ADOPTION PROCEDURE FOR RESIDENT INDIANS
It is a legal and emotional process that involves accepting the responsibility of caring for a child who is not biologically related to the adoptive parents.
The process of adoption in India is monitored and regulated by the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA), which is part of the Ministry of Women and Child Care.
CARA is the nodal body for adoption of Indian children and is mandated to monitor and regulate in-country adoptions.
CARA is also designated as the Central Authority to deal with inter-country adoptions in accordance with the provisions of the Hague Convention on Inter country Adoption, 1993, ratified by Government of India in 2003.
Laws Related to Adoption in India:
Adoptions in India are governed by two laws: the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956 (HAMA) and the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 (JJ).
Both laws have their separate eligibility criteria for adoptive parents.
Those applying under the JJ Act have to register on CARA’s portal after which a specialised adoption agency carries out a home study report.
After it finds the candidate eligible for adoption, a child declared legally free for adoption is referred to the applicant.
Under HAMA, a “dattaka hom” ceremony or an adoption deed or a court order is sufficient to obtain irrevocable adoption rights.
Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs are legalized to adopt kids under this Act.
A. Registration and home study of the prospective adoptive parents.―
(1) The Indian prospective adoptive parents, if interested to adopt an orphan or abandoned or surrendered child, may apply for the same on the Designated Portal ‘https://carings.nic.in /Parents/PAPsRegistration.aspx?Pagetype=I’ by filling up the online application form, as provided in the Schedule VI, and uploading the relevant documents within thirty days thereby registering themselves as prospective adoptive parents.
(2) The prospective adoptive parents shall be permitted two state choices or they may choose a cluster of states as per their identification.
(3) Registration on the Designated Portal shall be a deemed registration in all Specialised Adoption Agencies of the State or States they have opted for.
(4) The prospective adoptive parents shall get their registration number from the acknowledgement slip which may be used for viewing the progress of their application.
(5) The registration shall be completed and confirmed to the prospective adoptive parents immediately once the application form as provided in the Schedule VI are uploaded on the Designated Portal.
(6) After registration, prospective adoptive parents shall apply to a Specialised Adoption Agency or District Child Protection Unit nearest to their residence for conducting the Home Study.
(7) The Home Study Report of the prospective adoptive parents shall be prepared through the social worker of the selected Specialised Adoption Agency or the empanelled social worker of the District Child Protection Unit or the State Adoption Resource Agency who shall also be responsible for providing pre-adoption counselling to the prospective adoptive parents.
(8) The Home Study Report shall be completed in the format given within sixty days from the date of submission of requisite documents and shall be shared with the prospective adoptive parents immediately, thereafter.
(9) The Home Study Report shall be posted on the Designated Portal by the Specialised Adoption Agency within a period of three days from the date of completion of Home Study Report.
(10) The Home Study Report shall remain valid for three years and shall be the basis for adoption of a child by the prospective adoptive parents from anywhere in the country.
(11) The District Child Protection Unit shall facilitate online registration of application of prospective adoptive parents, uploading of their documents and also for addressing technical difficulties faced by the Specialised Adoption Agencies.
(12) The adoption of a child by the prospective adoptive parents, after completion of their Home Study Report, shall depend upon the availability of a suitable child.
B. Referral of a child from a Specialised Adoption Agency through the Designated Portal to prospective adoptive parents.―
(1) The seniority of the prospective adoptive parents for child referral shall be from the date of completion of registration process on https://carings.nic.in
(2) On the basis of seniority, the prospective adoptive parents shall be referred maximum three referral with one month interval in between two consecutive referrals subject to availability of children through the Designated Portal which shall include their photographs, Child Study Report and Medical Examination Report, in their preference category, if any, from one or more Specialised Adoption Agencies.
(3) After viewing the profile of the child or children on the Designated Portal, the prospective adoptive parents may reserve the child or children within a period of forty-eight hours for possible adoption and the unreserved child or children shall be released by the Designated Portal for other prospective adoptive parents in the waiting list.
(4) The Specialised Adoption Agency shall get the details of the prospective adoptive parents through the Designated Portal for fixing an appointment with the prospective adoptive parents for matching, to assess the suitability of the prospective adoptive parents by an Adoption Committee and the Adoption Committee shall prepare the minutes of the meeting.
(5) The Chairperson and another member shall form the quorum of the Adoption Committee in case of adoption from a Specialised Adoption Agency and in case of adoption from a Child Care Institution, the committee shall constitute Chairperson and two other members of the committee.
