Please review the U.S. State Department’s statement on the News regarding Intercountry Adoptions from Guatemala and the Hague Convention for more information on the Guatemalan Adoption Process. Guatemala has currently suspended the adoption process in order to create a Central Authority to process adoptions, which will make Guatemala Hague Compliant. Once the Central Authority has been created and the new process identified, Guatemalan Adoptions are expected to continue under the new process.
Adoptive parents interested in adopting a child from Guatemala should use extreme caution when moving forward at this time. In recent years, Guatemalan court rulings on proposed changes to adoption procedures have resulted in program delays, and may do so again in the future; however, the program remains attractive to Americans because children may become available for adoption at very young ages and infants available for adoption are often cared for by foster families. In 2011, U.S. citizens adopted approximately 32 children from Guatemala. Older and special needs children are also available for adoption. Children may reside in orphanages or foster care.
