Phillippines

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTIVE PARENTS (FOR U.S. CITIZENS LIVING OUTSIDE OF THE PHILIPPINES):  Under Article III, Sec. 9 of the Philippines’ Intercountry Adoptions Act of 1995 or Republic Act No. 8043: A U.S. citizen permanently residing outside the Philippines may file an application for inter-country adoption of a Filipino child if he/she:

a) Is at least twenty seven (27) years of age
b) at least sixteen (16) years older than the child to be adopted at the time of application unless the adopter is the parent by nature of the child to be adopted or the spouse of such parent;
c) If married, his/her spouse must jointly file for the adoption;
d) Has the capacity to act and assume all rights and responsibilities of parental authority under his national laws and has undergone the appropriate counseling from an accredited counselor in his/her country;
e) Has not been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude;
f) Is eligible to adopt under his/her state/federal law;
g) Is in a position to provide proper care and support and to give necessary moral values and example to all his children, including the child to be adopted;
h) Agrees to uphold the basic rights of the child as embodied under Philippine laws, the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, and to abide by the rules and regulations issued to implement the provisions of this Act;
i) Possesses all the qualifications and none of the disqualifications provided herein and in other applicable Philippine laws.

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS (FOR U.S. CITIZENS LIVING IN THE PHILIPPINES):  U.S. citizens interested in adopting a Filipino child while they are living in the Philippines must be residents of the Philippines for at least three years prior to the filing of the adoption petition and maintain such residence until the adoption is finalized.  Prospective adopting parents who meet these requirements should file a petition for adoption with the Philippine Court to begin the adoption process.  This process is completed when the Philippine court issues the Certificate of Finality for Adoption.

U.S. citizens not meeting these residency requirements will have to adopt through the ICAB procedures outlined in the section below.

TIME FRAME: Adoption processing depends upon many variables, including the availability of children to be matched with prospective adoptive parents, the number of prospective adoptive parents on the waiting list, and the caseload of social service agencies and the courts.

(All information taken from the U.S. Department of State website)

http://www.travel.state.gov/family/adoption/country/country_437.html