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. 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.

PATTERNS OF IMMIGRATION OF ADOPTED ORPHANS TO THE U.S.: U.S. Embassy in Kingston, Jamaica has issued only one immigrant visa to Caymanian orphans during the past five fiscal years.

Department of Children and Family Services
Ground Floor, Brit Cay Building
George Town
P.O. Box 10653
Grand Cayman KY1-1006
Cayman Islands
Tel. 345-949-0290
Fax. 345-949-4167

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTIVE PARENTS:  Prospective adoptive parents may be married or single, childless or already parenting other children.  The requirements outlined in the Cayman Adoption Law state a person must be 25 years of age but not over 65.   If married, the prospective adoptive parents must have been married and living together for no less than three years.  If a person is married but separated, he or she will need the written consent of his or her spouse in order to make an application.  The Cayman Islands Adoption Law allows non-Caymanians who are domiciled in the Cayman Islands to file applications to adopt.

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS:  Prospective adoptive parents must be resident of the Cayman Islands or be Caymanian nationals.


TIME FRAME:  The Cayman Islands adoption procedures generally take between fourteen months and two years to complete.

ADOPTION AGENCIES AND ATTORNEYS:  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 CAYMAN ISLANDS: There is a fee of CI$75 for processing an application for adoption within the Cayman Islands.

ADOPTION PROCEDURES:  Prospective adoptive parents should contact the Adoption Coordinator, who works within the Department of Children and Family Services, to arrange for an initial interview.  The adoption process will be explained and if everything is in order, prospective adoptive parents will be given the application packet to take away and complete.  The adoption application packet consists of an application form and several other documents.  Please see below the section “Documents Required for an Adoption in Cayman Islands.”

When all of the required documents are completed, prospective adoptive parents should contact the Adoption Coordinator and arrange for a second interview.  If everything is in place, the Coordinator files the application with the Adoption Board.   The Adoption Board will arrange for a home study (assessment) to be carried out by a qualified social worker in the Cayman Islands.  The home study consists of several interviews with the adoptive applicants and all members of their household.  The home study is an evaluation of the prospective adoptive family and of the physical and emotional environment into which the child would be placed.  During this process, prospective adoptive parents will work with the social worker to consider all aspects of adoptive parenthood and identify the type of child the prospective adoptive family would like to adopt.  When the assessment is completed, the social worker will produce a report for the Adoption Board; this report enables the Board to determine whether or not a person should be approved as a prospective adopter.

If the application is denied, the prospective adoptive parents will be informed of the Board’s reason for their decision, the prospective adoptive parents have the right to appeal the decision.  However, few applications are turned down; the majority of applicants receive the Board’s approval.  As soon as the Board gives its approval, the focus is then placed on identifying a child who best fits the profile for placement with the prospective adoptive family.

After the child is placed with the prospective adoptive parents, there is a statutory period of three months during which time the family will be visited by a social worker.  This is called the “supervision period”.  The social worker will visit several times to ensure that the child is well cared for and that bonding is taking place.  At the end of the supervision period, the social worker will write a report for the Grand Court to support the application for the Adoption Order.

When the Grand Court supervision report is completed, the application for an Adoption Order will be prepared and the case filed with the Court.  The Clerk of the Court will issue a date for the hearing and summonses will be served to the prospective adoptive parents and all other interested parties to attend Court on that date.  Apart from the prospective adoptive parents and the child to be adopted, the child's birth parents (if known) or previous guardian, are required to attend.  The Adoption Coordinator and the Chairman of the Adoption Board also attend the hearing. 

When the Adoption Order is granted, the adoption is complete.  The birth parents no longer have any legal rights to the child and cannot claim the child back.  By granting the Order, the Court has invested all legal rights and responsibilities for the child to the adoptive parent (s). 

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.

CAYMAN ISLANDS REPRESENTATION IN THE UNITED STATES:  The Cayman Islands are represented in the United States by the Embassy of the United Kingdom:

United Kingdom Embassy
3100 Massachusetts Avenue
Washington DC 20008
Telephone: 202-462-1340
Fax: 202-898-4255.

U.S. IMMIGRATION REQUIREMENTS:  Prospective adoptive parents are strongly encouraged to consult USCIS publicationM-249, The Immigration of Adopted and Prospective Adoptive 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 Adoptions can be found on the Bureau of Consular Affairs web site, travel.state.gov, under “intercountry 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 KINGSTON, JAMAICA: 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 in the capital city of Kingston at:

142 Old Hope Rd.
Kingston 6
Jamaica, West Indies

Phone: 876-702-6000
Fax:  876-702-6018

APPLYING FOR A VISA FOR AN ADOPTED CHILD FROM THE CAYMAN ISLANDS:  U.S. visa applications for citizens of the Cayman Islands, including adopted children, are considered at the U.S. Embassy in Kingston, Jamaica.  The U.S. Embassy in Jamaica requests that prospective adoptive parents contact either the Consular Section or Department of Homeland Security office at the Embassy directly for specifics on visa applications and issuance.  For further information on adoption visa procedures, please see the adoption flyer on Jamaica.

NOTE:  Visa issuance after the final interview now generally takes at least 24 hours and it will not normally be possible to provide the visa to adoptive parents on the same day of the interview.  Adoptive parents should plan accordingly.

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 the Cayman Islands may be addressed to the U.S. Embassy in Kingston, Jamaica.  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/.