Sidebar
An affiliate of
Lutheran Family Services
of Nebraska
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We are here to guide you thorough the process and to answer your questions along the way. In anticipation of your interest in international adoption, we have outlined some common questions about The Hague and its impact on adoption.
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| What is “The Hague?” |
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The Hague Conference on Private International Law is a governmental organization made up of countries from around the world that creates treaties covering a wide variety of issues. One of many treaties created by The Hague Conference, “The 1993 Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption”, is referred to as “The Hague” by the adoption community.
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Currently ratified by 74 countries, the goal of The Hague is to protect children and families involved in intercountry, or international, adoption. It provides standardized regulations for every country that ratifies it and allows for greater transparency in the adoption process. This helps to protect adoptive parents, children and biological parents involved in the adoption process.
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| Where is the U.S. at in the process? |
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The United States signed onto The Hague on March 31, 1994. It then created the Intercountry Adoption Act of 2000 to help develop the framework for The Hague. The U.S. has ratified The Hague and implemented it starting April 1, 2008. Many agencies are starting to apply the requirements of The Hague in order to create a smooth transition for families as the U.S. moves toward full implementation.
The U.S. Department of State announced the agencies accredited under the Hague on February 29, 2008. Adoption Links Worldwide is the only Nebraska-based Hague Accredited agency.
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| What is Hague Accreditation? |
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Adoption Service Providers in the United States must be Hague Accredited in order to develop and maintain adoption services in the 74 other Hague countries. In order to become Hague Accredited, agencies must meet a superior level of standards, and be evaluated and approved by Council on Accreditation.
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| How does The Hague effect me? |
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All families hoping to adopt from one of the 74 Hague countries, including China, Guatemala, India, Mexico and Poland, must use an accredited agency for placement. Families adopting from other Hague nations will be required by the Department of State to have very specific requirements met within their home study, training, and post placement/adoption services. As the only Nebraska-based Hague Accredited agency, Adoption Links Worldwide is the International Adoption Expert in Nebraska.
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| What are the benefits of working with a Hague Accredited agency? |
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Adoption Links Worldwide is the agency best able to meet the needs of Nebraska families hoping to adopt internationally. As an accredited agency, ALW has advanced knowledge of the Hague and has in place all of the necessary requirements to serve you from start to finish of your adoption journey. We will walk you through every step of the complex new adoption regulations.
As a Hague Accredited Agency, Adoption Links Worldwide is able to serve you in multiple ways to benefit your family throughout your adoption. ALW is the only Nebraska-based agency able to develop programs in the other Hague countries.
For families wishing to adopt from a country that ALW does not work with directly or families adopting through an agency outside of Nebraska, our Hague Accreditation allows us to smoothly work with your Hague Accredited placing agency. Our understanding of the requirements your placing agency must meet and in many cases already having those requirements in place, makes coordination much easier.
Other Benefits Include:
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Established Supervised Provider Agreements with many other agencies that are necessary for working together on a Hague adoption. Ask us if we have an agreement already in place with an out-of-state agency with which you are considering working.
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First-hand, extensive knowledge of the Hague requirements.
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Policies and procedures in place that follow all the Hague guidelines.
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Ability to answer in depth questions relating to how Hague adoption cases are processed.
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Hague compliant standards for training, home studies and post placement/adoption services.
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