The Indian government is expected to announce new adoption rules to allow Non Resident Indians and Overseas Citizens of India to take their adopted child to their country of residence.
NRI and OCI card holders, who adopt a child in India under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act 1956 (HAMA) will soon be able to take their adopted child to their country of residence by getting a ‘no-objection’ certificate, under a new set of regulations expected to be notifies shortly by the Indian government.
Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist and Jain parents are allowed to adopt under HAMA.
According to a Times of India report, Under the new rules, the Central Adoption Resources Authority (CARA), which functions as the nodal body for adoption of Indian children and is mandated to monitor and regulate in-country and inter-country adoptions under the Juvenile Justice Act, will be able to issue the NOC that will adoptive parents to take their adopted child abroad.
This new development has followed much consultations and debates over building a sound mechanism for inter-country adoption under HAMA. CARA, the only authority for inter-country adoptions, is currently not able to issue NOC, which is a mandatory requirement under the Hague Convention. HAMA adoptions are not covered under the JJ system in India.
Because of this legal hurdle, NRI parents adopting a child under HAMA were not able to take their child child outside India without a court order, which can be a time consuming and exhausting process in India.
The new rules will also set out a detailed verification process to address concerns about trafficking under the garb of adoption and bridge the gap between inter-country and domestic adoptions.
Countries like Australia, UK, Canada, New Zealand and USA have their own sets of rules for adopting a child from India.
