otherwise you have to go through Australian adoption agencies.
I adopted my children legally through the family court system in their home country as I was living there at the time. Later, the adoptions were validated in the Family Court of my home state in Australia and the children were issued with Aussie birth certificates and new names. We then had to apply for naturalisation as citizens of Australia and then for Aussie passports. This was done through the Australian embassy. Prior to the issuing of Aussie passports, the children held valid passports from their home country, in their original names. With these, we were able to travel to Australia and other places for holidays while all the paperwork was being done. I always carried a copy of the adoption papers from their home country, just in case I had to prove our relationship, but I never needed to do so.
I went out of my way to ensure all was legal as I had read stories of children being refused entry into Australia after being adopted by Australians overseas. I think the main thing could be that you need to be able to prove that you have not adopted overseas in order to bypass the system in Australia.
It sounds as if the local Social Welfare Dept in HK is very good, so why not approach them?

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by Mum in HK (1828 days ago)

Several of my friends (two Australian couples, one English couple, one American couple) have adopted via Social Welfare in HK ... fast (approval as quickly as two months), but thorough processing of applications and all of them very successful adoptions. I'm not sure why "hubby" has such a strong feeling against it, but "Adoption", maybe you should not dismiss this option out of hand. Sorry I don't have anything more specific but wish you the best of luck.

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by curiousHK (1828 days ago)

try MONGOLIA.it's called the verbist care center, and they help streetkids but they are up for adoption. many of their parents live in manholes or have abandoned their children simply because they can't feed them. The verbist care center accomodates a limited number of street children if their willing to go to school. i've been there personally and it is beautiful. the kid's are obedient, friendly, helpful... the toddlers are so cute as well. they have kids ranging from babies to teens. you could do some reasearch perhaps type in yahoo or any search engine "VERBIST CARE CENTER" I can give you contact details if you wish. Mongolia is a beautiful city with beautiful children. it's just a country filled with poverty... but it's beautiful. i love it.

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by hubby (1828 days ago)

My wife and I are also seriously looking into adoption, preferably from Vietnam, Cambodia or Thailand. We are Australian and would really appreciate any guidance. We have scanned previous listings on this site but most are from US or UK citizens ... please don't suggest going to Social Welfare in HK !!

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by hubby (1828 days ago)

Dear Maja - I was on earlier and am living in HK ... I would love some details of the Agency you used and the orphanage etc ... we have found it extremely difficult to get any information on Vietnamese adoption.

Kind regards,

Hubby

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by hubby (1828 days ago)

Any details for us Maja ??

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by hubby (1828 days ago)

Cheers Mel - agreed that is great news and does seem to make things simpler. Where/how did you adopt ? How long did it take from the time you decided to "go for it" to the delivery of the little one ?

Maja - would still also love your info on the Vietnam agency &/or the orphanage you went through and hopefully some details/info of your experience ... my email address is hubby888@hotmail if you would rather not place more info on this site.

Look forward to hearing from you both.

Hubby

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by hubby (1828 days ago)

That's obviously hubby888@hotmail.com .... sorry !!

(I am based in Hong Kong)

Posted by Aria73 (1828 days ago)

I am not living in HK rather in Vietnam and there only seem to be American Agencies here and teh consul knows nothing or so they say. Does anyone know about NZers? The posting above was very interesting and it is along the lines of what I have heard for us Kiwis. I have been out of NZ for almost 5 years now. Any further info would be appreciated.
Thanks Aria

(I am based in Vietnam)

Posted by wewow32 (1828 days ago)

Contact Mother's Choice at www.mchoice.org or at www.motherschoice.com

They run adoption services in HK.

(I am based in Hong Kong)