Daily Northern

Nordic News, Every Day

Menu

Norwegian couple face bureaucratic hurdles in adoption process of South African child

Monday 15th 2024 on 21:08 in  
Norway

Last autumn, “Anders” and “Emilie” (names changed for privacy) finally realized their dream of adopting a child—a little boy from South Africa. But upon returning to their home in Eastern Norway in January, they discovered that Norwegian bureaucracy was proving a significant roadblock to their newly adopted family life.

For over six months, their son was registered in the National Population Register without parents. The adoption was not officially registered until July 9th. This delay created various challenges, including the inability to access the child’s health information or apply for kindergarten or other municipal services.

The child, referred to as “Kevin”, quickly formed strong bonds with his adoptive parents. Even so, the delay in the registration of his adoption caused significant stress for the family, who remained unnamed to protect the child’s privacy.

The Norwegian Directorate for Children, Youth and Family Affairs (Bufdir) has been criticized for creating additional requirements and demanding more documentation from adoptive parents during the adoption process. This has caused complications for families who have already submitted original documents and may not have copies.

In the case of Anders and Emilie, the organization handling their adoption, Verdens Barn, managed to obtain the required documents. Still, the couple was frustrated by the lack of clarity and changing demands from Bufdir.

Bufdir has been scrutinized in recent years following cases of kidnapping, falsified documents, and human trafficking related to international adoptions. The directorate has proposed a temporary halt to all international adoptions until an investigation report is completed in 2025.

Despite these challenges, Anders and Emilie finally received confirmation of their son’s adoption from Bufdir in July. They are now looking forward to a more normal family life with their son.