Adopting from Chile

Hague Convention Information

There are no U.S. adoption service providers accredited in Chile at this time.

Chile is party to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention). Therefore all adoptions between Chile and the United States must meet the requirements of the Convention and U.S. law implementing the Convention.

Chilean adoption law gives priority to Chilean families over non-Chilean families. Most Chilean children available for intercountry adoption are at least four years old. Not all children eligible for adoption in Chile meet U.S. immigration requirements to receive an orphan visa, so it is important that adopting families consult with the U.S. Embassy in Santiago before beginning any adoption procedures to ensure that the adoption complies with U.S. law. Under Chilean law, children to be adopted may not leave the country until the adoption is complete.

NOTE: Special transition provisions apply to adoptions initiated before April 1, 2008. Learn more.

Who Can Adopt

Adoption between the United States and Chile is governed by the Hague Adoption Convention. Therefore to adopt from Chile, you must first be found eligible to adopt by the U.S. Government. The U.S. Government agency responsible for making this determination is the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Learn more.

In addition to these U.S. requirements for prospective adoptive parents, Chile also has the following requirements for prospective adoptive parents:

Residency

There are no residency requirements to adopt in Chile.

Age of Adopting Parents

The adoptive parents must both be at least 20 years older than the child being adopted.

Marriage

Only married couples between the ages of 25 and 60 can adopt in Chile.

Income

N/A

Other

N/A

Who Can Be Adopted

Because Chile is party to the Hague Adoption Convention, children from Chile must meet the requirements of the Convention in order to be eligible for adoption. For example, the Convention requires that Chile attempt to place a child with a family in-country before determining that a child is eligible for intercountry adoption. In addition to Chile's requirements, a child must meet the definition of a Convention adoptee for you to bring him or her back to the United States.

Families interested in adopting in Chile must apply and be approved by SENAME, which keeps the national registry of children eligible for adoption. The first stage of the application process is to send SENAME, at the address above, a letter or email that includes both prospective adoptive parents' names, dates of birth, contact information and any preferences, including the reasons for these preferences, for a child or children.

The children on the national registry have been declared eligible for adoption (susceptible de ser adoptado) by a judge and all parental rights have been terminated. SENAME matches available children with prospective adoptive parents. Blood relatives are always given priority, followed by unrelated Chilean families, then non-Chilean families. Prospective adoptive parents do have the right to decline a specific match, which they would do by simply notifying SENAME. Prospective adoptive parents should consider carefully declining a specific match as they will be required to begin the process again and will have to explain, in detail, the reason for their declination.

After a child is successfully matched with a family, there is a wait to obtain a hearing with a judge. The normal wait time is between 6 to 12 months.

After Adoption

SOURCE

Intercountry Adoption, Bureau of Consular Affairs. U.S. Department of State Country Information