Adopt from Guatemala

SUSPENSION OF GUATEMALAN ADOPTIONS BY A HELPING HAND

On September 26th of 2007 Department of State has come out with a statement concerning the future of Guatemalan Adoptions. You can access this statement at DOS website. At this point it is our understanding that if a family starts a Guatemalan adoption now it will face a lot of uncertainties. Guatemalan adoption laws will change to meet the requirements of Hague International Adoption Treaty and Guatemalan government is yet to develop new policies and procedures that will be Hague compliant. Under these circumstances we have made a decision to temporarily stop accepting applications for our Guatemala program until we have new guidelines from Guatemalan government. We are committed to our existing clients to advocate on their behalf and to do all that is in our power to assist them in their successful adoption from Guatemala. Joint Council on International Children’s Services started the Guatemala 5000 Initiative as an effort to protect Guatemalan orphans and adoptive parents who are already in the process to adopt from Guatemala. A Helping Hand supports JCICS' initiative and encourages all adoptive families to learn more about this initiative and participate in it. We hope and prey that Guatemalan situation will change soon and that we will be able to continue uniting Guatemalan orphans with their forever families in the US.

Top