Stop Unjust and Unfair Adoption practises in Ireland
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This is a petition to –
Lobby the Minister for Children, Frances Fitzgerald and the head of the Adoption Authority of Ireland, Dr Geoffrey Shannon to launch a thorough investigation into the practices, policies and fee structure of Arc Adoption Agency.
In a Nutshell, The Adoption Authority and Arc Adoption think it is acceptable for us to pay €12,000 to Arc Adoption to assist in the processing of our adoptions. This fee will mean that for most couples/sole adopters the cost to adopt a child will reach almost €20,000.
Here is a breakdown -
€2,450 - this is an interest free loan from US to THEM for a period of 30 months -
It is refundable after 30 months. It does not mention “refundable” in the Terms and Conditions of their official contract.
Does this mean when we look for the money back we might not get it ?
It also means that they will gather interest on our money, therefore they are profiting from us.
€2,450 - for social worker time and discussions pertaining to the referral of our child -
When you apply to adopt, the HSE assigns every applicant a Social Worker, who works very closely with you over a 12 week period.
It is this Social Worker that compiles a report on us and recommends us for Adoption (or not in some cases)
€3500 - to process the referral of our child –
this is an extraordinary fee, because all of the work is done in Bulgaria ( or your country of choice), it is then sent to Ireland/Arc Adoption who read through it and then send it to the Adoption Authority of Ireland.
It is the AAI who can accept or reject the referral of a child.
Is Arc Adoption charging €3500 to send a parcel from Dublin 18 to Dublin 4?
€2500 - Adoption processing – We don’t know what this means exactly
€1200 - Post adoption – We don’t know what this means exactly.
Our Social Worker who assessed us previously is involved in visiting once you return home with your child.
He/She will compile reports on the continued development of your child and it is then sent back to Bulgaria.
We are being asked to -
Pay up front for all the services above. They are asking us to pay €12,000 in increments of €4,000 over a 9 month period. There is no mention of a “refundable loan” in their official contract. They are telling us that they have the power to refuse the referral of your child if you have not paid in full. There is absolutely no guarantee on your money.
Some additional reading or FYI
Prospective Adoptive Parents of Ireland was set up to highlight the issues facing couples and sole adopters in Ireland. It is our hope that we will make public, the extortion and profiteering that is part and parcel of the international adoption process in Ireland today
Ireland brought into law, The Hague Convention in November 2010, this is an international agreement to safeguard Intercountry adoptions.
It aims to prevent the abduction, sale of, or traffic in children, and it works to ensure that Intercountry adoptions are in the best interests of children.
It recognizes Intercountry adoption as a means of offering the advantage of a permanent home to a child when a suitable family has not been found in the child's country of origin. It enables Intercountry adoption to take place when:
The child has been deemed eligible for adoption by the child's country of birth. Proper effort has been given to the child's adoption in its country of origin.
Under the terms of the Hague Convention, an agency can be given accreditation to act as an intermediary between the prospective adopters and their country of choice, but nowhere in the legislation does it say that it is mandatory to use an agency.
Under the process here in Ireland, our lives were scrutinised and delved into. Friends were interviewed, and the HSE had everything from bank account statements, Garda clearance, Birth Certs and Company Accounts. They knew more about us than our friends and family put together. Our Social Worker even knew how often we had sex !!
Not long after the passing of this Law, an Irish agency adoption agency was given full permission by the Minister for Children's office and the AAI (Adoption Authority of Ireland ) to carry out some of the administrative duties on the Irish side of adoptions in Bulgaria.
The Adoption Authority of Ireland has now delegated certain duties to Arc Adoption and has declared it mandatory that all prospective adoptive parents adopting from Bulgaria use Arc's services
The vast majority of couples already had a contract in place with an agency in Bulgaria when the Adoption Authority of Ireland issued this direction and we had paid an initial fee to this agency as well as giving them power of attorney to act on our behalf in Bulgaria. The Bulgarian agency is equipped to carry out the entire adoption process from start to finish
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