On September 16, 2014, Chargé d’Affaire Claire Pierangelo led the U.S. Mission delegation to attend a ceremony held by the Ministry of Justice of Vietnam, during which Mr. Nguyen Van Binh, Director of the Department of Adoptions, Ministry of Justice has officially presented the licenses to the representatives of two U.S. adoption service providers – Dillon International and Holt International Children’s Services, who were selected to operate intercountry adoption program for children with special needs, children aged five and older, and children in biological sibling groups (Special Adoption Program). This event also marks the effective date for the United States to start processing Hague Convention adoptions from Vietnam through the Special Adoption Program.
Inter-country adoption between the United States and Vietnam has been inactive since 2008. Since that time, Vietnam has strengthened its commitment to reforming its adoption system. The Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-Operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Convention) entered into force for Vietnam on February 1, 2012. The Government of Vietnam has taken a number of steps to improve its implementation of the Convention, particularly in adoptions of children with special needs and for older children and biological sibling groups. A new adoption law, implementing decree, and related circulars have been passed and are being implemented. The United States welcomes Vietnam’s efforts to enhance its child welfare and intercountry adoption system and has now determined that, through the Special Adoption Program, it will be able to process Convention adoptions from Vietnam. However, the United States will not process Convention adoptions from Vietnam that fall outside the parameters of the Special Adoption Program. We will continue to monitor the Vietnamese child welfare program to determine if the intercountry adoption program can be expanded.
For more information on intercountry adoption between the United States and Vietnam, please visit this link.
