Ukraine

Adopting from Ukraine

“When a country is in the midst of war, it is natural for families to want to open their hearts to these children either through adoption or hosting. The desire to provide a home and family to these children reflects the best intentions and sincere desire to help. However, adoption is only a possibility for children for whom parental rights have been terminated or for whom there is clear evidence that they are orphaned.” -National Council for Adoption Changes to Ukrainian Civil Code Affect Timeframes for Adoptions Last Updated: July 2, 2018 *Families will need to plan to increase their in country accommodation budgets accordingly.

Country of Ukraine Adoption

Hopscotch Adoption has recently added a Ukraine program which assists in the placement of Ukrainian children from 6 to 18 years old. Referrals are made by the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine with couples traveling to Kyiv, Ukraine for an assigned referral appointment. If an adoptive couple is requesting the referral of a child that they previously hosted, it is highly likely that the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine will agree to give that child’s referral to the couple. If a couple is requesting a “blind” referral at their referral appointment, the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine does its best to offer children with the couple criteria, but sometimes the couple has to return to the Ministry of Social Policy for up to three appointments to get the child/ren who is right for them. Children abandoned or removed from their home must remain on a government registry for a period of twelve months. Eligible Ukrainian children reside in orphanages and boarding schools where the care is noted as good.

Medical and health risks to be aware of include cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic respiratory disease, and diabetes. There is also a concern with harmful use of alcohol, tobacco, high blood pressure, exposure to pollution and obesity.

Eligible Applicants

Married couples of any heritage or mainstream faith, are eligible to adopt typically healthy children, as well as children with minor to non-correctable special needs. There are no restrictions on applicant family size. At least one spouse has to be a minimum of 15 years older than the adoptive child. While there is no law requiring a specific income for an applicant family, the husband does have to hold a job and the household income must be a minimum of 125% of poverty guidelines published annually by the Department of Homeland Security.

Program & Process

Upon collection of required documents, your completed dossier is sent to Ukraine and translated into Ukrainian. Your dossier is hand-delivered to the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine. The dossier approval and the assigning of your appointment process takes 6-8 weeks. (See NEW changes as of July 2018)

You will be met at the airport by a member of our English speaking in-country team, and you will reside in a private apartment. You will be assisted every step of the way with an English-speaking representative. In-country services include a private apartment, transportation, and translator. All necessary appointments are made on your behalf. Sightseeing is optional, but we hope you take full advantage of coming to know and love Ukraine.

Once the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine has issued your appointment, you will be informed accordingly. You will typically have 2-3 weeks’ notice before your appointment and both husband and wife are expected to attend. You will fly into Kyiv and go to the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine for your referral appointment. There are two categories that adoptive families generally fit into – those who have hosted a Ukrainian child and those who are going to adopt an unknown child which is often referred to as “going blind”. If you have requested a certain child who you have previously hosted the Ministry will usually have this child’s folder ready for you to view and accept. The following day you will return to the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine to pick up your letter of permission specific to the child you were referred. You will travel to your child’s region and meet/interact with the child and, if the child agrees, you will proceed with the adoption. There is two to three more days’ worth of paperwork and then fly home to wait for your court appointment.

If you are going to go to Ukraine “blind” (i.e. without previously knowing who your child will be), then you will be offered different child/ren and or sibling groups which fit within your home study approval criteria. The following day you will return to the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine to pick up your letter of permission specific to the child you were referred. You will travel to your child’s region and meet/interact with the child and decide if you want to proceed with the adoption. If you do, you will complete 2-3 days’ worth of paperwork and then fly home to wait for your court appointment. If you decide this is not the child/ren for you, you will return to Kyiv to wait a couple of days for another appointment (you are allowed up to three Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine appointments).

Court is typically scheduled 3 to 3.5 weeks after you have selected your child. Both husband and wife are required to attend the court hearing. After the court hearing both husband and wife can fly home if desired to wait for the ten day appeal period to pass or one spouse can return home while the other remains in Ukraine. After the appeal period has passed, then the court decree, the birth certificate with your child’s new name is obtained. Then the child/ren are picked up from the orphanage/boarding school and then the Ukrainian passport (with your last name on it) is ordered. You will typically return to Kyiv to wait the 3-5 business days that it takes to receive the passport. While in Kyiv, you will be completing the medical exam on your child that the American Embassy requires and completing the American Embassy forms. The last two days in Ukraine are spent obtaining the American visa to allow the child to enter the United States.

Note: It is highly recommended that both husband and wife travel on the first two trips to adopt in Ukraine. However, it is allowed that a married couple adopt and only one parent travel, as long as there is a Power of Attorney provided but this does make the process more complicated.

The Country

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe that borders the Russian Federation to the east and northeast, Belarus to the northwest, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the southwest, and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south and southeast, respectively. Ukraine is composed of 24 oblasts (provinces) and one autonomous republic (Crimea). The country is home to 46 million people. Ukrainian is the official language of Ukraine; Russian is also widely spoken.

Post Adoption Report (PDF)

Department of State’s Case Data Verification Form

Upon request, Hopscotch discloses the following information to all prospective adoptive clients:

The number of parents who apply to adopt through Hopscotch Adoptions’ program annually.
The number of adoptive placements Hopscotch Adoption has made annually.
The number and percentage of those placements that have disrupted or dissolved.
The number of children eligible for adoption and awaiting referral from any Hague compliant country from which Hopscotch Adoptions assists in child placement, when known.

To request this information, please contact our office and we will respond to you within 7 business days or sooner.

Ukraine

Adopting from Ukraine

Country of Ukraine Adoption

Eligible Applicants

Program & Process

The Country

Fees

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