ADOPTION OF CHILDREN IN UKRAINE: WHAT IS THE DIFFICULTY?

 Adoption has always been and remains the best option for the fate of children deprived of parents and parental care. After all, only a real family and parental care is the key to the normal social, spiritual development of the child and his happy future.

 Unfortunately, in Ukraine there is a rapid decrease in the number of adopted children. To understand the scale of the problem, over the past 20 years the number of adopted children has decreased by more than 5 times. In 2019, only 1,419 children were adopted in Ukraine, while in 2010 - 4,865, and 2010 - 7692. The material factor remains the main reason for this critical situation.

 In addition, adoption is a rather complicated legal process that can take years.

≡ What is the complexity of the adoption procedure?

 The transfer of the child to the family occurs solely by court order. In order to get a positive decision, you need to go through a difficult process, which includes registering candidates for adoption at the Children's Affairs Service, undergoing special training, choosing and getting to know a child, and receiving a conclusion from the Children's Affairs about the possibility of adopting such a child . And only after passing the entire procedure established by law, receiving all the necessary documents, those wishing to adopt a child go to court with a lawsuit for adoption. After which the judicial consideration of the adoption case will follow, the court will render a decision and its execution.

≡ How to become a candidate?

 In order to register the candidate for adoption, you need to apply with the application and the corresponding package of documents to the Children's Affairs Service. The service checks the documents within 10 days and considers the possibility of applicants to be adoptive parents, conducts interviews with them, draws up an act of inspection of living conditions. If positive, put the applicants on record.

≡ Are there any restrictions on who can adopt a child?

Future parents must strictly meet certain requirements. Legally capable persons who have reached the age of 21 years can become adoptive parents; they must be 15 years older than the child, with an impeccable reputation and positive moral qualities. The requirements include the financial viability of the adoptive parents, the lack of a criminal record for crimes against minors, for grave and especially grave crimes. The decision is also influenced by the conditions in which future parents live, the availability of housing, their health and lifestyle, which should strictly correspond to the interests of the child. In addition, candidates for adoption must receive training to raise orphans and children deprived of parental care.

≡ Adoption is the best way to shape the fate of children deprived of parents and parental care.

 Adoption is significantly different from other forms of placement of children in families. During adoption, the child receives the legal rights of the daughter or son, and the parents of the adoptive parents have the same rights and obligations as the biological parents, including the right to inheritance and the payment of alimony. During adoption, the child acquires real parents, brothers, sisters, relatives and loses the status of an orphan. He can change his last name, first name, middle name, day and place of his birth.

 The rigor of the procedure and restrictions are aimed at protecting the interests of the child, and the main negative factors affecting the number of adopted children are still a low adoption culture in Ukraine, problems at the stage of cooperation with boarding schools and the length of the trial.