New Rules coming down the pipeline from China...

Here is the low-down on the new requirements from China that will affect all prospective adoptive parents that are applying to adopt a Chinese child. Word is that these new rules may not take effect until May 1st, 2007. But the scuttlebutt is that the health requirements begin NOW and could affect those that have dossiers already logged into the system. Read on, get comfy....

At present, the number of adoption application documents that the China Centre of Adoption Affairs (hereafter referred to as CCAA) receives is increasing very fast. However, the limited number of Chinese children available for inter-country adoption is far from being able to meet the demand of families from overseas. The CCAA maintains, in accordance with the principle of protecting the best interests of children in the Convention on Protection of Children and Co-Operation in Respect of Inter-Country Adoption (hereafter referred to as Hague Adoption Convention), that adopters in the following conditions answer better to the spirit of Hague Adoption Convention and the provisions of adoption law in both China and your country, and are able to offer the Chinese children adopted the best possible environment to grow in. It is our hope that you read this letter attentively, screen the families and give priority to those in the following conditions, and submit the adoption applicationdocuments for them:
The CCAA first accepts and reviews adoption applications of foreign adopters who are qualified with the following conditions from the day of 1st May 2007, and then makes placement of adoptees with them. Adoption applications of the other adopters who are not qualified will be put into considerations after all the cases of the qualified have already been dealt with.
I. The adopters are a couple of one male and one female with a stable marital relationship. In case that both the husband and the wife do not have any ex-marriage, the length of marriage has to reach two years. In the case either the husband or wife has ex-marriages (not more than 2), the length of the current marriage has to reach 5 years.
II. Both the husband and wife have reached the age of 30 and are under 50. For adoption of special needs child, both of them should have reached the age of 30 and are under 55.
III. Both the husband and wife are fully healthy physically and mentally, and do not have the following conditions:
1. AIDS;2. Mental handicap;3. Infectious disease within infective stage;4. Binocular blind or binocular parallax or monocular blind and with no ocular prosthesis;5. Binaural hearing loss or language function loss; adoption of special needs children who have identical conditions will be exempt from this limitation;6. Afunction or dysfunction of limbs or trunk caused by impairment, incompleteness, numbness or deformation; severe facial deformation;7. Severe diseases which require long term treatment and which affect life expectancy, like malignant tumor, lupus erythematosus, nephrosis, epilepsy, and ect.;8. Post-surgery of major organs transplantation, not yet 10 years;9. Schizophrenia;10. Medication for severe mental disorders, like depression, mania, or anxiety neurosis and etc. stopped not more than 2 years;11. BMI > or = 40.
IV. Either the husband or wife holds a stable occupation. The family annual income reaches $10,000 for each family member including the prospective adoptee and the family net assets value should reach $80,000. The family annual income does not include welfare income, like relief fund, pension, unemployment insurance, or government subsidy, and etc.
V. Both the husband and wife have received education of or above the level of senior high school, or vocational skills training of the same level.
VI. The number of children in family under the age of 18 years does not reach 5, and the youngest one should have reached the age of 1 year. Adoption of special needs children will be exempt from the limitation of “the number of children in family under the age of 18 years does not reach 5″.
VII. Both the husband and wife have never come under any criminal sanction. And they behave honorably with good moral characters and abide by regulations and laws. Both of them do not accord with the following situations:1. Have a history of domestic violence, sex abuse, abandonment or abuse of children (even if they are not consequently arrested or criminated);2. Have a history of taking narcotics like opium, morphine, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines, and etc. and medication for mental diseases, with are able to arouse addiction among human beings;3. Have a history of alcohol abuse and have given up drinking not more than 10 years ago.
Adoption application will be given consideration on a case by case basis when either the husband or wife has less than 3 criminal records of slight severity with no severe outcomes, and the time for correction of wrong has reached 10 years, or has less than 5 records of traffic law violation with no severe outcomes.
VIII. The adopters are able to have a correct cognition of adoption, and expect to provide a warm family for the orphaned children (or children with handicap and disability) via adoption and to meet the needs of the children adopted for the sake of a good development of them. They have a correct cognition of inter-country adoption as well, and are fully mentally-prepared for the potential risks within inter-country adoption and for the situations of children adopted as potential diseases, developmental delays, post-placement maladjustment, and etc.
IX. The adopters make in the adoption application letter clear promise of being able to accept post-placement follow-ups and offer post-placement reports as required.
X. The fixed number of year or age that appears in this letter shall be dated from the day when the adoption application documents are logged in at the CCAA.
The CCAA expects sincerely to cooperate with you and to provide better services for the adopters and children adopted and to help the Chinese children adopted develop in a family full of happiness, love and understanding. Thank you very much for your understanding and assistance.
The CCAA is responsible for the interpretation of this letter. Agencies should direct any specific questions to China Centre of Adoption Affairs(copied from the Rumour Queen web site)

These new requirement won't really affect us. At least not that I can see, barring one of us getting ill. God forbid! But it breaks my heart to think of all those couples, and families that will be affected by these changes. You put your heart and soul into this process. You have pictured your future child over and over again. Only to be told "sorry, you no longer meet the requirements". I can't imagine what that would feel like. But I guess that is something that we should be prepared for in the adoption journey. Nothing is guaranteed.

Someone suggested that this might be a good thing in that it will speed up the process since the number of families eligible to adopt from China will be diminished. That certainly does not make me smile. No one wants to benefit from the disappointment of others. These people have gone through a thorough process. They have been deemed to be awesome parents, regardless of their BMI, past health issues or marital status. Who's to say that skinny people that have never been diagnosed with a health issue will make better parents?? There are so many people out there that have so much love to give. Who long to be parents. Who were given hope, only to have it taken away.

Merry freakin Xmas.