Adoption Process

      Process for Adoptions at GLA                                                              

Here is an overview of the adoption process in Haiti process, including approximate timelines for the various stages:

1. Arrival – Dossier arrives in Haiti at the orphanage.  We review it to ensure all the required documents are present and legalized by the Haitian embassy in the originating country. (Time is approximately one week.)

2. Legalization at the Minister of Foreign Affairs – We prepare the dossier for legalization at the Minister of Foreign Affairs office.  They legalize the signature of the Haitian Consular Officer who legalized the dossier at the foreign Haitian Embassy in the originating country. (Time is approximately two to four weeks.)

3. Waiting for a referral – Once the dossier is legalized, we hold it until a proposal is ready for the family.  (Time varies, based on requested age, gender, length of waiting list, etc.)

4. Referral – The referral is sent to the family, private adoption agency or government authority.  The family responds with questions or acceptance of the referral.  Upon acceptance, we prepare the dossier for IBESR and send it to the lawyer.  (Time is approximately one to two months)

5. Lawyer and social history – The social history (a combined social history of the child and the adoptive family) is prepared for the dossier as we are preparing the dossier for IBESR. The lawyer reviews the dossier to ensure it meets legal requirements.  (Time varies from one to three weeks.)

6. IBESR (Institut du Bien-Etre Social et de Recherches) – Haitian social services reviews the dossier and gives approval for the adoption.  (Time varies from three to six months, but could be longer if you need a Presidential dispense.)  If you have biological children, a dispensations from the Haitian President will be required.  This can take an additional 3-6 months or possibly longer. 

7. Make 1st trip to Haiti – The adoptive family comes to Haiti to appear before the judge and sign in the Judge’s book.  This is usually a 3-4 day trip. US families will also file the I-600 at this time. 


8. Parquet – After approval at IBESR, we prepare the dossier for Parquet (District Attorney).  (Time varies from one to six months)

9.. Courts – Once the adoption is approved by Parquet, the court papers are prepared for the finalization of the Haitian legal component of the adoption process.  (Time is approximately one to two months.)

10. Make 2nd trip to Haiti to appear before the civil judge.

11. Attestation signature (National Archives) – The National Archives of Haiti issue a paper to state that the signature on the act of adoption corresponds with the signature of the authorized party who signed it. (Essentially, this is a legalization of the signature.)  (Time is one to 2 weeks.)

12. Legalization at the Minister of Justice – All of the Haitian legal papers must be legalized by the Minister of Justice. (Time is approximately two to four weeks.)

13. Legalization at the Minister of Foreign Affairs– Legalizing the signature of the Minister of Justice. (Time is approximately two to four weeks.)

14. Passport – The passport process actually involves a two step study of the application by the Minister of Interior’s office, and then finalization and printing at the Immigration Department.  (Time is approximately three to four months.) 

15. Final review and visa application – After the passport is issued, all of the paperwork is reviewed and any spelling errors are corrected before the dossier is given to the required authority for the child’s visa.  Minor errors do not cause a problem in the process of the adoption, but some countries will not issue a visa for even small spelling errors.  The visa process and timeframe varies widely by country, and for the United States and Canada, some paperwork is completed by GLA and/or the family prior to this point.  At this point, the remaining visa process takes approximately: 
    1. Canada:  one week
    2. USA: four weeks to four months
    3. France: four to six weeks
    4. The Netherlands: two to three weeks
    5. Luxembourg: three to six weeks
 16.Travel – After a visa is approved, the adoptive family works with GLA to make suitable travel arrangements, and they come to Haiti to pick up their child.

    On average, adoptions are taking approximately 8 to 14 months from the time a proposal is accepted.  Every case is different, and adoption timelines are not necessarily directly comparable.  
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