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Decision on the Revision of the Adoption Law of the People's Republic of China by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress

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Adoption Law of the People's Republic of China

(Adopted at the 23rd Meeting of the Standing Committee of the 7th National People's Congress on December 29, 1991 and revised in accordance with the Decision on the Revision of the Adoption Law of the People's Republic of China taken by the 5th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the 9th National People's Congress on November 4, 1998)

Contents

Chapter I General Provisions

Chapter II Establishment of Adoptive Relationship

Chapter III Validity of Adoption

Chapter IV Termination of Adoptive Relationship

Chapter V Legal Responsibility

Chapter VI Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I

General Provisions

Article 1This Law is enacted to protect the lawful adoptive relationship and to safeguard the rights of parties involved in the adoptive relationship.

Article 2Adoption shall be in the interest of the upbringing and growth of minors adopted, safeguarding of the legitimate rights and interests of the person adopted and the consignee, following the principle of equality and voluntariness, and shall not violate social ethics.

Article 3Adoption shall not contravene laws and regulations on family planning.

Chapter II

Establishment of Adoptive Relationship

Article 4Minors under the age of 14 full years, as enumerated below, maybe adopted:

(1) orphans bereaved of parents;

(2) abandoned infants or children whose own parents cannot be ascertained and found; or

(3) children whose own parents are unable to rear them due to unusual difficulties.

Article 5 The following citizens or institutions shall be entitled to place out children for adoption:

(1) guardians of orphans;

(2) social welfare institutions;

(3) those who have not contracted disease(s) that is(are) considered medically not advisable to adopt children; and

(4) having reached the age of 30 full years.

Article 6Consignees shall meet simultaneously the following requirements:

(1) being childless;

(2) capable of rearing and educating the person adopted;

(3) having contracted no disease considered medically undesirable for adoption of children; and

(4) having reached the age of 30 full years.

Article 7Adoption of a child of a collateral relative by blood of the same generation and up to the third degree of kinship may not be subjected to the restrictions specified of Section (3) of Article 4, Section (3) of Article 5, Article 9 of this Law and the adopted minor under the age of 14 full years.

An overseas Chinese, in adopting a child belonging to a collateral relative by blood of the same generation and up to the third degree of kinship, may even be not subjected to the restriction of the consignee being childless.

Article 8The consignee may adopt one boy or girl only.

Adoption of orphans, disabled children or abandoned infants or children under the care of social welfare institutions whose own parents cannot be ascertained and found may not be subjected to the restrictions of the consignee being childless and of adoption of one child.

Article 9Where a male person without spouse adopts a female child, the age difference between the consignee and the person adopted shall be no less than over 40 full years.

Article 10Where the parents intend to place out their child for adoption, they must act in concert. If one parent cannot be ascertained or found, the other parent may place out the child for adoption alone.

Where a person with spouse adopts a child, the husband and wife must adopt the child in concert.

Article 11Adoption of a child and the placing out of the child for adoption shall take place on a voluntary basis on both sides. Where the adoption involves a minor above the age of 10 full years, the consent of the person adopted shall be obtained.

Article 12If the parents of a minor are both persons without full civil capacity, the guardian(s) of the minor may not place out him(her) for adoption, except when the parents may do serious harm to the minor.

Article 13Where a guardian intends to place out an orphaned minor for adoption, the guardian must obtain the consent of the person who has obligations to support the orphan. Where the person who has obligations to support the orphan disagrees to place out the orphan for adoption, and the guardian is unwilling to continue the performance of his/her guardianship, it is necessary to change the guardian in accordance with the General Principles of the Civil Law of the People's Republic of China.

Article 14A stepfather or stepmother may, with the consent of his/her own parents of the stepson or stepdaughter, adopt the stepson or stepdaughter, and such adoption may not be subjected to the restrictions of Section (3) of Article 4, Section (3) of Article 5 and Article 6 of this Law, andthe restriction that the adopted minor must be under the age of 14 full years as well as adoption of one child.

Article 15The adoption should be registered with the civil affairs department of people's government above the county level. The adoptive relationship shall be established as of the date of registration.

For adoption of abandoned infants and children whose own parents cannot be ascertained and found, the civil affairs department handling registration should make an announcement prior to the processing of registration.

The parties concerned to the adoptive relationship willing to conclude an adoption agreement may conclude the adoption agreement.

When both sides or one side of the parties concerned to the adoptive relationship request(s) notarization for adoption, notarization for the adoption should be completed.

Article 16The public security department should, upon establishment of the adoptive relationship, process household registration for the adopted minor pursuant to relevant state provisions.

Article 17Orphans or children whose own parents are unable to rear them may be raised by the relatives or friends of their own parents.

The adoptive relationship shall not be applicable to the relations between the supporter and the supported.

Article 18When death occurs to one side of the spouses, and the other side intends to place out the minor for adoption, the parents of the deceased have priority rights to raise the child.

Article 19Persons having placed out a child for adoption may not bear any more child, in violation of the regulations on family planning, on the ground of having placed out their child for adoption.

Article 20Buying and selling of children or buying and selling of children under the cloak of adoption shall be strictly prohibited.

Article 21An alien may, in accordance with this Law, adopt a child (male or female) in the People's Republic of China.

Adoption of children by an alien in the People's Republic of China should be subject to the examination and approval of the competent organ of the country of domicile pursuant to laws of the said country. The consignee should provide certification on such particulars as age, marital status, occupation, property, health and whether or not he/she has been subjected to criminal penalty issued by an organ with authority of his/her country of domicile. The said certification should be authenticated by the organ of foreign affairs or the institution authorized by the organ of foreign affairs of the country of domicile and authenticated by the Embassy or Consulate of the People's Republic of China in the said country. The said consignee should conclude an agreement in writing with the consignor, and enter into registration at the civil affairs department of people's government at the provincial level in person.

When both sides or one side of the parties concerned to the adoptive relationship request(s) notarization for adoption, notarization for the adoption should be completed at a notary organ with qualifications of handling foreign-related notarization confirmed by the department of justice administration under the State Council.

Article 22When the consignee and the consignor request secrecy of the adoption be kept, others shall respect their wishes and shall not make a disclosure thereof.

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