Adopt a Child

There has been a lot of discussion about adoption but little in the way of the "Nicaraguan side" of the story. This How-To is here to address this. If you have something useful to contribute, add it as a comment. It will be incorporated into the page as it is updated.

The Law

You can find a copy of the law here. This is in Spanish from the legislature web site.

It is in Spanish and would be official in Spanish. If you can't read it, I recommend you talk to someone that can. While an automatic translation may offer some clues, it is not a good substitute for what it really says.

Of note, however, are:

• To adopt you must be in a stable marriage
• You must be between 25 and 40 years old
• If you are not a Nicaraguan citizen, you have permanent residence in Nicaragua and will reside here until the child you adopt is an adult

Editorializing: While this isn't the law I would write, it is also not totally out of line. For a baby, a move to a different nation/culture may make no difference. But, for a child with experiences and language here, uprooting them can't be a good thing. While writing a law that would assure that the child would be put in an environment where their heritage would be recognized would be better, it would be impossible to enforce.

NL Member Issues

This is really a "think about it" section. That is, some practical considerations that come from NL member experience.

Miskito Alan (now deceased). He was married to a Nicaraguan woman and had lived here for 15 years. They were given responsibility to raise a child. He wanted to adopt the child but could not because he was too old and he didn't have permanent residency.

Phil Hughes. While I really don't want to adopt a kid (about "half ownership of an 8 year old niece is sufficient for me), my Nicaraguan wife has suggested this. Same story as Alan, too old.

Another member suggested that the "chance for adoption by a Nicaraguan" is probably around zero. Possible legal changes to improve the changes might be:

• Raise the age limit (possibly only require one parent to be in the age range)
• Encourage Nicaraguans living outside of Nicaragua to consider adopting a Nicaraguan child
• Accept other forms of "family" other than a married couple. (I offer this as there are so many "families with children" here that are like this that it would certainly be no stigma for the child.)

The Reality

It seems that there are loopholes. That is, couples outside the US have managed to adopt Nicaraguan children. I would like to fill this section in with what is really done. That is, who you work with, who they work with, what it costs, how it works, ...

Amilysue talks about her experiences in her blog.