What is the new law when it comes to adoption?
Republic Act (RA) No. 11642 is the new law on adoption. It is known as the “Domestic Administrative Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act”. It was signed into law on 06 January 2022.
What is the effect of RA No. 11642 on other laws related to adoption?
RA No. 11642 amended the following laws:
i. RA No. 8043, The Inter-Country Adoption Act of 1995;
ii. RA No. 11222, Simulated Birth Rectification Act; and
iii. R.A. No. 10165, Foster Care Act of 2012.
On the other hand, it repealed (cancelled or abandoned) the following laws:
i. RA No. 8552, Domestic Adoption Act of 1998; and
ii. RA No. 9523 (An Act Requiring the Certification of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to Declare a “Child Legally Available for Adoption” as a Prerequisite for Adoption Proceedings)
What are the significant changes that the new law introduced?
Domestic adoption is now administrative in nature as opposed to being judicial prior to the new law.
Prior to RA No. 11642, domestic adoption is initiated by the prospective adoptive parent(s) by filing a petition to adopt with the courts. Under RA No. 11642, the petition for adoption shall now be filed with the Regional Alternative Child Care Office (RACCO), an office under the National Authority for Child Care (NACC).
NACC is a new body introduced by the new law which shall have the original and exclusive jurisdiction over all matters pertaining to alternative child care, including declaring, domestic administrative adoption, and inter-country adoption, among others.
What are the specific steps to be taken to initiate a domestic administrative adoption?
At present, the rules and regulations to make the provisions of the new law operative is still being formulated. The relevant government agencies such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) are given six (6) months from the effectivity of the new law (January 2022) to formulate the implementing rules and regulations.