Can i adopt from guatemala

Please note that there is one step that we have left out of the process outline above. The process we have left out is that of the referral process. The referral process in Guatemala is different from every other country where international adoptions are done. In most countries you must be approved by the U. In Guatemala referrals are typically made as soon as you are approved by the U.

Government to complete an international adoption. This referral typical occurs before your dossier documents are completed and submitted to Guatemala. Both boys and girls are available for international adoption from Guatemala. The children typically range in age from newborns to teenagers.

Families can adopt more than one child at a time from Guatemala. But, unless the children are siblings it can be a very difficult process to coordinate. Sibling groups are sometimes available. Guatemalan children are generally healthy but, as with any child adopted internationally, there are several possible health problems that adopting parents should be aware of.

These conditions include such things as low birth weight, problems that come from mothers not receiving proper prenatal care, malnutrition, developmental delays, and bonding issues. Finally, it is important to note that the US government has several specific guidelines regarding international adoption including a minimum income requirement for U. Remember that with the exception of the U. In addition to the guidelines put in place by the Guatemalan government, each U.

Make sure you ask each agency you contact about their or their Guatemalan attorneys specific guidelines and restrictions. Pregnancy Placing a child for adoption Parenting Adopting a child. Please open our International Quicklook spreadsheet to give you an overview of the wide variety of international programs available through Nightlight.

Compare International Programs. Agreement for International Services. Donate Blog Contact. Guatemala Adoption Guatemala Adoption. Visit our Waiting Children Page There are children around the world waiting for a family like yours. But Sifonte's story illustrates the conclusions of a sweeping May report from the Hague Conference on International Law , which found that Guatemala's fragile laws at the time turned adoptions into a "business. The report urged the country to fortify the way it investigated the circumstances surrounding a child's prospective adoption to ensure there weren't any "anomalies" regarding the child's "real origins" and that poverty wasn't the justification "for the delivery of children" to other families.

A recent Telemundo investigation found that individuals with connections to the Guatemalan government had been using the legal adoption system to profit from stealing and selling children internationally since at least the s. Extreme economic and political inequalities triggered a civil war between the Guatemalan government and rebel groups that lasted 36 years, from to The Guatemalan army launched an operation in targeting the country's Mayan population , who were believed to be supporting rebel groups fueling the guerrilla movement.

The army destroyed villages, killed over , people and displaced an additional 1. Thousands of children were lost along the way and some who were found by the military were never returned to their families. The memory of the day Osmin Tobar was taken from his mother in Guatemala has been replaying in his head like a broken record since he was seven years old. Guatemalan authorities took him in after they allegedly received reports that he had been abused and abandoned by his mother — allegations they didn't bother to verify.

Instead, Tobar was whisked away and spent two years in a children's home before a family in Pennsylvania adopted him.