INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION


FINLAND

April 2006

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.

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. 

IMPORTANT NOTE:  Finnish law prohibits foreigners from adopting Finnish children.  Thus, the information in this flyer relates more generally to the Finnish adoption process and is unlikely to be applicable to U.S. citizen prospective adoptive parents.

PATTERNS OF IMMIGRATION OF ADOPTED ORPHANS TO THE U.S.:   Because of the restrictions mentioned above, the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki has issued no immigrant visas to Finnish orphans in recent years.

ADOPTION AUTHORITY IN FINLAND::  Ministry of Social Affairs (MSA).  This agency may be reached via the Internet at www.stm.fi .

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTIVE PARENTS:   A prospective adoptive parent must be at least 25 years old and a permanent resident of Finland in order to adopt a Finnish child.  The prospective adoptive parent is not permitted to take the child out of the country to live.  The prospective parent(s) can be married, single, divorced or widowed, but couples in common-law marriages are not eligible to adopt.

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS:  Prospective adoptive parents must be permanent residents of Finland.

TIME FRAME:   The general time frame for an adoption in Finland may vary depending on the circumstances of the case.  Persons considering an adoption in Finland should check with the Ministry of Social Affairs at www.stm.fi for an assessment of how long the case is likely to take.

ADOPTION AGENCIES AND ATTORNEYS:  Because of the strict prohibitions against intercountry adoptions, there are no adoption agencies or attorneys in Finland handling intercountry adoptions.

Please see Important Notice Regarding Adoption Agents and Facilitators at our Web site travel.state.gov.

ADOPTION FEES, PROCEDURES AND DOCUMENTARY REQUIREMENTS:   The best source of this information is the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs, which may be reached most easily via the Internet at www.stm.fi.

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.state.gov/m/a/auth/.

FINISH EMBASSY AND CONSULATES IN THE UNITED STATES:

Embassy of Finland
3301 Massachusetts Ave., N.W.
Washington, DC 20008
Phone: 202-298-5800. 

Finland also has consulates in New York and Los Angeles. 

U.S. IMMIGRATION REQUIREMENTS

Prospective adopting 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” on the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs web site at travel.state.gov.

U.S. EMBASSY in finland: 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 of the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki is located at: 

Itainen Puistotie 14 B
00140 Helsinki, Finland
Phone: 358-9-6162 5730.

APPLYING FOR A VISA AT THE U.S. EMBASSY IN FINLAND:  Although Finnish law does not permit foreigners to adopt Finnish children, the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki does process adoption immigrant visa applications on behalf of children from neighboring Estonia.  More information about the Estonian adoption process may be found in the Estonia intercountry adoption flyer at http://travel.state.gov.  Specific information on the immigrant visa process at the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki may be obtained by sending an e-mail to the following address:  HelsinkiIV@state.gov.

NOTE:   Visa issuance after the final interview generally takes 24 hours and it will not normally be possible to provide the visa to adoptive parents and children on the day of the interview. 

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 intercountry adoption in Finland may be addressed to the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki at HelsinkiIV@state.gov. 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 flier. 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 CSI 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/.