3.  Be Matched with a Child

If both the United States and the Dominican Republic determine that you are eligible to adopt, and a child is available for intercountry adoption, the Central Authority in the Dominican Republic may provide you with a referral for a child.  Each family must decide for itself whether or not it will be able to meet the needs of the particular child and provide a permanent family placement for the referred child.  Learn more about making this critical decision.


4.  Apply for the Child to be Found Eligible for Adoption 

After you accept a match with a child, you will apply to the USCIS for provisional approval to adopt that particular child (Form I-800).  USCIS will determine whether the child is eligible under U.S. law to be adopted and enter the United States.  Learn how. 

After this, your adoption service provider or you will submit a visa application for to a Consular Officer at the U.S. Embassy.  The Consular Officer will review the child’s information and evaluate the child for possible visa ineligibilities.  If the Consular Office determines that the child appears eligible to immigrate to the United States, he or she will notify the Dominican Republic’s Central Authority (Article 5 letter).  For Convention country adoptions, prospective adoptive parent(s) may not proceed with the adoption or obtain custody for the purpose of adoption until this takes place.  

Remember:  The Consular Officer will make a final decision about the immigrant visa later in the adoption process. 

5.  Adopt the Child (or Gain Legal Custody) in the Dominican Republic 

Remember:  Before you adopt (or gain legal custody of) a child in the Dominican Republic, you must have completed the above four steps.  Only after completing these steps can you proceed to finalize the adoption, or grant of custody for the purposes of adoption, in the Dominican Republic. 

The process for finalizing the adoption (or gaining legal custody) in the Dominican Republic generally includes the following:

• Role of The Central Authority: After the prospective adoptive parents receives and accepts the referral of a child, CONANI reviews the prospective adoptive parents’ file of required documents and, if satisfied, issues a Certificate of Suitability.
  
• Role of The Court: Dominican adoption law is governed by the Dominican Code of Fundamental Protection and Rights for Children and Adolescents, Law 136-03, Articles 111-167.  The Dominican Court of Minors receives the formal, legal application for adoption.  If the application is approved, the Court issues a Final Order of Adoption.
  
• Role of Adoption Service Providers: The adoption service provider forwards the prospective adoptive parents’ application to CONANI.   
  
• Time Frame: An adoption can be completed within nine to ten months of U.S. and Dominican requirements being met.  It should be noted that many variables can affect the total time it takes to complete the intercountry adoption of a Dominican child.
• Adoption Application: The prospective adoptive parents initiate contact with CONANI (via their attorney) and begin the process of locating a child who meets the definition of “Convention adoptee” under both Dominican and U.S. law.
• Adoption Fees:  Attorney fees for the adoption of a Dominican child range from $5,000 to $8,000 USD.  All adoption-related expenses, including court costs and document fees, are included in this estimate.  These expenses should have been itemized in the fees and estimated expenses section of your adoption services contract.  Learn more about adoption service provider responsibilities.
• Documents Required:   The following is a list of documents required for adoption in the Dominican Republic:

o   Biopsychosocial study of the adoptive parents;

o   Legalized adoption consent;

o   Adoptive parents’ birth certificates;

o   Adoptive parents’ marriage certificate;

o   Declaration of the loss of authority of the biological parents or authorization for adoption;

o   Certificate of Suitability, no more than six months old, issued by CONANI;

o   Certificate issued by a civic, community, or religious entity/organization attesting to the physical, mental, social, and moral suitability of the adoptive parents;

o   Certificate confirming that the adoptive parents have fulfilled the residency requirements, issued by CONANI;

o   Certificate of completion of all criteria for the assignment of the child, issued by CONANI;

o   Prospective adoptive parents’ police certificates issued by a competent authority;

o   Prospective adoptive parents’ medical certificates;

o   Power of attorney from the adoptive parents to their lawyer, legalized by the Dominican “Procuraduría General”;

o   Copy of the identification documents or passports of the adoptive parents;

o   Act of No Opposition in the case of the existence of older children;

o   Certification issued by a competent authority that will provide follow-up on the minor’s adjustment;

o   Authorization or visa from the country where the child will live.

 NOTE:  Additional documents may be requested.  If you are asked to provide proof that a document from the United States is authentic, we can help.  Learn how to get documents authenticated for use abroad. 

