DISCLAIMER: The following is intended as a very general guide to assist U.S. citizens who plan to adopt a child from a foreign country and apply for an immigrant visa for the child to come to the United States. Two sets of laws are particularly relevant: 1) the laws of the child’s country of birth govern all activity in that country including the adoptability of individual children as well as the adoption of children in country in general; and 2) U.S. Federal immigration law governs the immigration of the child to the United States.

The information in this flyer relating to the legal requirements of specific foreign countries is based on public sources and our current understanding. It does not necessarily reflect the actual state of the laws of a child’s country of birth and is provided for general information only. Moreover, U.S. immigration law, including regulations and interpretation, changes from time to time. This flyer reflects our current understanding of the law as of this date and is not legally authoritative. Questions involving foreign and U.S. immigration laws and legal interpretation should be addressed respectively to qualified foreign or U.S. legal counsel.

PLEASE NOTE: Adoption in Djibouti is a very complicated process, time consuming, and with many legal hurdles.  Children with Djiboutian citizenship are not eligible for adoption.  Only children born and abandoned in Djibouti of foreign parentage are available for foreign adoption.

PATTERNS OF IMMIGRATION OF ADOPTED ORPHANS TO THE U.S.: Recent U.S. immigrant visa statistics reflect the following pattern for visa issuance to country’s orphans:

Fiscal Year           Number of Immigrant Visas Issued
FY 2005                                         1
FY 2004                                         0
FY 2003                                         1
FY 2002                                         0
FY 2001                                         0

ADOPTION AUTHORITY IN COUNTRY: Tribunal de Première Instance de Djibouti.

Office of the Secretary (253) 35-333-89

Tribunal de Première Instance
Ministère de la Justice
B.P. 12
Djibouti
République de Djibouti

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTIVE PARENTS: Adoptive parents must be 25 years of age or older and must be at least 15 years older than the child.  If the prospective adoptive  parent is a relative, he/she need only be 21 years old.  The prospective adoptive parent(s) must also be morally and physically sound to be able to care for the child.

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS: The adopters must be physically present in Djibouti at the time of the proposed adoption, but need not be residents. The child must be both physically present in and a resident of Djibouti.

TIME FRAME: It may take a year or more from the time the adoption application is submitted to the Tribunal de Première Instance until the adoptive parents receive the final documents.  Factors bearing on this time frame may include court-ordered investigations, parents’ citizenship, court calendar, appeals, and individual case anomalies.

ADOPTION AGENCIES AND ATTORNEYS:  There are no Djiboutian adoption agencies. According to court officials, adoptions do not require the participation of a lawyer, but it is practical to engage someone familiar with the process.

Prospective adoptive parents are advised to fully research any adoption agency or facilitator they plan to use for adoption services.  For U.S.-based agencies, it is suggested that prospective adoptive parents contact the Better Business Bureau and/or the licensing office of the appropriate state government agency in the U.S. state where the agency is located or licensed.  Please see Important Notice Regarding Adoption Agents and Facilitators at the Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs web site travel.state.gov.

ADOPTION FEES IN DJIBOUTI:  The Government of Djibouti processes all adoptions. All procedures undertaken by the court (Adoption Authority) are free of charge.  Prospective adoptive parents should expect to pay for any/all required medical examinations for the child, as well as for their own travel expenses.

ADOPTION PROCEDURES:  Once a child has been identified, adoption procedures must be initiated with a written request from the prospective adoptive parent(s) to the President of Tribunal de Première Instance, requesting the court to open an adoption case on their behalf.  The court has two responsibilities: first, that of verifying whether the legal conditions necessary for the requested adoption are met; and second, that the adoption is in the best interest of the child.  To that effect, it is mandatory that adoptive parent(s) attach the U.S. documents listed in the section below with their application.  The court can order an additional social investigation report to complement the one already attached to the initial request (see below), and one or more types of specific medical examinations.  The Clerk of the District Court will then forward the request to the police for a background check to be performed (if the prospective adoptive parents are resident in Djibouti).

Prior to completing the Djiboutian adoption process, U.S. prospective adoptive parents who wish to adopt a child with identified birth parents should consult with the U.S. Embassy in Djibouti to verify whether the child will be meet the definition of “orphan” as defined by U.S. immigration law.
 
The birth parents must appear before the court with their I.D. and the child's birth certificate, and sign a consent document.  A three-month appeal period is then allowed, during which time the birth parents may reclaim their parental rights or the adoptive parents can decide not to go through with the adoption.

At the end of that period, if no appeal is made, the adoptive parents must submit a request to the court to continue the process, after which the court will fix a hearing date.  At the hearing, the judge will rule whether to grant a delegation of parental authority, which technically shifts parental authority from birth to adoptive parents.  If the adoptive parents are residents of Djibouti, or if they plan to stay for some time, they may be granted temporary custody over the child, to allow the child to physically live with them.

The birth parents then have an additional two-month window within which they may reclaim the child.  If they do not, the adoptive parents have to submit to the court a request for finalizing the adoption.  At the hearing, the court will make a final ruling to grant the adoption.  However, for an additional two months the opportunity is given to the Public Ministry (Office of District Attorney) or any other concerned individual (family member), excluding the natural parents, to appeal for reversal on serious grounds of evidence, if such can show that the adoption will adversely affect the child.

