Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
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Question 772: To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of adoptions that have been effected and registered by Irish couples and persons with a declaration of eligibility and suitability to adopt issued after 1 November 2010 and from which sending countries; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40937/11]

Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
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Question 773: To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the number of declarations of eligibility and suitability to adopt that have been issued here since 1 November 2010; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40938/11]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 772 and 773 together.

The Adoption Authority informs me that currently, there are no intercountry adoptions completed and registered in respect of applicants who received new Declarations of Eligibility and Suitability under Section 40 since 1 November 2010. It should be noted that waiting times between the sending of an application pack and the actual completion of an adoption in sending countries may vary greatly and may extend to as much as three years or more in some cases. Furthermore, some jurisdictions require a two stage process which entails post-placement reports being submitted during an initial period of guardianship before an adoption is approved and finalised. Hence, there would be little likelihood of adoptions being completed in respect of applications sent to Hague ratified countries since Ireland's ratification of the Hague Convention on 1 November 2010. The Adoption Authority has no influence with regard to the waiting times involved in these sending countries.

According to the Adoption Authority, there have been a total of 178 new Declarations of Eligibility and Suitability issued to persons intending to adopt from abroad issued pursuant to Section 40 of the Adoption Act 2010, since 1 November 2010.

In addition, pursuant to Section 63 of the Adoption Act 2010, the AAI has since issued 556 revised Declarations to persons who were already in possession of a valid Declaration of Eligibility & Suitability issued prior to 1st November 2010 by the former Adoption Board and who had adoptions in process at the time of the establishment of the Authority, on that date.