Adoption

The Consulate of the Republic of Kazakhstan in New York is releasing the following information:

As of September 15, 2008, a total of 9 (nine) of  US agencies have submitted their application to the Consulate of the Republic of Kazakhstan in New York.   Below is the list of agencies  approved to process adoptions in Kazakhstan:

  1. Adoption Associates
  2. Good Hope Adoption Services
  3. Maps Adoption &Humanitarian Aid
  4. Tree of Life Adoption Center
  5. World Links Association
  6. Little Miracles International
  7. International Adoption Guides (IAG)
  8. World Association for Children and Parents  (WACAP)
  9. Children at Heart Adoption Agency

All of the information requested from these agencies has been provided, and these agencies “are cleared” to submit dossiers to the Consulate of the Republic of Kazakhstan in NY

Information on international adoptions From the Republic of Kazakhstan

Currently the adoption legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan is based on the Constitution of Kazakhstan, Convention   on Children's   Rights  (Kazakhstan joint   this convention in 1994), the Marriage and Family Law of Kazakhstan as well as other laws and regulations.
According to the current laws of Kazakhstan, Kazakh children are available for adoption   by    foreigners    if    the    citizens of   Kazakhstan, who permanently reside in Kazakhstan, do not take care of them, if relatives of these children do not adopt them, regardless of their citizenship or place of living. 
In order to regulate the  process  of  international adoption and according  to  the  article  209  of  the  Marriage  and  Family  Law of Kazakhstan,   remedial   legislation   made   by   the   Government   of Kazakhstan  on  the  12th of November 2002 #1197, the Rules of adoption  of  children - citizens  of Kazakhstan - by foreigners were approved.
 The children can be adopted by citizens of Kazakhstan who do not reside on the territory of Kazakhstan , by foreigners, who are not relatives of the children, in 3 months after putting the children on the centralized registry at the Ministry of Education and Science of Kazakhstan. 
In  compliance  with  the  current  system of adoption, foreign citizens  who  wish  to  adopt  in   Kazakhstan  need  to   turn   to  respective institutions in Kazakhstan through diplomatic and consular  institutions  of   Kazakhstan   and prepare a dossier according to the following instructions. ( see below) After the completion of the dossier, it should be delivered to the Consulate of the Republic of Kazakhstan in NY (305 E 47 Street, 3 floor, New York NY 10017 ) with a cover letter.
Afterwards, the adoption dossier is submitted to the Ministry of Education and Science of Kazakhstan for consideration by respective institutions. 
 The  registration of foreigners who wish to adopt children from Kazakhstan   is  carried out by diplomatic and consulate institutions of Kazakhstan .
 The  Ministry  of  Education  and   Science  of  Kazakhstan  and regional Educational Departments have the right to issue invitations to Kazakhstan for foreign prospective adoptive parents. 
Registration of foreigners as candidates for adoption and issuance of a Kazakh visa  do  not  mean  automatic permission to adopt, because final adoption decisions  in  Kazakhstan are made by judicial authorities only. 
In  case  of  a positive  court order, respective institutions  of  Kazakhstan  issue  a certificate  for   adoption,  birth certificate and national passport where it is registered that a child heads for a permanent place of residence of his/her adoptive parents.  
According to the Law of Kazakhstan on changes and additions to the Law of Kazakhstan on Kazakh citizenship  of May 17, 2002 #322-11, the child who is a citizen of Kazakhstan and   is   adopted   by   foreigners  maintains his/her citizenship until the age of consent. The child can become the citizen of another country only after coming of age and according to his/her free will. This requirement was introduced to protect the rights of adopted children.

INSTRUCTIONS ON PREPARING DOSSIER FOR ADOPTION

The following is a list of documents needed for your adoption in Kazakhstan .  For each document listed, Consulate of the Republic of Kazakhstan in NY will need 1 (one) original with the translation behind the English document version, and in the same order as shown on your cover letter.    The Consulate requires 2 exact photocopied sets of your original dossier with translations, and an extra copy of home study with translation accompanied by a short cover letter.
You must have the originals notarized by your State Notary and get them authenticated by the Secretary of your State’s office, i.e. obtain an apostille for every of your adoption documents.  In other words, all of your adoption documents must be notarized and apostilled which certifies that they are true and legal in the eyes of the U.S. and Kazakhstan governments.
Please keep in mind that it is critical that all signatures (specifically those of the Prospective Adoptive Parents’) be consistent throughout all documentation. For example, if you have signed your passport in a certain manner, make sure that any signatures on other documentation for the dossier match exactly.

