Recently there has been some slow down in the EP approvals. This was based on many feedbacks I have received from people wanting to know the reason for the slow down.
I checked into this, and I am told that because of the personnel changes in the ministry (almost entire department members changed), this has created some slow down, but just recently some of the backlogged EPs have been getting approvals by the new staff, and it is expected that the new staff will pick up the speed as time goes.
I am told that currently there are approximately 600 cases of domestic adoptions that have been submitted to family court to date. So we can predict a total of 400 EPs submitted for intercountry adoption, with many of them have already been approved. While this is a far cry from the quota level for 2013, it is a significant accomplishment despite all the difficulties faced this year.
The agencies are working hard to increase the domestic adoption numbers. But despite the accomplishments in both domestic and intercountry, they fear that the illegal adoption(adoption without proper documentation nor the process) has seen a significant rise, and they don't know how to go about controling this.
As for the family court, there is a rumor that an additional judge may be assigned, and if this happens there will be five judges. I recommended eight judges, but we will see how this plays out in the future.
Thank you. Do you anticipate more EPs submitted this year?
ReplyDeleteThey have two more months, and I believe they are trying hard. Let's hope so.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for all of your hard work on behalf of so many families!
ReplyDeletewe are currently waiting for our EP to be submitted to the ministry, and we were told by our agency that our waiting to be about 1 year from now. my frustration is that no one seems to know why it takes a long time to just submit EP to the ministry and it doesn't seem like quota is an issue though. hope EP moving faster next year. Thanks again. Nari
Hello Steve. We received word this morning that our EP has been approved today! This was about 3-4 weeks later than our social worker initially expected, but we are certainly grateful. We were told that our paperwork would likely be submitted to the court within the next week; a summons would issue in another 3-4 weeks, and the court date would likely be another 5-8 weeks after that. So what looked like a December court date back in July now looks like a late January date. Just to give you an idea on what some of us are hearing regarding time frames. Thanks for keeping everyone posted on what you're hearing.
ReplyDeleteGreat! Congratulations! Best wishes and pray that the rest of the process will go smoothly, and that you will bring your child before Christmas.
DeleteOur EP was submitted 8 weeks ago. Can you tell me how this compares to your wait time? Thanks.
DeleteDavid,
DeleteOur EP was submitted on August 14. Sounds like you're not far behind...
Thanks - that's encouraging...
Deletewe have the same timely submission and approval! Hope to see you in Seoul!
DeleteWe were just wondering...has there been any time frame established yet for birthmother searches, or is this evaluated on a case by case basis alone? Our case has been submitted to court since the beginning of August, and apparently is being delayed because the birthmother cannot be found. Were we wrong in thinking that the agency did the required relinquishment/search before the EP was approved, or is the court perhaps just not satisfied with what was done, and is asking for it to be done again? We hope they can find her soon, but if they can't, is there any indication of how long might this drag on?
ReplyDeleteI am thinking that the court does not believe enough effort was made to contact the birthmother, and they want ot make sure of this process is done.
DeleteThere seem to be a great focus on finding the birth mothers. The swedish families currently in Seoul or waiting for court date have been told that now the time from approval in court is no longer what sets the waiting time. Rather it is the time the birth mother have been notified of the court decision that sets the time. Also, if the birth monther can not be located, the waiting time between court approval and when you can receive your child will be four weeks. Considering that the swedish families always stays in Seoul / Korea all the way from court date to going home with their child, this is absolutely prolonging and putting strain on time and money. Really not sure what they are trying to accomplish as the birth mothers should have given approval already in an earlier stage?
ReplyDeleteYou are right to ask such question. They have already signed a relinquishment paper earlier, and I don't understand why this is happening again. So I share your frustration.
DeleteAnd I guess it is not entirely unfair to wonder if this strive to 150% assure that birth mothers really have given up their child voluntary and with no papers falsified , makes it even more likely for birth mothers to choose anonymous anbandonment or even to agree to an illegal adoption due to the pressure put on them in this process ? In the best intest of the children...?
DeleteI am thrilled they may add another judge. Any rumor on when they could add this judge?
ReplyDeleteNo, I don't have that information. I will be traveling to Korea this week and I'll find out more on this. Like a typical things, it may take months, or a few weeks.
DeleteHi Steve,
ReplyDeleteI was wondering if you had any information about how the matching stage is going for Korean adoption. We have been waiting for a match for over a year and have been under the impression that the new laws have been slowing down the matching process, as well.
I hope that a new judge will be assigned to the court. This would be of great benefit to the children in the adoption process.
Thank you for all you do!
Due to the shortage of available babies for adoption, the matchup would take longer. However, there are more babies being abandoned and they are not adoptable, at least not for three years. I don't know when the new judge will come in but nothing has been decided yet.
DeleteSteve, if babies are not adoptable for three years, would they be available after 3 years for international adoption? or would they be only available for domestic adoption? as for my understanding, older ones are not allowed for international adoption in current laws. where do they end up at if they are not adopted by domestic families?
Deletethanks.
Nari, they should be adoptable for intercountry. Per the Hague Convention, if those children don't find their biological parents, nor adopted domestically, then thy should be available for intercountry adoption regardless of their age.
DeleteHave you heard if the ministry will be accepting more EPs this year? Many of us are on pins and needles.
ReplyDelete