DISCLAIMER: The information in this circular relating to the legal requirements of specific foreign countries is provided for general information only. Questions involving interpretations of specific foreign laws should be addressed to foreign counsel.

Prospective adoptive parents are advised to fully research any adoption agency or facilitator they plan to use for adoption services. For U.S. based agencies, it is suggested that prospective adoptive parents contact the Better Business Bureau and licensing office of the Department of Health and Family Services in the state where the agency is located.

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GENERAL: The following is a guide for U.S. citizens who are interested in adopting a child in Spain. This process can be expensive, time consuming, and difficult, involving complex Spanish and American legal requirements. U.S. consular officers give each petition careful consideration on a case-by-case basis to ensure that the legal requirements of both countries have been met, for the protection of the prospective adoptive parent(s), the biological parent(s), and the child. Interested U.S. citizens are strongly encouraged to contact U.S. consular officials in Spain before formalizing an adoption agreement to ensure that appropriate procedures have been followed which will make it possible for the Embassy to issue a U.S. immigrant visa for the child.

AVAILABILITY OF CHILDREN FOR ADOPTION: Foreign adoptions in Spain are exceptionally rare. There are not enough children available for adoption to satisfy the demand of Spanish prospective adoptive parents. Adoptive parents must be legal residents of Spain and must remain in Spain throughout the adoption proceedings.

SPANISH ADOPTION AUTHORITY: Each of the 17 Autonomous Communities in Spain is responsible for adoptions, including international adoptions for its territory. The Direccion General del Menor y Familia is the office responsible for transmitting requests from prospective adoptive parents to the adoption authorities in the appropriate territory.

SPANISH ADOPTION PROCEDURES: In Spain, the child welfare agency for the protection of minors in the autonomous community where a child is adopted is the entity in charge of adoptions. Only with the approval of this agency can a judge authorize an adoption. Prospective adoptive parents must apply to the agency in the community in which they wish to adopt. Adoptive parents must be legal residents of Spain and must remain in Spain throughout the adoption proceedings.

To receive approval from the child welfare agency, the prospective parent(s) must be declared capable of carrying out the duties of a parent. The parent(s) begin the process by filling out an application for adoption. The following documents must accompany the application: birth certificate, marriage certificate if applicable, police record, medical certificate and bank statements. When the application is complete, a team from the child welfare agency will carry out a psycho-social study of the prospective parent(s), assessing their ability to adopt, and will make a judgment on their capacity to be parents. Next the agency will present its judgment along with the application and accompanying documents to the court with jurisdiction in the autonomous community. The court will make the final judgment on the adoption application. Approval from the child welfare agency is not required in the following circumstances: if the child is the child of a prospective parent's spouse, if the child has been kept by the prospective parent(s) legally in a pre-adoptive status or has been under the parent(s) care for more than one year, or if the child is underage.

AGE AND CIVIL STATUS REQUIREMENTS: To be eligible to adopt, a parent must be at least twenty-five years old and be at least fourteen years older than the adoptee. Only one of a married couple need be age 25 or older. The prospective adoptee must be younger than eighteen years old. An exception can be made to these conditions when a child has lived with the prospective parent(s) continuously since before turning fourteen. Prospective parents may not adopt their own descendents or immediate blood relatives, and may not adopt second-degree relatives (i.e. niece, nephew) by blood or marriage.

ADOPTION AGENCIES AND ATTORNEYS:

Direccion General del Menor y Familia
Minesterio de Asuntos Sociales
C. / Condesa de Venadito, 34
28071 Madrid

Prospective adoptive parents can contact this office or the Central Authority in an Autonomous Community.

Comunidad Autonoma de Andalucia
Direccion General de Atencion al Nino
Consejeria de Asuntos Sociales de la Junta de Andalucia
C. / Heroes de Toledo s/n
41071 Sevilla

Comunidad Autonoma de Aragon
Direccion General del Bienestar Social
Departamento de Bienestar Social y Trabajo de la Disputacion General de Aragon
Paseo Maria Agustin, 36
50071 Zaragoza

Comunidad Autonoma del Principado de Asturias
Direccion General de Accion Social
Consejeria de Sanidad y Servicios Sociales
C. / General Elorza, 35
33071 Oviedo

Comunidad Autonoma de Baleares
1. Conselleria de Sanidad y Asuntos Sociales Consell Insular de Ibiza y Formentera
Aveda. d'Espanya, 49
07800 Ibiza (BALEARES)