Note: The court can refuse to grant an adoption, and may order the adoptive parents not to break the child's bonds with its biological family.  The judgment is always given in a public hearing.  Whether the adoption is approved or rejected, the decision can be appealed, and the ensuing appeal may also be subject to a final appeal at the Supreme Court.

Abandoned child with unknown parents:
The process is similar to that of a child with identified birth parents, except that the steps pertaining to the birth parents will not be applicable here.  Instead, after the adoptive parents have made a written request to the court, the latter will order a police investigation to try to find the birth parents and establish their identity (this may take up to a month).  If birth parents cannot be found, or no one claims the child, the police will deliver to the court a certificate of abandonment, after which the court will proceed to consider the case.

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR ADOPTION IN DJIBOUTI:
- A police clearance (indicating no arrest record);
- A home study report;
- Proof of adequate financial means and stability (last 3 pay slips, tax return, etc.).

AUTHENTICATING U.S. DOCUMENTS TO BE USED ABROAD:  The language describing the process of authenticating U.S. documents to be used abroad is currently under review.  Please click on the following link for more information until the new language is finalized: http://www.travel.state.gov/law/info/judicial/judicial_701.html

Embassy of the Republic of Djibouti
1156 15th St., NW, Suite 515
Washington, DC 20005   
Tel: 202/331-0270

Prospective adoptive parents are strongly encouraged to consult USCIS publication M-249, The Immigration of Adopted and Prospective Adopting Children, as well as the Department of State publication, International Adoptions. The USCIS publication is available at the USCIS Web site. The Department of State publication International Adoption can be found on the Bureau of Consular Affairs Web site, travel.state.gov, under “International Adoption.”

Before completing an adoption abroad, prospective adoptive parents are strongly encouraged to read the requirements for filing Form I-600, Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative.  Please see the flyer “How Can Adopted Children Come to the United States” at the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs web site travel.state.gov.

U.S. EMBASSY IN DJIBOUTI: Americans living or traveling abroad are encouraged to register with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate through the State Department’s travel registration website, https://travelregistration.state.gov/, and to obtain updated information on travel and security within the country of travel.  Americans without Internet access may register directly with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.  By registering, American citizens make it easier for the Embassy or Consulate to contact them in case of emergency.  The Consular Section is located at:

Plateau du Serpent
Boulevard Marechal Joffre
Djibouti City 
Tel: (253) 35-39-95
Fax: (253) 35-39-40
E-mail: ConsularDjibouti@state.gov
http://djibouti.usembassy.gov/

APPLYING FOR A VISA AT THE U.S. EMBASSY IN DJIBOUTI: 

To schedule an immigrant visa appointment with the Embassy, please call Tel: (253) 35-39-95.

Because Djibouti will not issue a passport to an adoptable (non-Djiboutian) child, the U.S. Consular Officer processing the Immigrant Visa must request a passport waiver from the Department of Homeland Security.  For this reason, the Immigrant Visa may take days or even weeks to issue.

ACQUIRING U.S. CITIZENSHIP: The language describing the acquisition of U.S. citizenship for adopted children is currently under review. Until the new language is finalized, please click on the following link for further information: http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/info/info_457.html.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Specific questions about adoption in Djibouti may be addressed to the U.S. Embassy in Djibouti. General questions regarding intercountry adoption may be addressed to the Office of Children’s Issues, U.S. Department of State, CA/OCS/CI, SA-29, 4th Floor, 2201 C Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20520-4818, toll-free Tel: 1-888-407-4747.

Useful information is also available from several other sources:

Telephone:
• Toll Free - For information on intercountry adoption and international parental child abduction, call Overseas Citizens Services at 1-888-407-4747. This number is available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays). Callers who are unable to use toll-free numbers, such as those calling from overseas, may obtain information and assistance during these hours by calling 1-202-501-4444.
• U.S. Department of State Visa Office - recorded information concerning immigrant visas for adopting children, (202) 663-1225.
• U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services - recorded information for requesting immigrant visa application forms, 1-800-870-FORM (3676).

Internet :
• Adoption Information Flyers: The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs web site at: http://travel.state.gov/ contains intercountry adoption information flyers like this one and the International Adoptions brochure.
• Country Specific Information: The State Department has general information about hiring a foreign attorney and authenticating documents that may supplement the country-specific information provided in this flyer. In addition, the State Department publishes Country Specific Information for every country in the world, providing information such as location of the U.S. Embassy, health conditions, political situations, and crime reports. If the situation in a country poses a specific threat to the safety and security of American citizens that is not addressed in the Country Specific Information for that country, the State Department may issue a Travel Alert alerting U.S. citizens to local security situations. If conditions in a country are sufficiently serious, the State Department may issue a Travel Warning recommending that U.S. citizens avoid traveling to that country. These documents are available on the Internet at: http://travel.state.gov/ or by calling the State Department's Office of Overseas Citizen Services Toll Free at 1-888-407-4747. This number is available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays). Callers who are unable to use toll-free numbers, such as those calling from overseas, may obtain information and assistance during these hours by calling 1-202-501-4444.
• USCIS web site - http://uscis.gov/.