"It’s a chance to nurture and educate an adoptee to become a valuable and useful member of the society."
"It’s a chance to nurture and educate an adoptee to become a valuable and useful member of the society."
In a country where orphans abound, where children with no known parents are on the streets, and where abandoned, neglected and abused children are in charitable institutions, adoption is an option to give these children a home and a normal family life.
Adoption is the legal process that bonds the parent and child who are not related by blood. The necessity of this legal vinculum is highlighted when we hear stories of infants being left outside houses or in delivery rooms of hospitals, and of infants being left under the care of a sibling of the parents or to the grandparents.
With the desire to legalize the adoption of a child without a judicial process, some adopters simulate birth. To simulate birth, the adopters will get the birth certificate forms and fill in the birth details to show that they are the natural parents of the adoptee/child. The person causing the fictitious registration of the birth of a child shall be criminally liable for simulation of birth. (Section 21, Article VII, Republic Act 8552).
The law requires that the husband and the wife shall jointly adopt except: (i) if one spouse seeks to adopt the legitimate son/daughter of the other; or (ii) if one spouse seeks to adopt his/her own illegitimate son/daughter, provided, the other spouse consents; or (iii) if the spouses are legally separated from each other (Section 7, Article III, Republic Act No. 8552). The law further requires that the adopter should be in the position to give support and care for his children, legitimate or illegitimate, in keeping with the means of his family (Article 183, Family Code).
The adopter must be a Filipino, of legal age, in possession of full civil capacity and legal rights, of good moral character, has not been convicted of any crime involving moral turpitude, emotionally and psychologically capable of caring for children, and at least sixteen years older than the adoptee, unless the adopter is the biological parent of the adoptee or is the spouse of the adoptee’s legitimate parent (Section 7, Article III, Republic Act No. 8552; Article 183, Family Code).
An alien or foreigner with the same qualifications as a Filipino may adopt provided his/her country has diplomatic relations with the Philippines, that he/she has been living in the Philippines for at least three continuous years prior to the filing of the application for adoption and maintains such residence until the adoption decree is entered. It is also required that he/she has the legal capacity to adopt in his country as certified by his/her diplomatic or consular office, and that his/her government allows the adoptee to enter his/her country as his/her adopted son/daughter (Section 7, Article III, Republic Act No. 8552).
The requirements on residency and certification for an alien may be waived for the following reasons: (a) if he is a former Filipino citizen who seeks to adopt a relative within the fourth degree of consanguinity (by blood) or affinity (by marriage); (b) if he or she seeks to adopt the legitimate child of the Filipino spouse; and (c) if he or she is married to a Filipino citizen and wants to adopt jointly the spouse’s relative within the fourth degree of consanguinity or affinity (Section 7, Article III, Republic Act No. 8552). Aliens not covered by Republic Act 8552, not being residents of the Philippines for at least three continuous years, may adopt Filipino children in accordance with the Rules on Inter-Country Adoption (Article 184, Family Code)
This feature of the law on adoptions is commonly used by former Filipinos or alien spouses of Filipinos who would like to ease the financial burden of relatives in the Philippines, or by Filipinos who have children from their prior marriages and would like to have these children adopted by their current alien spouse. These practices are prevalent among Filipinos working abroad or permanently residing in foreign countries.
Only minors may be adopted, unless the adoptee/child is the natural child of the adopter or his or her spouse, or prior to the adoption, the child has been treated by the adopter as his or her child during minority (Article 187, Family Code). Why will someone adopt his own natural child? The reason for the adoption is to elevate the status of an illegitimate child to a legitimate child since the adopted shall be “deemed a legitimate child of the adopters,” who has the right to inherit and use the surname of the adopters (Article 189, Family Code; Section 8 (c), Rule III, Republic Act 8552).
The following may also be adopted: (a) the legitimate son/daughter of one spouse by the other spouse; (b) a child whose adoption has been previously rescinded; or (c) a child who has been orphaned. The latter may be available for adoption, provided no proceedings shall be initiated within six (6) months from the time of death of the parents (Section 8, Rule III, Republic Act 8552).
The petition for adoption shall be filed with the Family Court of the province or city where the prospective adoptive parents reside (Section 6, Supreme Court Rule on Adoption). The petition shall include the requirements for a Filipino citizen or alien to adopt, and must attach the affidavits of consent of the adoptee if at least ten years of age, the biological parents of the child, if known, or the legal guardian of the child, or the proper government instrumentality which has custody of the child, including the children of the adopter who are at least ten years of age (Section 9, Rule III, Republic Act 8552).
The Petition shall also append the birth, baptismal or foundling certificate, as the case may be, and school records showing the name, age and residence of the adoptee; the child study report on the adoptee and his biological parents, and the certifications from the consular offices if the adopter is a qualified alien (Section 11, Supreme Court Rule on Adoption). The case study on the adoptee shall establish that he/she is legally available for adoption and that the documents to support this fact are valid and authentic. On the other hand, the case study of the adopters shall ascertain his/her genuine intentions and that the adoption is in the best interest of the child (Section 11, Article IV, Republic Act 8552).
For adoption to be finally granted, the adopters and the adoptee will be given by the court a supervised trial custody period of at least six (6) months within which to adjust psychologically and emotionally to each other and establish a bonding relationship. If the court is convinced that the adopters are qualified to adopt, and that the adoption would redound to the best interest of the adoptee, a decree of adoption shall be entered which shall be effective as of the date the original petition was filed. The decree shall state the name by which the child is to be known (Sections 12 and 13, Article IV, Republic Act 8552).
While adoption has always been considered as a means to alleviate the plight of an orphan or an abused or neglected child, it is also a way to give childless couples their own. Adopting a child will give them the chance to nurture and educate an adoptee to be become a valuable and useful member of the society.