Some Canadian provinces and territories have suspended adoption from certain countries. There are also countries that don’t allow international adoption. Make sure you know which countries you can and can’t adopt from.
Countries with a suspension on adoptions
Some Canadian provinces and territories (PTs) have suspended adoptions from these countries:
- Cambodia (all PTs except Quebec)
- Georgia (all PTs)
- Guatemala (all PTs)
- Liberia (all PTs)
- Nepal (all PTs)
- Ukraine (all PTs) Temporary
Countries that restrict international adoptions
These include:
- Argentina
- Benin
- Bhutan
- Burma (Myanmar)
- Cabo Verde (Cape Verde)
- Comoros
- Democratic Republic of Congo (except adoption by relatives or family members)
- Ethiopia
- Eswatini
- Grenada
- Iran
- Iraq
- Kenya
- Kuwait
- Laos
- Maldives
- Mozambique
- Pakistan
- Paraguay
- Russia
- Saudi Arabia
- Tajikistan
- Tanzania
Other countries you can’t adopt from
There are also some countries that you can’t adopt from because they don’t follow these Hague Convention requirements:
- the child must be legally available for adoption
- the child must have no legal ties to their birth parents once the adoption is complete
- the adoption will form a legal parent-child relationship between the child and adoptive parents
To check if you can adopt a child from a specific country, contact
- theadoption central authority in your province or territory (if you’re in Canada)
- the Canadian embassy, high commission or consulate of the country where you want to adopt
Partial suspension on adoptions from India
The following provinces and territories don’t process adoptions from India under the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act:
- Manitoba
- New Brunswick
- Newfoundland and Labrador
- Northwest Territories
- Nova Scotia
- Nunavut
- Ontario
- Prince Edward Island
- Quebec
- Saskatchewan
All provinces and territories allow adoptions under the Indian Juvenile Justice Act, which complies with the 1993 Hague Convention(opens in a new tab).
To check if you can adopt a child from India, contact the adoption authority in your province or territory(opens in a new tab).
