South Africa - Apply for National Adoption

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Procedure

Apply In-Person:

1. To apply for National adoption in person, the applicant should visit any adoption agency of his/her choice.
2. The contact details of the Department of Social Development office in various provinces is available in the link given below: Link
3. You can enquire about any adoption agency that is present near your location at the DSD office in your province.
4. Pay a visit to the office of adoption agency in your province and obtain the necessary format to apply for a National Adoption in South Africa.
5. Complete the necessary application format and submit it along with all the required documents to the concerned official at the office.
6. Then, you will be put into a screening test or home study to assess whether you are fit for adopting a child.
7. If you are qualified according to the requirements of the test, your name will be recorded on a Register of Adoptable Children and Adoptive Parents.
8. When a child comes available for adoption, the applicant will be informed to complete the remaining processes of the adoption.
9. Once when all the processes are completed as required, an adoption order will be issued to the applicant from the court.

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Required Documents

• Completed application format
• Copy of applicant’s ID
• Proof of applicant’s citizenship
• Proof of payment
• Written consent of the child’s parents
• Written consent of the child (if applicable)
• Home study or screening report

Office Locations & Contacts

Department of Social Development,
134, Pretorius Street,
HSRC Building,
Pretoria.
Directions using Google map: Link
Customer Care Help line: 012 312 7727
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website: Link , Link

List of Department of Social Development Offices

Provincial Contact Numbers:
GAUTENG - (011) 355 7687 / 7977 / 7878
LIMPOPO - (015) 293 6004 / 6054 / 6011 / 6053
NORTH WEST - (018) 387 3434 / 0255 / 3497 / 0281
MPUMALANGA - (013) 766 3098 / 3253 / 3031
FREE STATE - (051) 400 0302 / 0304 / 0307
EASTERN CAPE - (043) 605 5000
KWAZULU-NATAL - (033) 264 5400
WESTERN CAPE - (021) 483 3858/ 3765 / 3158 / 5445
NORTHERN CAPE - (053) 807 5600

Eligibility

• Any South African citizen residing in South Africa and wants to adopt a South African child is eligible to apply.
• The person willing to adopt must be proper and fit to look after and raise the child.

Fees

The cost will depend on the agency you use.

Validity

Explain the time until which the certificate/document is valid.
e.g. Birth Certificate Valid Forever

Documents to Use

Please attach documents that can be used by people. e.g. links

Sample Documents

Please attach sample completed documents that would help other people.

Processing Time

It differs from one case to another.

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
Attach videos using the following tag <&video type='website'>video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites.
Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver,
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

• The adoption agency will look for a child who is available for adoption and if a child is available, they will call the applicant to the offices to meet the child and ask if he/she is interested in adopting the child.

• If yes, they will send the home study report to the Children’s Court to finalise the adoption and issue an adoption order.

• The Court report will be sent to the Department of Social Development so they can check if correct procedure was followed and to record both applicant’s and the child’s details.

Required Information

• Particulars of the prospective parents
• Particulars of the child
• Identity document numbers
• Address information
• Contact details

Need for the Document

If you are looking to adopt a child in South Africa, you must approach an adoption agency which will screen you and help you look for a child who is available for adoption, in a prescribed procedure.

Information which might help

Refer: Link

Other uses of the Document/Certificate

Please explain what are other uses of obtaining this document/certificate.
e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

External Links

Place some external links which might help.

Others

More information which might help people.