Vietnam Adoptions

Note: Adoptions Currently Suspended

Vietnam's history goes back more than 2,500 years, to a time when it was part of the Chinese Empire. Vietnam became an independent kingdom in the early 10th century, and gained autonomy in the 11th century. The native dynastic period ended for Vietnam in the middle of the 19th century, when the country was invaded by France, and then by Japan in the 20th century. Vietnam regained sovereignty in 1954, but a war ensued causing the new nation to split for a brief period of time.

Today, Vietnam is home to more than 81 million people. In 2002, 766 Americans completed adoptions of children born in Vietnam. However, all adoptions by Americans of Vietnamese children are currently on hold due to new Vietnamese regulations regarding international adoption.

In July 2002, the Prime Minister of Vietnam promulgated Decree #68/2002, "Marriage and the Family in Vietnam." Implemented on January 2003, this decree includes a new process for international adoptions that became effective immediately. Until the U.S. (and U.S. adoption agencies) meet the requirements of this new Vietnamese adoption decree, no international adoptions by Americans can be processed in Vietnam. The new Vietnamese adoption decree includes these main provisions:

1. A Memorandum of Understanding on international adoption must be formulated and signed by the governments of the U.S. and Vietnam in order for adoptions to continue
2. Foreign adoption agencies must be licensed in their own country and in Vietnam, and these adoption agencies must maintain offices in Vietnam supporting humanitarian projects; and
3. All international adoptions in Vietnam will be processed through a new Central Authority at the Ministry of Justice.

Although families who have already received referrals and filed their paperwork in Vietnam are continuing to be processed, adoption agencies will not be able to make new referrals to American families until the U.S. State Department and the Vietnamese government sign the Memorandum of Understanding.

After a delay of several months, the U.S. State Department developed a proposed Memorandum and delivered it to the Vietnamese government for response. The Department of State then responded to the Vietnamese government's request for additional changes in the Memorandum of Understanding (now called the "Protocol"). The U.S. State Department sent the new draft Protocol to the Vietnamese government during the week of Thanksgiving 2003. The Vietnamese government is currently reviewing this draft Protocol. Since the U.S. State Department does not know whether the Vietnamese government will request any changes to the latest draft of the Protocol or when the Vietnamese plan to respond, time estimates are not yet available for the actual signing of the protocol and resumption of international adoptions between the United States and Vietnam.

In a Nut Shell: The Low-Down on Adopting From Vietnam

Prior to the moratorium imposed by the Vietnamese government, and pending the development and signing of a Protocol the U.S. regarding international adoption, the following information applied to adopting from Vietnam:

Children Available: Healthy infants 6 months old and older (both boys and girls) are available for adoption from Vietnam. Special needs children and older children are also available for international adoption.

Parent Requirements: There are no age restrictions on parents. Couples, single men, and single women are eligible to adopt from Vietnam.

Travel Requirements: Two trips are required. The first trip requires a one-week stay; the second trip requires a two- to three-week stay.

Time Frame: From first application through child placement averages 17 months.

Number of Children Adopted by Americans in 2002: 766

Additional Information: Families with no children must be open to a child of either gender. The children available for adoption from Vietnam live in orphanages. Some regions of Vietnam may not allow adoption by large families.

Credits: Excerpted from "International Adoption Guidebook," by Mary Strickert