How do you adopt a child from mexico

U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Mexico

This section provides an overview of the intercountry adoption process. The process varies greatly, as it is governed by the laws of the countries where the adoptive parents and the child reside (which in the case of the United States means both federal and state law), and also in which of these locations the legal adoption is finalized. Additionally, if the child’s home country is a party to the Hague Adoption Convention, the Hague processes of both countries must be followed. Prospective adoptive parents should consider all of these factors when evaluating what to expect.

Adopting a child from Mexico

A consular officer at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate must determine that the adoptive child qualifies for a visa before you adopt or obtain legal custody of the child. Do not adopt or obtain custody of the child until the consular officer issues an Article 5 Letter.

Mexico and the United States are parties to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention). Therefore, all adoptions between Mexico and the United States must meet the requirements of the Convention and U.S. law and regulations implementing the Convention.

Mexico has a complex system for adoptions, involving the Mexican Central Authority (MCA) and the Secretary of the Exterior Relations

Department of State Office of Children’s Issues

As part of the Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs, the Office of Children’s Issues actively engages in two issues that cross international borders: intercountry adoption and international parental child abduction.  In this work, we are fully committed to protecting the welfare and interests of children. We serve as the U.S. Central Authority for two multilateral treaties:

• The Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption; and
• The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction

For more information, visit http://travel. state.gov/content/adoptionsabroad/en.html

Mexican Government information

SECRETARIA DE RELACIONES EXTERIORES
Dirección General de Protección a Mexicanos en el Exterior
Dirección General Adjunta de Derecho de Familia
Plaza Juárez # 20 Piso 17
Col. Centro
Alcaldía Cuauhtémoc
Ciudad de México, México. C.P. 06010
Teléfono: (55) 36-86-51-00; Directo: (55) 36-86-58-56

Dirección de Adopciones de la Procuraduría Federal de Protección de Niñas, Niños y Adolescentes del Sistema Nacional para el Desarrollo Integral de la Familia
Av. Francisco Sosa No. 439
Col. Del Carmen
Alcaldía Coyoacán
Ciudad de México, México, C.P. 04100
Telefono (55) 30-03-22-00 extensiones 4428 y 2234

Medical examination information

Click here.

The date of your visa interview appointment is indicated in the letter that you received from the National Visa Center. However, you should be aware that it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to complete your medical examination BEFORE THAT DATE.  We suggest that you make arrangements for your medical examination at least FIVE (5) days before your interview appointment date.

Required Documents for Medical Visit

• Visa Appointment Letter
• Passport
• Required fee of $2865.20 Mexican pesos covering the medical examination ($2262.50 for minors under age 15) paid via cash or credit card only (Visa or MasterCard)

Additional Guidance

• If you suffer from a chronic illness, have been treated for any venereal disease, or are under psychiatric care, please bring your medical file or have one forwarded to the doctor before your medical examination.
• If you take prescription medication, please have the prescription from your doctor with you on the day of the medical appointment.
• Applicants do not need to bring photos to the medical exam; they will be provided by the medical clinic.
• Any required DNA testing must be covered by the applicant.
•  The vaccination fee is separate from the cost of your required medical examinations.
• Because of space limitations, family members will not be permitted to accompany applicants into the clinic or the medical building; the only exception to this policy is the parents of adoptees. Please present your appointment letter to the receptionist at the entrance. You must have your complete set of documents with you.

Documents required for your petition

In order to obtain the most accurate information regarding the required documents to be filed along an I-130 petition form with DHS/USCIS, we recommend you to visit their website www.uscis.gov.

Why Adopt?

“The child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding. … [I]ntercountry adoption may offer the advantage of a permanent family to a child for whom a suitable family cannot be found in his or her State of origin.” -Hague Adoption Convention, Preamble

Every child benefits from a loving home in deeply profound ways. Intercountry adoption has made this permanently possible for hundreds of thousands of children worldwide. When children cannot remain with a relative, and new parents within their communities cannot be found, intercountry adoption opens another pathway to children to receive the care, security, and love that a permanent family can provide.

Some additional resources:

Child Welfare Information Gateway – A service of the Children’s Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Medline Plus – A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health

A Healthy Beginning: Important Information for Parents of Internationally Adopted Children (PDF, 578K)– a brochure from the American Academy of Pediatrics.

“My Administration remains committed to helping every child find a loving home.” – President Barack Obama, Presidential Proclamation of National Adoption Month 2012.

Who Can Adopt?

