Certificate of Adoption (Glossary)

A Certificate of Adoption is a legal document that shows that an adoption has been finalized. This document is signed by the presiding judge and is needed in order to receive a new birth certificate with the adoptive parents named as parents of the adopted child. This new birth certificate replaces the original birth certificate of that child and can be used as an original birth certificate for all legal purposes.

The certificate of adoption is important because it states who the legal parents are of the child. This certificate may be used for several purposes including setting your child up for health insurance, school enrollment, to obtain a passport, and to be used as another form of identification in several other applications.

For an international adoption, a certificate of adoption may be issued in foreign language; therefore, you will need to get a notarized translation of that document for legal purposes

See: Adoption Certificate