2. Presidencia del Consell Insular de Menorca
Cami des Castells, 28
07702 Mahon (MENORCA)

3. Area de Bienestar Social
Consell Insular de Mallorca
General Riera, 67, 2n
07010 Palma de Mallorca

Autonoma de Canarias
Direccion General de Proteccion del Menor y la Familia
Consejeria de Empleo y Asuntos Sociales
Avda. San Sebastian, 53
38071 Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Comunidad Autonoma de Cantabria
Direccion Regional de Bienestar Social
Consejeria de Sanidad, Consumo, y Bienestar Social de la Diputacion Regional de Cantabria
C. / Lealtad, 23
39071 Santander

Comunidad Autonoma de Castilla-La Mancha
Direccion General de Servicios Sociales
Consejeria de Bienestar Social de la Junta de Comunidades
Avda. De Francia, 4
45071 Toledo

Comunidad Autonoma de Castilla-Leon
Gerencia de Servicios Sociales
Consejeria de Sanidad y Bienestar Social de la Junta de Castilla y Leon
Padre Francisco Suarez, 2
47071 Valladolid

Comunidad Autonoma de Cataluna
Instituto Catalan del Acogimiento y de la Adopcion
Generalitat de Catalunya
Arago, 332
08009 Barcelona

Comunidad Autonoma de Extremadura
Direccion General de Accion Social
Consejeria de Bienestar Social de la Junta de Extremadura
C. / Santa Eulalia, 30
06071 Merida (BAJADOZ)

Comunidad Autonoma de Galicia
Direccion General de la Familia
Consejeria de Familia, Mujer, y Juventud
Edificio San Caetano, s/n
15771 Santiago de Compostela

Comunidad Autonoma de la Rioja
Direccion General de Bienestar Social
Consejeria de Salud, Consumo, y Bienestar Social
C./ Villamendiana, 17
26071 Logrono

Comunidad Autonoma de Madrid
Instituto Madrileno del Menor y Familia
Servicios de Adopciones
Gran Via, 14
28013 Madrid

Comunidad Autonoma de la Region de Murcia
Instituto de Servicios Sociales
Consejeria de Sanidad y Asuntos Sociales
C. / Alonso Espejo, s/n
30071 Murcia

Comunidad Autonoma de Navarra
Instituto Navarro de Bienestar Social
Departamento de Bienestar Social, Deporte, y Juventud
C. / Gonzalez Tablas, s/n
31071 Pamplona

Comunidad Autonoma del Pais Vasco
1. Departamento de Bienestar Social de la Diputacion Foral de Alava
C. / General Alava, 10
01071 Vitoria

2. Departamento de Bienestar Social de la Diputacion Foral de Vizcaya
C. / Gran Via, 26
48071 Bilbao

3. Departamento de Servicios Sociales de la Diputacion Foral de Guipuzcoa
Avda. de la Libertad, 17-19, 4 planta
20071 San Sebastian

Comunidad Autonoma de Valencia
Direccion General de la Familia y Adopciones
Conselleria de Bienestar Social
Paseo Alameda, 16
46010 Valencia

En las Ciudades de Ceuta y Melilla
Consejeria de Bienestar Social y Sanidad
Avda. de la Marina Espanola, 12
52004 Melilla

U.S. IMMIGRATION REQUIREMENTS

A Spanish child adopted by an American citizen must obtain an immigrant visa before he or she can enter the U.S. as a lawful permanent resident. There are two distinct categories of immigrant visas available to children adopted by American citizens.

A Previously Adopted Child. Section 101(b)(1)(E) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act defines an "adopted child" as one who was adopted under the age of 16 and who has already resided with, and in the legal custody of, the adoptive parent for at least two years. Parents who can demonstrate that their adopted child meets this requirement may file an I-130 petition with the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) having jurisdiction over their place of residence. Upon approval of the I-130 petition, the parents may apply for an immigrant visa for the child at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid. American citizens who believe this category may apply to their adopted child should contact the U.S. Embassy in Madrid for more information.