(6) The Adoption Committee shall scrutinise the requisite documents as stipulated for the prospective adoptive parents as prescribed.
(7) The Specialised Adoption Agency shall organise a meeting of the prospective adoptive parents with the child.
(8) At the time of matching, the social worker of Specialised Adoption Agency concerned shall orient the prospective adoptive parents for taking care of the child and also older child or children about their rights and responsibilities.
(9) The entire process of matching shall be completed within a maximum period of thirty days from the date of reserving the child.
(10) The prospective adoptive parents shall raise their grievance to District Child Protection Unit regarding the matching of the child, if any.
(11) While accepting the child, the prospective adoptive parents shall sign the Child Study Report and Medical Examination Report which may be downloaded from the Designated Portal, in the presence of the social worker or chief functionary of the Specialised Adoption Agency and the Specialised Adoption Agency shall record the acceptance by the prospective adoptive parents on the Designated Portal.
(12) In case the prospective adoptive parents are not selected for the child by the Adoption Committee, the reason for non-selection of the prospective adoptive parents shall be recorded on the Designated Portal.
(13) If grounds of rejection after the enquiry are found to be due to systemic error or on non-justiciable reasons, seniority of the prospective adoptive parents shall be retained.
(14) In case the prospective adoptive parents do not accept the reserved child, the prospective adoptive parents shall be relegated to the bottom of the seniority list, as on that date, who may avail a fresh chance when the seniority becomes due and the same procedure shall be followed in the subsequent chances.
(15) In all cases referred the reasons for not considering the prospective adoptive parents have to be clearly stated on the Designated Portal.
(16) The registration of prospective adoptive parents shall continue till the time they have not exceeded the maximum composite age, i.e. fifty five years for single and one hundred ten years for couple and subject to revalidation of the Home Study Report in every three years.
(17) The prospective adoptive parents may also get the Medical Examination Report of the child reviewed by a medical practitioner of their choice before giving their acceptance for adoption of the child.
C. Pre-adoption foster care.―
(1) The child shall be taken in pre-adoption foster care by the prospective adoptive parents within ten days from the date of matching, after signing the pre-adoption foster care undertaking in the format.
D. The prospective adoptive parents shall provide original documents or notarised or self-attested copy of the original documents to the Specialised Adoption Agency.
E. Adoption Order.―
(1) The Specialised Adoption Agency shall file an application with the District Magistrate of the district through District Child Protection Unit where the child is located, along with relevant documents as provided in the Schedule IX within ten days from the date of matching of the child with the prospective adoptive parents.
(2) The Specialised Adoption Agency shall file an application in the office of the District Magistrate through District Child Protection Unit.
(3) In case the child is from a Child Care Institution, which is not a Specialised Adoption Agency and is located in another district, the Specialised Adoption Agency shall file the application in the office of the District Magistrate in the district through District Child Protection Unit where the child is located and in such a case, the Child Care Institution shall be a co-applicant along with the Specialised Adoption Agency and the Child Care Institution shall render necessary assistance to the Specialised Adoption Agency concerned.
(4) In case of siblings or twins, the Specialised Adoption Agency shall file single application with the District Magistrate through District Child Protection Unit
(5) The Specialised Adoption Agency shall not make any opposite party or respondent in the adoption application since an adoption case is non-adversarial in nature.
(6) The District Magistrate shall hold the adoption proceeding in-camera and dispose of the case as early as possible, not exceeding two months from the date of filing of the adoption application by the Specialised Adoption Agency.
(7) The adoptive parents shall not be asked in the adoption order to execute any bond or make investment in the name of the child, considering the fact that their psycho-social profile and financial status have already been ascertained from the Home Study Report and other supporting documents.
(8) The Specialised Adoption Agency shall obtain a certified copy of the adoption order from the District Magistrate through the District Child Protection Unit and forward it to the prospective adoptive parents within ten days via e-mail and shall also upload it on the Designated Portal https://carings.nic.in/Parents which could be downloaded by the prospective adoptive parents.
(9) The Specialised Adoption Agency shall apply to the birth certificate issuing Authority for obtaining the birth certificate of the child within five days from the date of issuance of adoption order, with the name of adoptive parents as parents, and date of birth as recorded in the adoption order and the same shall be issued by the issuing Authority within five days from the date of receipt of the application.
