Intercountry adoptions have become increasingly popular, with even the rich and famous looking overseas for new additions to their family. Intercountry adoptions have now become the dominant form of adoption in Australia. In recent years, intercountry adoptions have come to make up about three-quarters of total adoptions in Australia, numbering about 300-400 adoptions per year.
Last year in New South Wales alone there were about 100 intercountry adoptions. Almost one-third of children come from China and about one-quarter come from the Philippines. In Victoria, approximately 70 children from overseas were placed for adoption in 2007, with a similar number of placements expected for 2008.
Increasingly there are more people interested in adopting children from another country than there are children requiring adoption into Australia. For example, while 70 children were placed for adoption in Victoria, during that same period, the Victorian government granted 163 approvals to adopt.
This decrease in the number of children requiring adoption is caused by many factors. In some cases, this decrease represents improved conditions overseas. In other cases, the change is a reflection of government policy. For example, Korea suspended intercountry adoptions in favour of domestic adoptions. Intercountry adoption has also become a worldwide phenomenon, and prospective Australian parents must compete with other would-be parents from around the world.
One result of this change is that overseas countries have imposed increasingly restrictions on the adoption of their children. Overseas countries may impose eligibility criteria on prospective adoptive parents relating to matters such as the age and health of the prospective adoptive parents and the number of children they already have in their families. Criteria may also include financial security, character, motivation to adopt from that particular country, marital status, family composition, expectations for the child and intentions regarding the religious and academic education of the child. For example, in 2007 China changed its criteria for foreign couples wishing to adopt Chinese children. Applicants must be 30-50 years old and have less than four children. Couples must be married for at least two years or five years if a prospective parent were previously divorced. In addition, applicants must not be obese.
In Australia, states and territories have jurisdiction over adoption matters. However, arrangements for overseas adoptions in Australia are affected by the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in Intercountry Adoption, which was ratified by Australia in 1998. The Convention was intended to prevent the abduction and trafficking of children. In order to do so, it sets out minimum standards and procedures to regulate adoption between countries. The purpose of the Convention is to safeguard the best interests of children by finding families for children who are unable to remain in the care of their birth family, and for whom no other permanent family placement can be found in their country of origin.
Because adoption does not fall within the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth Government, implementation of the Convention in Australia is governed by the Commonwealth-state agreement for the implementation of the Hague convention. The 1998 Agreement sets out arrangements for the Commonwealth to work with state and territory welfare departments which are responsible for administering intercountry adoption programs.
In 2005, the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Family and Human Services issued its report on the inquiry into adoption of children from overseas. The committee inquired into how the Australian government could better assist Australians who were adopting or who had adopted children from overseas countries with particular regard to:
- inconsistencies between state and territory approval processes for overseas adoptions; and
- inconsistencies between the benefits and entitlements provided to families with their own birth children and those provided to families who have adopted children from overseas.
The Report recommended that the Attorney-General renegotiate the Commonwealth-state agreement in order to ensure greater harmonisation of laws, fees and assessment practices.
The agreement is presently being renegotiated as a result of this recommendation. In July 2007, the revised agreement was considered at the Community and Disability Services Ministers' Conference, where the relevant ministers gave their support in principle for the revised agreement.
In addition to the renegotiation of the Commonwealth-state agreement, other changes took place in 2007. Until mid-2007, state and territory governments had primary responsibility for the establishment and management of intercountry adoption programs. As a result of a number of transfers throughout 2007, the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department now has the primary responsibility for Australia's intercountry adoption programs. However, the actual processing of individual adoption applications remains the responsibility of the state and territory governments.
It remains to be seen whether further changes take place in 2008, resulting in greater harmonisation of intercountry adoption practices between states.