To adopt a child from another country and bring that child to live in the United States, you must first be found eligible to adopt under U.S. law. The federal agency that makes this determination is U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), part of the Department of Homeland Security. You may not bring an adopted child (or a child for which you have gained legal custody for the purpose of immigration and adoption) into the United States until USCIS determines that you are eligible to adopt from another country.
National Requirements

You must meet certain requirements to bring a foreign-born child whom you’ve adopted to the United States. Some of the basic requirements include the following:

You must be a U. S. Citizen.
If you are unmarried, you must be at least 25 years old.
If you are married, you must jointly adopt the child (even if you are separated but not divorced), and your spouse must also be either a U.S. citizen or in legal status in the United States.
You must meet certain requirements that will determine your suitability as a prospective adoptive parent, including criminal background checks, fingerprinting, and a home study.

State Requirements

In addition to qualifying to adopt under U.S. law, you must also meet your home state’s requirements for prospective adoptive parents. Learn more about individual state requirements on the Child Welfare Information Gateway website.
Foreign Country Requirements

Each country has its own requirements for adopting parents. These are explained in the Country Information section of this website.

Before You Go

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Additional Resources

An Open Door Adoption Agency

Open Door is proud to offer an adoption program in Mexico. Mexico is a Hague country, and therefore all adoptions from Mexico must meet the requirements of the Hague Convention. Children available for adoption are generally 9 years of age or older or sibling groups. Children younger than 9 can be adopted if they have special needs. Relative children are also eligible for international adoption.

Eligibility

Adoption between the United States and Mexico is governed by the Hague Adoption Convention. Therefore, to adopt from Mexico, 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).

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

 – Must be a married couple for at least two and one half years or a single female

 – Must be over 25 years old, and at least 17 years older than the adopted child. If married, only one parent must meet the age requirement

 – Must demonstrate the financial means to support the physical and educational needs of an adopted child

 – Must be able to meet Mexico’s travel requirements; Both parents must attend all required trips; One parent can come home at certain points during the third trip if needed, but there are certain steps where both parents are required to be in-country. There are two to three required trips to complete the adoption

          – The first trip is a week in-country to meet and get to know the child.

          – The second trip is usually 1-2 days and depends on whether the judge requires the adopting parents to attend court.

          – The final trip is to pick up your child and complete the immigration process. This trip is approximately four weeks in-country although it may vary by case

 – Adopting families must be of the Christian faith

The Children

Children available for international adoption are generally nine years of age or older, or sibling groups. Children younger than nine can be adopted if they have special needs. Relative children are also eligible for international adoption.

The Process

The adoption process begins with an application to The Open Door Adoption Agency (downloadable from our website), a Service Agreement, followed by a home study, United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) application I800A, and other dossier documents required by the country of Mexico. For most families, the process of completing the dossier takes about six months.

Once the U.S. Government determines that you are “eligible” and “suitable” to adopt, your documents will be translated and we will forward your information to the Central Authority in Mexico. Documents are sent to the Secretaria de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE), the National System for Integral Family Development (National DIF), and finally the State DIF of the state in which you are applying to adopt from. The Adoption committee reviews your dossier and introduces the family profile in one of their committee meetings.

Once the dossier and the family profile have been approved by the committee, the adoption department starts a “match” process depending on the child/children that are legally free to be adopted. As soon as the adoption department has a possible match, they submit the information of the child to the adoption committee with the intention of referring that particular child to the prospective adoptive parents. If the committee approves, the State DIF as the central authority contacts our attorney and our agency with general information about the child. If the family is interested, the State DIF makes an appointment to interview them and to introduce the child(ren) (usually this trip is five days in-country).

After this visit, if the family and the child want to move forward and the adoption department staff sees that this is a viable adoption, they issue the Article 16 report which is the medical, social, and history information about a child(ren). Additional documents are sent to the agency and family and the family files the I800 application with USCIS.

An Article 5 letter is requested through the consulate once the I800 provisional approval is received. This authorizes the adoption to proceed and permits the child to legally enter the U.S. once the process is completed. The family files an online immigrant visa form called a Ds260. A court petition is delivered to court and a court date is requested. The family and child will attend a court hearing before a judge if requested and the judge makes the decision on whether to approve the adoption.

Once the adoption is approved and the court decree is issued, the family travels to Mexico to pick up the child and begin the final steps, which include cancelling the old birth certificate and having a new one issued, obtaining the Article 23 letter, requesting a passport for the child, completing a medical exam for the child and scheduling an appointment with the consulate in Juarez for a visa interview. The child can legally enter the U.S. with their adoptive parents once these steps are completed.

