Poland is a signatory party to the Convention of 29 May 1993 on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption. The list of Contracting Parties to the Convention mentioned above is available on the website of the Hague Conference on Private International Law (The World Organisation for Cross-border Co-operation in Civil and Commercial Matters)
https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=69
1. Adoption of a Child from a Country being a Contracting Party to the Hague Convention
Families/married couples residing in Poland wishing to adopt a child from a country other than Poland, a country which is at the same time a Contracting Party to the Hague Convention – may address to an adoption centre in their area (voivodeship) which objective is to prepare the family for an adoption proceeding (diagnosis, training, positive recommendation – qualification opinion)
Local adoption centre will also collect any and all documents required and then the centre will assign the family concerned for the purpose of qualification for intercountry adoption to the Catholic Adoption Centre in Warsaw as the only one, as of today, authorised to carry out and mediate in the course of international adoption proceedings. (The Official Announcement by the Minister of Family, Labour and Social Policy of January 13th, 2017 on adoption and custody centres authorised to collaborate with government authorities of other countries or adoption organisations licensed by governments of those countries. (Official Gazette of the Republic of Poland (Monitor Polski), item 35).
Any and all possible subsequent meetings with applicants (candidates for foster parents) will take place at the CA Centre, Warsaw.
Then, the specification gathered by the applicants is sent to the Polish government agency for adoption matters, i.e. the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy. The said Ministry sends the applicants’ case file to a government agency for adoption matters of a country from which the applicants wish to adopt a child. The foreign government agency is responsible for suggesting a child for adoption and for delivering the child’s documents to the Catholic Adoption Centre, Warsaw, through the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy.
After having received all documents, the CA Centre decides on applicants suitability and pertinence for a proposed child and, in case of a positive opinion, the Centre sends the complete case file to the country of the child’s origin through the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy, for the purpose of adoption proceeding completion.
The documents listed below, together with their sworn translation into the official language of a given country of the child’s origin are required. Please note that those documents need to be certified for their authenticity by means of an Apostille or otherwise.
- a letter of application addressed to a government agency for adoption matters (Central Authority) of a country of a child’s origin together with a request to register the applicants on the waiting list (as the couple awaiting a child for adoption);
- copies of birth certificates of both prospective adoptive parents;
- a copy of a marriage certificate;
- certificate affirming that none of the candidates have ever been registered in the National Record of Convictions;
- certificate related to employment/income status;
- attestation of citizenship (copies of passports);
- medical reports – statement of good health condition both physical and mental (lack of medical contraindications)
- background survey conducted by the relevant certified organisation (“home study”);
- an official consent issued by the Polish government agency (Central Authority) for further proceeding and for bringing the child to Poland, issued in the names of the applicants.
2. Adoption of a Child from a Country which is not a Contracting Party to the Hague Convention
In case the applicants/prospective adoptive parents wish to adopt a child from a country which requirements and procedures are not subject to the Hague Convention, they should research and get to know the mandatory requirements of a country of a child’s origin as well as the requirements defined by Polish courts and then, submit a request addressed to their local adoption centre which may instigate the adoption proceeding in their behalf. Then, the local adoption centre will prepare the applicants’ family with the adoption proceeding in line with the requirements of a given country, collect all necessary documents, guide the proceeding and the applicants or will collaborate with the relevant organisations of the child’s origin country; and – if necessary – will also provide with post-adoption monitoring activities.
There is no option to adopt children from countries at war.
