Rules for adopting children abroad and bringing them to Spain

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The law governs international adoptions: which Spanish authorities may act, which law applies, and when an adoption made abroad is valid in Spain. Everything must be done in the best interest of the child.
2. Adoptions of children from countries at war or hit by natural disasters, without an authority overseeing adoption, or without adequate safeguards, will not be processed. Only public entities and accredited collaborating entities may act as intermediaries, and no financial gain is allowed beyond covering necessary expenses.
3. Public entities provide information, train families, process applications and issue suitability certificates. Collaborating entities, which must be nonprofit and accredited, carry out the intermediation under a standardized contract and can be suspended or removed if they fail to comply.
4. Suitability of adopters is declared through a psychosocial assessment and lasts at most three years. Adopters have follow-up duties after the adoption, and adopted persons may learn their biological origins upon reaching the age of majority, or earlier if their parents represent them.
5. Spanish courts may establish the adoption when the adopter or the child is Spanish or lives in Spain. If the child lives in Spain or will move there, Spanish law applies; if not, the law of the country where the child will be integrated.
6. Adoptions made by foreign authorities are recognized under international treaties and, if none apply, only if they were validly established and have effects equivalent to Spanish adoption. Foreign simple adoptions can be converted into full adoptions if certain safeguards are met.

Who it affects

• People who want to adopt a foreign child: They must be declared suitable, may use accredited collaborating entities, and take on post-adoption follow-up duties.
• Adopted foreign minors: Adoption is only processed if there are enough safeguards, and they may learn their biological origins as adults.
• International adoption collaborating entities: They need accreditation, act under a standardized contract, and can be suspended or removed.
• Public child protection entities: They inform, process applications, issue suitability certificates and oversee the collaborating entities.
• Spanish courts and consuls: They may establish international adoptions in the cases provided and check the validity of adoptions made abroad.

Words worth knowing

Entidad Colaboradora de Adopción Internacional

A nonprofit organization accredited by the administration that acts as an intermediary in international adoptions.

Idoneidad

An official declaration that a person has the adequate capacity and aptitude to adopt.

Adopción simple o menos plena

An adoption with more limited effects than Spanish adoption, for example without severing all ties with the birth family.

Apostilla

An official seal confirming that a foreign document is authentic.

Patria potestad

The set of duties and powers parents have over their minor children.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries