local SG adoption?

[eightcharacters]

Hi I have been reading about expat adoption in Sinagpore and it seems like most of the adoptions done in Singapore are international adoptions. Are there any expats out there that adopted locally in Singapore and how does one go about it and is it even possible?

Thanks n advance for any information we are only at the very early stages.

[Scummy Mummy]

(BM: Is there something wrong with the search function? I just searched using "adoption", "adopting" and "adopted" and all I got was this same post, yet there are loads of past threads. Could you be a sweetie and insert a few?)

OP: Yes you can. We did and know loads of others. In fact I would speculate adoptions of Singapore children are more common among expats than international these days, as it's hard to get permission to bring in a foreign child for adoption.

If you look a few pages back you'll find a thread on this, and there have been LOADS in the past, but in summary:

(1) Get on the books of an adoption agent agent
(2) Wait
(3) Get child
(4) Start adoption process through Singapore courts (agent usually helps with this)
(5) MCYS (Social Services) investigate you.
(6) Adoption order granted
(7) Apply for passport in your home country.

I hear (2) is taking a while these days, so start ASAP.
(4) to (6) took us about 5 months.
For (7) details contact your embassy. Whay nationality are you? If you're British PM me and I'll send you details that were accurate 2 years ago (so worth checking nothing has changed).

[eightcharacters]

Thanks I did try the search function but all I got was the same thread as well.

We're Australian and we already have a locally adopted child from here. We are off to SG next year via the UK with my husband's job so am jut trying to get the lay of the land on what is involved and if it is even possible.

On the website the high commission in SG talks alot about foreign born children adoption, but nothing about locally adopted children which is what caused the confusion.

Do I need to use an agent or can I go through MYCF? The only reason I ask is that all adoptions here must go through the government so the idea of an agent is exciting and well, foreign...

[Scummy Mummy]

MCYS priorise Singaporeans over expats in allocating kids, so your chances of getting a child through them are negligible. An agent is realistically the only way.

Have you seen this on Aus High Comm page in Singapore?

http://www.singapore.embassy.gov.au/sing/Adoption_visa.html

The requirement to be legal in country of birth and "Embassy letter" is why you are pretty much restricted to Singapore. If you adopt in, say, Indonesia it may not be legal there, plus to bring the child into Singapore the Aus Govt have to guarantee citizenship, and I understand there's been a diplomatic row over the wording. If you adopt a Singapore child you avoid both those problems.

If you keep bumping this thread I'm sure an Australian adopter will be along soon.

Otherwise there's a yahoo group "Singapore Adoption Support" and you could join/ask there.

Good luck. You'll find adoption a very different experience from in Australia, I think!