Adoption of children is a priority form of family care for children left without parental care. According to the legislation of the Russian Federation after adoption the child gets the same rights as family by origin – i.e., in fact, in terms of the law the adopted child becomes a full member of the adoptive family - with observance of all property rights and obligations, including the right to inherit property.
It should be noted that the adoption of children in the Russian Federation is a process that takes some time, all stages of which are strictly regulated. Therefore, if you have decided to adopt a child, the most reasonable thing to do in the beginning is to comprehensively study the issue. Advice on what is needed for adoption you can get in the place of residence in the child welfare authorities (CWA).
Information on the procedure and the establishment of adoption can be also obtained "without leaving home", using the information of thematic conferences and forums in the Internet.
One of the most comprehensive resources on the subject of the adoption of children in the Russian Federation is the portal "usinovite ru" (adopt ru). Terms of adoption of children, order of adoption establishment and cancellation, adoption by father (or by one of the spouses), confidentiality of adoption, statistics of adoption in Russia (including 2012) - all these can be read on the "usinovite ru".
So what are the basic conditions for the adoption of children in the Russian Federation; what is needed in order to adopt a little child; which children can be adopted?
Adoption of a newborn infant (or older child, boy or girl) is possible only if the child was left without parents, or his (her) parents are deprived of parental rights at law, or have agreed for the adoption of their child.
In other cases, prospective adoptive parents may be offered other forms of the child accommodation (for example, custody).
It is possible to adopt a girl or a boy only before he or she reaches the age of majority (18 years). Many married couples who wish to adopt an infant, want the child to be very small, they want to adopt a little child literally from the maternity hospital, assuming that in this case preservation of the adoption confidentiality will be guaranteed.
For some couples, the most desirable is a secret adoption, in which case even close relatives and family friends will not know about it. Information on the ways of a secret adoption achievement can be read at relevant conferences and forums in the Internet; for example, woman imitates pregnancy and leaves in search of a baby away from the place of residence, etc.
However, let’s not forget that the conditions of the adoption of children in the Russian Federation involve a specific order of the procedure establishment and passage. Confidentiality of adoption is protected by law, and its violation is punished under the legislation of the Russian Federation.
Conditions of adoption include several age restrictions. Thus, the age difference between the adopter and the adopted child must be at least 16 years. If the adopted child is more than 10 years old, the consent of the child for adoption is required.
It is also necessary to note that, despite the lack of a biological relationship, marriage between adoptive parents and adopted children is prohibited. The possibility of such marriage, in theory, can be considered only in case of cancellation of adoption through the court, whereupon family relationships between adoptive parents and adopted children are terminated.
If a married couple has decided to adopt a child, they need to collect a certain set of documents (details can be found here) for submission to the child welfare authorities.
If the prospective adoptive parents receive a positive answer for the adoption of a child, the regional or federal data bank of orphaned children provides them with information about the children (including newborns), which can be adopted at the moment.
Then prospective adoptive parents get a referral for a meeting with the selected child, and if after the meeting spouses (father or mother) make a decision on the adoption, the case is referred to the court, where the establishment of adoption is considered in the order determined by the clerical work rules. The period during which the case on adoption comes to court usually lasts from one to three months. However, this period may be reduced, for example, when child needs to urgently leave for medical treatment, etc.
Further conditions of adoption imply payment of certain monetary compensations, the order of which is close to that which follows the birth of a biological child (one-time compensation, disbursements and parental leave to care for a newborn, etc.).
The decision on adoption is made by the court. After the decision is made, it is allowed to make changes in the child's birth certificate and in the registry office book at the request of the adoptive parents.
Such form of care for orphans as adoption differs particularly by the review of the case in court; court does not consider cases on guardianship, trusteeship and foster care.
These forms of family accommodation are determined by establishment of contractual relationships between guardians (foster family) and child welfare authorities. In these cases wards (unlike adoptees) have no right to inherit property of their guardians.
Cancellation of adoption is also considered by the court in due course. In case of cancellation of adoption all legal and financial liabilities between the adopter and the adopted child (including the right to inherit property) are terminated.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of cases on cancellation of adoption that are being considered; there are various causes for that. Exactly to ensure that the amount of cases on cancellation of adoption is as small as possible, the prospective adoptive parents have to clearly understand the responsibility of the step they are about to take.