6.  Bring Your Child Home

Now that your adoption is complete (or you have obtained legal custody of the child), there are a few more steps to take before you can head home.   Specifically, you need to apply for several documents for your child before he or she can travel to the United States.

Birth Certificate
You will first need to apply for a new birth certificate for your child, so that you can later apply for a passport.  Your name will be added to the new birth certificate.  

Dominican Republic Passport
Your child is not yet a U.S. citizen, so he/she will need a travel document or Passport from Dominican Republic.

U.S. Immigrant Visa 
After you obtain the new birth certificate and passport for your child, you also need to apply for an U.S. visa from the U.S. Embassy for your child.  After the adoption is granted, visit the U.S Embassy for final review and approval of the child’s I-800 petition and to obtain a visa for the child.  The Dominican authorities will not allow a child to exit the country until the adoption is completed under Dominican law.  Consequently, the U.S. Embassy Santo Domingo’s Immigrant Visa (IV) Unit does not process immigrant visas in the IH-4 (“Convention adoptee to be adopted in the United States by a U.S. citizen”) category.  Depending on the circumstances of the adoption, the IV Unit issues adopted children visas in the IR-2 (“Child of a U.S. citizen”) or IH-3 (“Convention adoptee adopted abroad by a U.S. citizen”) category.  This immigrant visa allows your child to travel home with you.  As part of this process, the Consular Officer must be provided with the Panel Physician’s medical report on the child if it was not provided during the provisional approval stage.  Visa issuance after the final interview generally takes at least 48 hours and it will not normally be possible to provide the visa to adoptive parents on the day of the interview.  Adoptive parents should verify current processing times at the U.S. Embassy before making final travel arrangements.  Learn more.     

On February 2, 2009, the U.S. Embassy Santo Domingo’s panel physicians began using the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) 2007 Tuberculosis Technical Instructions (TB TIs) for the TB medical screening for all immigrant visa applicants from the Dominican Republic, including adopted children.  The 2007 TB TIs include new requirements that affect the pace at which some adoption cases can be concluded.   Please visit the CDC’s website at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dq/panel_2007.htm for further information regarding the 2007 Technical Instructions for Tuberculosis Screening and Treatment for Panel Physicians.

CONTACT INFORMATION

U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic
To send documents from the United States, you must use either the United States Postal Service or a private delivery service (e.g., FedEx, DHL or UPS).

The mailing address if you use the United States Postal Service is: 

IV Unit (Adoptions)
Unit 3470, Box 531
APO AA 34041-0531

The mailing address if you use a private delivery service is:
Embassy of the United States of America
César Nicolás Penson 85A esq. Leopoldo Navarro
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic 

Tel: (809) 221-2171 

Fax: (809) 686-7437

Dominican Republic’s Central Authority
Consejo Nacional para la Niñez y la Adolescencia (CONANI)

Av. Máximo Gómez esq. República de Paraguay # 154
Ensanche La Fe (Frente a la Bomba Esso)
Santo Domingo , República Dominicana
Tel: 809-567-2233 (Office of Adoptions, ext. 1157)
Website:  www.conani.gov.do

Embassy of the Dominican Republic
1715 22nd Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
Tel: (202) 332-6280
Fax: (202) 265-8057

Consulate of the Dominican Republic
1501 New Broadway Ave., Suite 410
New York, NY 10036
Tel: (212) 768-2480
Fax: (212) 768-2677

Office of Children’s Issues

U.S. Department of State

2201 C Street, NW

SA-29

Washington, DC 20520

Tel:  1-888-407-4747
E-mail:  AskCI@state.gov

Website: http://adoption.state.gov

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
For questions about immigration procedures, contact the National Customer Service Center (NCSC) at

1-800-375-5283 (TTY 1-800-767-1833).

Or, contact USCIS in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic:

To send documents from the United States, you must use either the United States Postal Service or a private delivery service (e.g., FedEx, DHL or UPS).

The mailing address if you use the United States Postal Service is: 

USCIS, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

American Embassy – Santo Domingo

Unit 3470, Box 531

APO AA 34041-0531

The mailing address if you use a private delivery service is:

American Embassy

Santo Domingo

Calle César Nicolás Penson

Calle Leopoldo Navarro

Unidad 5500

Dominican Republic

Tel: 809-221-2171 ext. 6608

Fax: 809-731-4350

Email: SDMCIS@oconus.uscis.dhs.gov