An Orphan. If an adopted child has not resided with the adoptive parent for two years (or if the child has not yet even been adopted) the child must qualify under section 101(b)(1)(F) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act in order to apply for an immigrant visa. The main requirements of this section are as follows:

The adoptive or prospective adoptive parent must be an American citizen;

The child must be under the age of 16 at the time an I-600 Petition is filed with the INS on his or her behalf;

If the adoptive or prospective adoptive parent is married, his or her spouse must also be a party to the adoption;

If the adoptive or prospective adoptive parent is single, he or she must be at least 25 years of age;

The child must be an orphan, as defined by U.S. regulations. Although the definition of an orphan found in many dictionaries is "A child whose parents are dead," U.S. immigration law and regulations provide for a somewhat broader definition. Children who do not qualify under this definition, however, may not immigrate to the U.S. as an orphan even if legally adopted by an American Citizen. The Department of State encourages Americans to consider if a particular child is an orphan according to U.S. immigration law and regulations before proceeding with an adoption. A detailed description of the orphan definition used by INS can be found on INS's web site at http://www.ins.usdoj.gov.

U.S. IMMIGRATION PROCEDURES FOR ORPHANS

I. The Petition.

Adoptive and prospective adoptive parents must obtain approval of a Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative (Form I-600) from the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) before they can apply for an immigrant visa on behalf of an orphan. The adjudication of such petitions can be very time-consuming and parents are encouraged to begin the process well in advance.

A prospective adoptive parent may file Form I-600A Application for Advance Processing of Orphan Petition with the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) office having jurisdiction over their place of residence. This form allows the most time-consuming part of the process to be completed in advance, even before the parent has located a child to adopt. In addition, a parent who has an approved I-600A may file an I-600 in person at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid. .

Detailed information about filing these forms can be found on INS's website at http://www.ins.usdoj.gov. Americans who have adopted or hope to adopt a child from Spain should request, at the time they file these forms, that INS notify the US Embassy in Madrid as soon as the form is approved. Upon receipt of such notification, the Embassy will contact the parents and provide additional instructions on the immigration process. U.S. consular officers may not begin processing an orphan adoption case until they have received formal notification of approval from an INS office in the U.S.

II. The Orphan Investigation

One part of the petition process that INS cannot complete in advance is the "orphan investigation". An orphan investigation Form I-604 Report on Overseas Orphan Investigation) is required in all orphan adoption cases - even if an I-600 has already been approved - and serves to verify that the child is an orphan as defined by US immigration law. A consular officer performs this investigation at the time of the child's immigrant visa interview.

SPANISH EMBASSY IN THE UNITED STATES
Embassy of Spain
Consular Section
2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20037
Telephone: (202) 728-2330
Fax: (202) 728-2302
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Spain also has Consulates in Mobile, Anchorage, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Miami, Pensacola, Atlanta, Honolulu, Boise, Chicago, New Orleans, Boston, Detroit, Kansas City, MO, St. Louis, MO, Newark, Albuquerque, New York, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, San Juan, PR, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso, Houston, San Antonio, and Seattle

AMERICAN EMBASSY IN SPAIN
American Embassy Madrid
American Citizen Services
C. / Serrano, 75
Madrid
Telephone: 011 34 91 587 2200
Fax: 011 34 91 587 2243

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Prospective adoptive parents are strongly encouraged to consult INS publication M-249, The Immigration of Adopted and Prospective Adoptive Children, as well as the Department of State publication, International Adoptions

QUESTIONS: Specific questions regarding adoption in Spain may be addressed to the Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy in Spain. You may also contact the Office of Children's Issues (CA/OCS/CI), 2201 C Street, N.W., SA-22, Room 2100, Washington, D.C. 20520-4818.

Information is also available 24 hours a day from several sources:

Telephone- Office of Children's Issues - recorded information regarding changes in adoption procedures and general information, (202) 736-7000 - State Department Visa Office- recorded information concerning immigrant visas for adoptive children, (202) 663-1225. This 24 hour automated system includes options to speak with consular officers during business East Coast hours about questions not answered in the recorded material. Immigration and Naturalization Service- recorded information for requesting immigrant visa application forms, 1-800-870-FORM (3676).

Automated Fax-contains the full text of the office's international adoption information flyers and general information brochure, International Adoptions. From the telephone on your fax machine, call (202) 647-3000.

Internet- the Consular Affairs web site, at contains international adoption information flyers and the International Adoptions brochure

INS Web site: http://www.ins.usdoj.gov.

Other information:
Consular Information Sheets: Published by the State Department and available for every country in the world, they provide information such as the location of the U.S. Embassy, health conditions, political situations, and crime reports. The information is available 24 hours a day by calling the State Department's Office of Overseas Citizens Services at (202) 647-5225. The recordings are updated as new information becomes available, and are also accessible through automated fax machine and the web site, as above.

© June 2001