*Three-hole punched paper is required for every document in the original set and every document in the photocopy sets. These holes are used by the staff at the Consulate to sew your documents together, after they have been authenticated.
Very important! Please note – All documents must not be older than 4 month from the date of issue when you submit your dossier to the Consulate.

    1. At the time of Consulate submission, medical certificates must be less than 4 months old.
    2. Each medical certificate must be accompanied by a copy of the signing doctor’s license to practice. The license must be notarized as a true and accurate copy.
    3. At the time of Consulate submission, the home study agency license must be valid for at least one complete year. If such validity is not possible, a letter of explanation from the state’s licensing authority must also be submitted (notarized and apostilled).
    4. At the time of Consulate submission, the home study worker’s license must be valid for at least one complete year. If such validity is not possible, a letter of explanation from the appropriate licensing authority must also be submitted (notarized and apostilled).
    5. At the time of Consulate submission, the FBI clearance must be less than 6 months old

     

  1. Letter of intent to adopt a child in the Republic of Kazakhstan.  This letter should be addressed to the Embassy of Kazakhstan (Consular Section) to the USA , Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Department of Education of Astana the Department of Guardianship and Social Care. The form of this letter must be provided to you by your Int’l Adoption Agency.  
  2. Parents Commitment Letter to Kazakhstan Adoption Law.  Parents must pledge themselves to maintain the child’s Kazakhstan citizenship until the age of 18 years; must agree to prepare post adoption reports once every year until the child becomes 18 years of age; must agree to allow visitation rights to Representatives of the Kazakhstan Consulate in the US and officials from Kazakhstan up to two times a year until the child is 18 years old.
  3. Home Study. Your Home Study must be completed by a licensed Certified Home Study Investigator or agency in your state of residence. The home study must be followed by the current (unexpired) licenses of both the home study agency and your social worker.
  4. Home Study Agency post placement commitment prepared by a HS Agency Social Worker.  This is Social worker's obligation to provide post placement reports of your adopted child's development to the Kazakhstan government once a year for eighteen years after bringing your child home.
  5. Home Study Agency letter of recommendation. The agency that is writing the PAP’s (Prospective Adoptive Parents) home study should also provide a separate “Letter of Favorable Recommendation”. This document should be signed by the same person who signs the home study, and notarized by the same notary who notarizes the home study documents.
  6. Int’l Adoption Agency “Certificate of Approval”. After your home study is completed and has been approved by your Int’l Adoption Agency case manager, your case manager should provide to you their Certificate of Approval. This document should be signed and notarized by your Int’l Adoption Agency.
  7. Int’l Adoption Agency License. Your Int’l Adoption Agency case manager will need to supply you with their Agency License, notarized as a true copy of the original. Please, ask your case manager for this document along with the Certificate of Approval.
  8. Monitoring Commitment of Adoptive Family after adoption is finalized. The form of this Monitoring Commitment must be provided to you by your Int’l Adoption Agency. In this Commitment adoptive parents pledge to  allow for the examination of living  conditions and education of the adopted child to the interested organizations of the Republic of Kazakhstan .
  9. Post Adoption Reports Commitment from the family. This form should be provided to your by your Int’l Adoption Agency and confirms the Adoptive Parents obligation to provide post placement reports of your adopted child's development to the Kazakhstan government once a year for eighteen years after bringing your child home.
  10. Consular Registration Commitment from the family. This form confirms the Adoptive Parents commitment to register the newly adopted child at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Astana before leaving Kazakhstan . The form of this Commitment must be provided to you by your Int’l Adoption Agency.
  11. Xerox passport copies for each Prospective Adoptive Parent.  You may place copies of both passports on one page.
  12. Marriage Certificate. This must be a certified marriage certificate ordered from the office of Vital Records in the issuing state/country. This document must be apostilled in the issuing state/county/country.
  13. Birth Certificate of Prospective Adoptive Parent – for single parents ONLY.  Obtain a certified copy of the birth certificate ordered from the office of Vital Records in   the issuing state/country. This document must be apostilled in the issuing state/county/country.
  14. Guardianship affidavit – for single parents ONLY.  Prepare one notarized letter for each child being adopted.  The Adoptive Parent should write a short letter identifying the name (s) of the person or couple that will be appointed guardian of the child/ren if the Adoptive Parent can no longer care for the child/ren. Your appointees must also write a letter accepting your appointment as guardian of your adopted children. All individuals’ signatures must be notarized, both documents apostilled.
  15. Divorce decrees (if applicable).  Kazakhstan allows only two divorces. Any adoptive parent who was previously divorced must submit a copy of all divorce decrees. Each of these documents must be certified copies ordered from the county and state where the divorce was filed. Contact the Register of Deeds or Vital Records department.  This document must be apostilled in the issuing state/county/country.
  16. FBI Background checks separate for each Prospective Adoptive Parent. Your local police department will be able to do the fingerprints for you. Request one set per person. Mail the cards with a letter to the FBI requesting a clearance check for the purpose of international adoption. Ask your Int’l Adoption Agency to provide for you all details of this process.
  17. Medical Forms, separate for each Prospective Adoptive Parent.  These are health forms, one for each parent, to be completed by your physician. This form must be copied onto your physician’s letterhead, and then filled out. If the letter does not fit, you can have your physician stamp the health form with a name and address stamp.
  18. Employment Letters, separate for each Prospective Adoptive Parent.  These must be done on company letterhead, be typed, list an annual salary (not hourly), and must be signed by a company officer (not a bookkeeper or secretary). If you are self employed, have your accountant who does your business tax returns to prepare this letter for you. The letter should state how financially stable your business is. 
  19. Financial Statements (Affidavits).  This form must be provided to you by your Int’l Adoption Agency. The adoptive parents will fill in the form and have their signatures notarized.
  20. Bank letter.  Obtain a letter from the bank stating that you hold accounts and are customers in good standing. The signature of the bank representative should be notarized.
  21. Home Ownership form of Prospective Adoptive Parents.  This form must be provided to you by your Int’l Adoption Agency.  Your banker, CPA or financial advisor should complete this form for you.  The form must be prepared on a letterhead of the bank, CPA agency or the financial firm. The signature of the person preparing this document should be notarized.
  22. CIS approval of an orphan petition – USA .  This will be either an “I–171H” or an “I–179C” form. Unlike the other documents, you must keep the original form sent to you by USCIS and take it to Kazakhstan . Make one (1) copy and have it notarized as a “true copy”, and have it apostilled.
  23. Power of Attorney for Int’l Adoption Agency Representative in Kazakhstan .  This form must be provided to you by your Int’l Adoption Agency.
  24. Power of Attorney for Int’l AA Representative in Astana , Kazakhstan .This form must be provided to you by your Int’l Adoption Agency.
  25. Pictures of Prospective Adoptive Parents. Prepare photos of your family, home including prospective adopted child’s room, etc. Send at least 10 pictures total in each set (original dossier and its copies). Photos may be on several sheets of paper and sets should contain the same pictures.

