Denmark faces rising foster adoptions but fewer willing families
Friday 19th June 2026 on 19:45 in
Denmark
The number of state-initiated adoptions in Denmark has increased, but a growing shortage of approved adoptive parents is causing delays, according to a new report from the Danish Adoption Board.
The board’s latest annual report, published Friday, warns of a “significant concern” as the number of approved applicants has fallen sharply. In 2025, children awaiting adoption without parental consent waited an average of 18 months for a new family—the longest delay since 2020.
Katrine Daugaard, social affairs spokesperson for the Liberal Alliance party and chair of the social committee, called the situation serious. She noted that the prolonged waits and lack of adoptive parents are just part of broader systemic issues, including cases where children were wrongly subjected to forced adoption.
“We’ve seen cases where children were forcibly adopted when they shouldn’t have been,” Daugaard told DR’s P1 Morgen. “There are many concerns that may be making people who would otherwise be willing to adopt hesitate.”
Sabina Hedegaard, a foster and adoptive mother, argued for a temporary halt to state adoptions until ethical and legal safeguards are strengthened. “Right now, we have an adoption practice that a future prime minister will have to apologize for,” she said, citing her own experience with a foster child who was approved for adoption despite positive contact with biological parents. After a lengthy battle, Hedegaard and her husband were approved to adopt the child, who maintains regular overnight visits with her biological family.
Social Minister Monika Rubin of the Moderate Party acknowledged the complexity of adoption cases but emphasized the need to address the shortage of adoptive parents. A working group’s interim report on the issue was released Friday, and Rubin said she would review its findings. She declined to comment on whether some forced adoptions were unnecessary, stating that each case must be assessed individually.
“On one hand, there’s legal certainty for the biological parents and the child. On the other, there’s the child’s needs, which, in my view, override everything,” Rubin said. “But as minister, I can’t intervene in individual cases—I don’t have that overview.”