International adoption of a child Decision to convert a weak adoption into a strong adoption Accompaniment

A weak adoption can be converted into a strong adoption by order of the family court.

An international adoption procedure is an adoption procedure in which a child with a habitual residence abroad has been, is or is to be brought into the country, i.e. either after its adoption in the home country by adopters with a habitual residence in the country, to carry out the adoption in the country or to fulfill the requirements of foreign legislation for adoption in the home country.

Adoption law is regulated differently in the various countries of the world. This applies not only to the conditions under which a child can be adopted or the details of the procedure. The effects of an adoption can also vary greatly from country to country. With regard to the legal effects of an adoption, a distinction must be made between a full adoption, a strong adoption and a weak adoption.

Finally, we speak of a weak or incomplete adoption if the adoption establishes a permanent parent-child relationship with the adopters, but the remaining essential legal relationships, such as inheritance rights, with the biological parents are retained.

It is possible to have an adoption with weak effects converted into a full adoption in court proceedings. The name of the adopted child can also be changed in the conversion procedure. The conversion of an adoption with weak effects into a full adoption requires a notarized application, which must be submitted to the family court.

Your independent international adoption agency, your local central adoption office of the state youth welfare office and your local adoption agency can provide more information on the conversion procedure and offer advice.

Please contact the adoption agencies of the youth welfare offices.

• for the child:
  • Consent of the mother to a full adoption
  • Consent of the father from
  • Consent of the child from
  • Consent of the guardian from
  • Certificate of parentage/birth certificate
  • Proof of citizenship
  • registration certificate
  • medical certificate
• for the adoptive parents:
  • Application for recognition according to § 2 AdWirkG
  • Application for conversion in accordance with § 3 AdWirkG
  • foreign adoption decision
  • Certificate of descent/ birth certificate
  • Family register extract/marriage certificate
  • Family register excerpts from previous marriages
  • Divorce decrees
  • Proof of citizenship
  • Certificate of registration
  • Medical certificates
  • Extended police clearance certificate
  • Proof of income
  • Possibly psychological report
  • Participation of siblings

In order to be able to convert a weak adoption into a full adoption, a recognition procedure is required before or parallel to the conversion procedure. The conversion procedure requires a notarized application.

In addition to the documents required for the recognition procedure, all documents that would be required for an adoption in Germany must also be enclosed. Information on siblings is also required, as a conversion procedure will also affect their future inheritance.

If a change of name for the child is desired, this should be included in the application. Your local youth welfare office and your local central adoption office of the state youth welfare office will be involved in the conversion procedure.

The duration of the conversion procedure depends on the individual case and can be determined by the time resources of the offices involved.

You will be responsible for the fees charged for issuing the above-mentioned documents. There are also fees for the application for conversion at the notary's office.