                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN ADOPTION; ISSUANCE OF BIRTH CERTIFICATES (§ 63.2-1200.1)

A. Any adoption of a child who was born in a foreign country and who was not a
citizen of the United States at the time of birth shall, subject to the
provisions of subsection D of &#xA7; 63.2-1201.1, be recognized by the
Commonwealth and the rights and obligations of the parties shall be determined
as though the order of adoption was entered by a court of the Commonwealth if
the adoption was finalized pursuant to the laws of the country from which the
child was adopted, and the child was admitted to the United States with an IR-3
or IH-3 visa issued by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
In such cases, the adoptive parents shall not be required to readopt the child
in Virginia.

B. In cases in which an adoption of a child was finalized pursuant to the laws
of a foreign country and the child was admitted to the United States with an
IR-3 or IH-3 visa, the adoptive parents, if residents of the Commonwealth at the
time the adoption was finalized, may submit a report of adoption to the State
Registrar of Vital Records on a form furnished by the State Registrar, which
shall (i) include evidence as to the date, place of birth, and parentage of the
adopted person; (ii) provide information necessary to establish a new
certificate of birth for the adopted person; (iii) include a certified or
notarized copy of the final order of adoption entered by the foreign court,
together with a certified translation or a notarized copy of a certified
translation of the final order of adoption in cases in which the original order
is not in English; and (iv) include an affidavit from the adoptive parents
indicating that they are receiving supervision from a licensed or approved
child-placing agency in the United States or have received supervision from a
licensed or approved child-placing agency in the United States and have
satisfied all post-adoption requirements as required by the foreign country from
which the child was adopted. Upon receipt of a report pursuant to this
subsection, the State Registrar shall establish a new certificate of birth for
the adopted person, and such certificate of birth shall be registered in
accordance with the provisions of &#xA7; 32.1-261.

HISTORY: 2011, c. 486; 2012, c. 323.