Adoption in Taiwan
In January 2013, the Taiwan Social and Family Affairs Administration, Ministry of Health and Welfare (Formerly known as Child Welfare Bureau) issued an administrative order requiring all adoption cases filed after April 1, 2013 on behalf of U.S. prospective adoptive parents to undergo a Pre-Adoption Immigration Review (PAIR).
Given the changes in Taiwan’s adoption procedures, USCIS issued a policy memorandum (PDF, 97KB) allowing prospective adoptive parents to file Form I-600, Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative, before Taiwan courts could finalize the adoption in Taiwan. These new procedures are designed to prevent situations in which a child adopted in Taiwan does not qualify as an orphan under U.S. law and therefore cannot immigrate immediately to the United States. For more details on adoption, please check the Department of State’s website at http://travel.state.gov/content/adoptionsabroad/en.html, and the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services’ website at www.uscis.gov .
U.S. citizens interested in adopting orphans in Taiwan may contact AIT for additional information. Please send an email: aitadoptions@state.gov
Taiwan Child-Abuse Background Checks
The Taiwan Department of Protective Service, Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHA) can issue certificates of child-abuse background checks to American citizens (either former or current residents in Taiwan) wishing to adopt children from Hague Convention countries. Prospective adoptive parents can apply in person or by mail to the MOHA with an application and a copy of the biographical pages of the parents’ passports. After review, the Bureau will issue a certificate indicating the result of its investigation.
Department of Protective Service, Ministry of Health and Welfare
No. 488, Sec. 6, Zhongxiao E. Rd., Nangang Dist., Taipei City 11558, Taiwan
TEL: +886-2-85906665
FAX: +886-2-85906063
E-mail: ps521420@mohw.gov.tw
The application must include a pre-paid return envelope with the applicant’s address clearly labeled.
Please click here for Application for the Certificate of No Child Abuse Record by Foreign Nationals on Taiwan’s Department of Protective Service, Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHA) website.
Last modified: January 28, 2016 (AIT Immigrant Visa Unit)
Please visit the website of inter-country adoption
This section provides an overview of the inter-country 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.