*A list of children in Mexico available for adoption will be available soon on our International Waiting Children page.*

How to obtain a permanent residence permit for the birth of a child in Mexico through the consulate - Birth in Mexico

When a child is born in Mexico, he immediately becomes a citizen of this country. His parents can get a permanent residence permit, and in a couple of years also become citizens. If you flew to Mexico for childbirth, it makes sense to apply for permanent residence immediately after the birth of the child and return to your homeland, already having the status of a resident of Mexico.

Now you can get a Mexican resident card in just a couple of weeks. Previously, the process of obtaining permanent residence after the birth of a child could take several months. Let's say that the parents did not have a desire to stay in Mexico for a long time, or personal reasons forced them to return to their homeland without waiting for a resident card. If you did not apply for permanent residence in Mexico and left the country, this is not a problem.

You can start the process of obtaining permanent residence at any time later. This process is not limited to the age of the Mexican child, it is not necessary to deal with decoration immediately after birth. However, siblings must be minors at the time of their permanent residence. In addition to parents, grandparents can also receive permanent residence.

To start the process of obtaining a permanent residence permit for the birth of a child in Mexico, from outside of Mexico, you should contact the Mexican consulate. The consulate will open a resident visa for you, according to which you need to enter Mexico and complete the process after entry. You can calculate a convenient time for arriving in Mexico and returning home based on the following chronology:

• applying to the consulate and opening a visa - 10 days,
• entering Mexico - within 180 days,
• submitting documents for a resident card - within 30 days,
• receiving a resident card - from two weeks to a month.

Required Documents

The following documents must be submitted to the Mexican Consulate:

1. Application for a visa. It is universal for all types of visas. A fresh photo of a non-standard size 32x26 or 39 should be pasted on the application formx31 mm. If the photo does not fit in the frame on the questionnaire, it can be cropped.
2. Passport, original and plain copy.
3. Child's birth certificate issued in Mexico, original and plain copy.
4. For parents: marriage certificate (optional).
5. For minor siblings: birth certificate, original and plain copy.
6. For grandparents: birth certificates of both parents of the child, original and plain copy.

The main purpose of registry documents is to confirm the relationship with a Mexican child. Additional confirmation may be required, for example, a marriage certificate of the parents, if one of them changed his surname and after marriage it differs from the one on his birth certificate, or an adoption document.

All documents not issued in Mexico must be apostilled and translated into Spanish or English. A simple translation is enough.

No proof of financial solvency is required for the relatives of a child who is a Mexican citizen.

Submission of documents

You need to make an appointment at the consulate. This can be done by e-mail or through the MEXITEL system. Contact information for all Mexican consulates can be found at this link. We add that Mexitel does not work in consulates located in the CIS countries.

On the appointed day and time, come to the consulate and apply for a resident visa. Documents cannot be submitted by proxy. The rules for issuing visas say that the presence of a citizen of Mexico necessarily . This means that you must take your child with you. But in Mexico, to complete the process of obtaining resident status, you can go without a child, leaving him at home in the care of relatives.

Other situations are also possible:

• mother with child in Mexico, father in home country,
• parents with child in Mexico, relatives in home country.

Then the procedure for obtaining a residence permit at the consulate and the list of documents will be somewhat different.

The visa fee must be paid at the consulate. As a rule, this can be done on the spot. The current visa fee can be found here.

You also need to pass an interview and be fingerprinted at the consulate. This is a formality, but without it it is impossible.

Visa issuance period

In accordance with the rules for the issuance of consular visas, the maximum period for the issuance of a Mexican visa is 10 working days.

A visa will be granted on the same day if the visa package is complete, the consular interview is successful, and no further verification by the Mexican immigration office is required.

If any documents are missing or incorrect, you will have 10 days to correct or report the missing documents.

The process ends with the issuance of a visa, which is affixed to the passport.

What's next

After receiving your visa, you will have 180 days (visa validity) to enter Mexico, and then another 30 days, during which you must contact the National Institute for Migration (INM) office in the country in order to complete the process of obtaining permanent resident status in Mexico. Read more in this post.

If you do not plan to acquire Mexican citizenship in the next few years, after receiving a resident card, you can immediately fly to your homeland. The permanent resident card of Mexico has no expiration date, it allows you to enter and leave Mexico without restrictions, you can also be absent from the country as much as you like.

But if you are planning to acquire Mexican citizenship, you should know that you can apply for naturalization two years after receiving the permanent resident card. During the two years prior to filing, you may be absent from the country for a maximum of 180 days. However, you can apply for naturalization at any time later, but this can only be done in Mexico.

Six months later, after passing the exam, you will be able to become a citizen of Mexico and get a Mexican passport.

Child - Mexican passport. What about parents? - Childbirth in Mexico

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