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THAI ADOPTION NEWS
THAI PROGRAM SELECTIVE MORATORIUM -- APRIL 2008 -- On Nov. 11, 2002, the Thai government department that administers Thai adoptions announced that it would temporarily stop accepting dossiers from families desiring to adopt young/healthy children directly through the Thai Dept. of Social Development & Welfare (formerly called the Dept. of Public Welfare, or DPW). The temporary suspension went into effect Jan. 1, 2003.
As of Jan. 1, 2004, DSDW resumed accepting "young healthy" applications for selected countries on a quota basis, but continues to bar applications from others. As of early 2008, countries for which the quota system appears to be in place include Canada, U.K., the Republic of Ireland, Australia, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Finland. As far as the Webmaster has been able to determine, countries that remain closed for DSDW-direct submissions of applications for "young healthy" children include the U.S., Germany, and possibly (but not confirmed) others (most likely France, which has historically sent large numbers of dossiers). If you are not in any of the countries mentioned above, please check with your own country's adoption agencies/authorities for accurate information.During the moratorium, applications to the DSDW to adopt waiting/special needs children continue to be procesed as usual. Applications being made directly to authorized nongovernmental organizations (Holt Sahathai, Thai Red Cross, Friends for All Children Foundation, Pattaya Orphanage) for young/healthy as well as waiting/special needs children will also continue to be processed as usual.
Remember -- the moratorium does
NOT apply
to "young healthy" applications made directly to the four NGOs approved
to place Thai children (Holt Intl/Holt Sahathai; Thai Red Cross;
Pattaya
Orphanage; Friends for All Children Foundation). The moratorium also
does NOT apply
to any applications made to adopt waiting/special
needs children, regardless of these applications are being made to an
NGO or direct to the DSDW.
See the
"Adoption Agencies" section (click on the link above or below) for
information about which U.S. agencies work with the designated NGOs and
thus are still submitting applications from U.S. families to adopt
"young healthy" children during the moratorium. Please note that as of
early 2008, only agencies that work with the Thai Red Cross NGO are
accepting young/healthy/unidentified applications (WACAP, New
Beginnings, Heartsent). Holt and CHSFS have temporarily stopped taking
this kind of application due to applicant backlogs (not due to the
moratorium). (Holt has some limited exceptions to this policy; see the
'agencies' page.)
LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY NEWS
The Joint Council on International Children's Services, Cheverly, Md., is an organization of agencies placing international children for adoption. JCICS tracks adoption-related legislation in the U.S. Congress and offers information on legislative advocacy. Your contacts with your congresspeople and senators can make a big difference for children and their families.
Click
here for information about coming events of interest to adoptive
and
waiting families.
GENERAL ADOPTION NEWS
The Adoption
Online website trolls the Internet regularly for general news
stories in domestic and international media regarding adoption.