Prepare a Cover letter (no notarization, apostille or page number required) for the top of your dossier.  The format must be provided to you by your Int’l Adoption Agency.

*After the documents have been organized in order, and the translations have been attached to the English versions, you will paginate every set. Write the page number in pencil in the bottom right corner. Two-sided documents are numbered as only 1 page. The page numbering will be started with the Apostille and “Letter of Intent to adopt a child” and include the Russian translation of the Apostille and Letter. For example, the Apostille will be page 1, the Letter will be page 2, the translation of the apostille will be page 3, the translation of the Letter will be page 4, etc.

*After all pages are numbered; you must then write the corresponding page numbers for each document, including the translation of that document, in the column on the left hand side of the cover page. For example, the page numbers for the Letter of Intent to Adopt will be 1-4. You will also write these same page numbers in the column on the left hand side of the translation of the cover page.

*Bundle the original documents together as one set, keeping them in the same order as the list on the cover sheet. Also bundle each set of photocopies as separate sets, in the order of the list on the cover sheet. Keep the extra home study copy separate from the other bundles.
* You may request a copy of your FBI Identification Record directly from the FBI for the purposes of foreign adoption; you do not have to go through any state office to do so. You will need to be fingerprinted for the FBI on form FD-258, most local police stations can fingerprint you for a small fee and already have the specified card, or you can print them out from FBI web site link noted below.



For additional questions with regard to translation or legalization (Apostille) see  Useful Links (Translation and Legalization Services)