Adopting from Albania: Factsheet, Page 2

ALBANIAN ADOPTION PROCEDURES: Individuals may not deal directly with theAlbanian Adoption Committee or with individual orphanages or biological parents. The Albanian child must have a certificate from the Albanian Adoption Committee stating that s/he is adoptable. This means that the child has been in an orphanage for at least six months with no contact from his/her biological parents, and that the orphanage has been unsuccessful in placing the child with an Albanian family. The prospective adoptive parents may not go to an orphanage to select a child without authorization from the Albanian Adoption Committee. (Authorized local adoption agencies, i.e. International Children's Alliance, or Bethany Christian Services, can contact the Albanian Adoption Committee to obtain authorization for the prospective adoptive parents to visit an orphanage.) In general the Committee will propose a child whom the prospective adoptive parents may accept if they wish.


In addition, the final court decision and the child's travel documentation cannot be issued until 13 days after the court date. The child must remain in Albania during these 13 days, although s/he may reside with the adoptive parents during that time. Please remember: when traveling to the U.S. with your newly adopted child, since the child is an Albanian citizen, s/he will need to obtain a transit visa from the embassy of the country of transit in order to be permitted to travel through. The Albanian government cannot issue this transit visa until the child is issued a travel document (such as a passport). In many cases the transit visa application may take several days to process. (Note: this procedure is separate from the U.S. immigrant visa process.) Therefore, prospective adoptive parents should be prepared to arrive in Albania a day or two before the court date and to remain afterwards for 15-17 days.

AGE AND CIVIL STATUS REQUIREMENTS: Under Albanian law, prospective adoptive parents must be a minimum of 18 years older than the adopted child. Both married and single prospective adoptive parents are permitted. Note: Under U.S. law, at least one parent must be 25 years old or older.)

ADOPTION AGENCIES AND ATTORNEYS: All adoptions must be processed by an adoption agency accredited by the Albanian Adoption Committee. Currently, two U.S. adoption agencies have been accredited:

Bethany Christian Services
901 Eastern Avenue, NE
Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503-1295
Tel: (616) 459-6273
Fax: (616) 459-0343

International Children's Alliance
1101 17th Street, NW, Suite 1002
Washington, D.C. 20036
Tel: (202) 463-6874
Fax: (202) 463-6880
Adoptionop@aol.com

DOCTORS: The U.S. Embassy maintains current lists of doctors and sources for medicines, should either you or your child experience health problems while in Albania.

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Credits: U.S. Department of State