(10) The Specialised Adoption Agency shall submit an affidavit to the District Magistrate while filing the application. In case the recognition of Specialised Adoption Agency has not been renewed or not likely to be renewed soon, then the District Child Protection Unit concerned shall directly file the application before the District Magistrate after completing its scrutiny.
F. Follow-up of progress of adopted child.―
(1) The Specialised Adoption Agency which has prepared the Home Study Report, shall prepare the post-adoption follow-up report on six monthly basis for two years from the date of pre-adoption foster placement with the adoptive parents, in the format as provided in the Schedule XII and upload the same on the Designated Portal along with photographs of the child within ten days from the conduction of such report.
(2) In case the adoptive parents relocate, they shall inform the agency which has conducted their home study and the District Child Protection Unit of the district where they relocate.
(3) The District Child Protection Unit of the district of the current residence of the prospective adoptive parents shall prepare the post-adoption follow-up report and upload the same on the Designated Portal within ten days from the conduction of such report: Provided that first follow-up report of the adopted child shall be done within three months from the date of pre-adoption foster care.
(4) In case of non-adjustment of both the child and the adoptive family with each other, the Specialised Adoption Agency or the District Child Protection Unit shall arrange the required counselling for such adoptive parents and adoptees or link them to the counselling services available within the district or state within seven days with due intimation to the State Adoption Resource Agency and the District Magistrate: Provided that in case of non-compliance for three consecutive post adoption follow-ups the District Child Protection Unit shall prepare the social investigation report and inform the Child Welfare Committee for further action as may deem fit.
G. Procedure of disruption- In case of disruption in in-country adoption.―
(a) at the stage of pre-adoption foster care before filing an adoption application, the child shall be taken back to the Specialised Adoption Agency with information to District Child Protection Unit and State Adoption Resource Agency;
(b) at the stage of pre-adoption foster-care after the application has been filed with the District Magistrate through District Child Protection Unit, the child shall be taken back by the
(c) Specialised Adoption Agency and adoption application shall be withdrawn with prior permission from the Child Welfare Committee with intimation to the District Child. Protection Unit and the State Adoption Resource Agency and the status of the child on the Designated Portal shall be updated by the Specialised Adoption Agency accordingly;
(d) where the child has been taken to another state during the adoption process, the relocation of the child shall be coordinated by the State Adoption Resource Agency in the state where the child is currently residing and the State of origin.
H. Procedure for dissolution-In case of dissolution in in-country adoption.-
(a) In case of dissolution, the application for annulment of adoption order shall be filed by the Specialised Adoption Agency with the District Magistrate through District Child Protection Unit;
(b) No application should be filed until two counselling sessions have been completed by the local Specialised Adoption Agency or District Child Protection Unit before making any decision concerning disruption or dissolution;
(c) Post dissolution order, the child shall become legally free for adoption;
(d) The Specialised Adoption Agency or the District Child Protection Unit shall update the child’s status as legally free for adoption on the Designated Portal within three days.
I. Where the Indian adoptive parents move with the child abroad, within two years from the date of pre-adoption foster care, the concerned Indian Diplomatic Mission in the country of arrival in case of Non-Hague countries and Authorised Foreign Adoption Agencies or Central Authorities in Hague countries, shall be intimated at least fifteen days in advance through a written communication for the purpose of remaining follow up reports by the adoptive parents with their full contact details at the new place.
J. The onus of getting the balance post-adoption follow-up is with the adoptive parents and they have to bear the professional charges on their own, and further the adoptive parents shall give an undertaking to the Authority to that effect.
Documents required for Adoption
- Current family photograph/ photograph of person adopting a child
- Aadhar Card or Passport or Voter card or Driving License of the prospective adoptive parents or Birth Certificate or Overseas Citizen of India card of the prospective adoptive parents (if applicable) and PAN Card (if applicable).
- Proof of residence (Aadhar card/ voter card/ passport/current electricity bill/telephone bill)
- Proof of income of last year (salary slip/income certificate issued by Govt. department/income tax return)
- Certificate from a medical practitioner certifying that the prospective adoptive parents do not suffer from any chronic, contagious or fatal disease and they are fit to adopt (In the event of a married couple, upload the applicant’s respective medical certificate)
- Marriage certificate/Divorce Decree/Declaration from the competent court or affidavit on oath pertaining to divorce in case of divorce governed by personal law where decree of divorce is not mandatory/Death certificate of spouse whichever is applicable.
- Undertaking from the relative in case single prospective adoption parents (if applicable).
- Consent of the older child/children in the adoptive family.source: carings.nic.in
