Basic Direction

To phase out international adoption by boosting domestic adoption and to strengthen follow-up support for adopted children and adoptive homes consistently.

1. 1. Project Overview
   • Purpose
     • - To ensure that children in need of protection will be cared for and raised in a healthy manner by placing them in sound permanent homes.
2. 2. Major Projects
   • Introduction of domestic adoption priority system: To pursue only domestic adoption for five months after custody of a child is taken (introduced in 2007)
   • Financial assistance for adoptive homes
     • - Adoption commissions, adoptive child care allowance (KRW100,000 per month until the age of 13), and type 1 medical assistance (implemented from 2007)
     • - For family who adopts a chid with disabilities, adoptive child care subsidy (KRW627,000 per month for those with a severe disability and KRW551,000 per month for those with light disability, etc.) and medical cost support (planned at up to KRW2.6 million per annum) until they reach the age of 18 (introduced in 1996)
   • Easing of the eligibility requirements for adoptive parents (amendment of the enforcement rule concerned in 2007): Granted eligibility to single persons, widened allowable age difference with a child from less than 45 to less than 60, and deleted the provision restricting the number of children to five or fewer.
   • Allowing (20-day) adoption leaves for government employees (introduced in 2007)
   • Follow-up service for Korean international adoptees
     • - Korean language education and provision of shelters for Korean international adoptees visiting their motherland
     • - Assistance to homecoming Korean international adoptee groups who intend to find their biological families including counseling support
     • - Support for follow-up overseas adoptee management programs
3. 3. Domestic Adoption Process
   • Child handling process
     • - Transfer measure to be taken by a child guidance center, etc., after they take custody of a child, according to the child´s conditions (temporary care facilities, foster care homes, hospitals, etc.)
     • - Accommodation request (head of a si (city)/ gun (county)/ gu (district)) and adoption process to be commenced by the institutions to which the child has been transferred
       • ① Request for accommodation for protection (head of the adoption institution/facility → head of a si (city)/ gun (county)/ gu (district))
       • ② Application for guardian designation and approval (head of the adoption institution/facility → head of a si (city)/ gun (county)/ gu (district))
       • ③ Public notification for confirmation of persons with a support obligation, etc. (application to be made by the head of the adoption institution/facility to the head of a si (city)/ gun (county)/ gu (district))
       • ④ Creation of a family name/family clan in the case of abandoned children
       • ⑤ Request for issuance of a certificate for an adoptable child
       • ⑥ Consent to adoption (parents, lineal ascendants, or guardians)
   • Adoptive parent handling process
     • ① Receipt of a written application and counseling
     • ② Adoption counseling and child rearing education for adoptive parents (five to six times)
     • ③ Home survey (two to three times) ※ Documents to be submitted: certified copy of resident registration, medical certificate, etc.
     • ④ Hand-over of the child´s records and belongings to adoptive parents
       ⇒ Effectuation of adoption: Report to be filed to the head of a si (city)/ gun (county)/ gu (district) as determined by the Act on the Registration, etc. of Family Relationship
   • Annual Domestic/International Adoptions