                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

PARENTAL, OR AGENCY, CONSENT REQUIRED; EXCEPTIONS (§ 63.2-1202)

A. No petition for adoption shall be granted, except as hereinafter provided in
this section, unless written consent to the proposed adoption is filed with the
petition. Such consent shall be in writing, signed under oath and acknowledged
before an officer authorized by law to take acknowledgments. The consent of a
birth parent for the adoption of his child placed directly by the birth parent
shall be executed as provided in &#xA7; 63.2-1233, and the circuit court may
accept a certified copy of an order entered pursuant to &#xA7; 63.2-1233 in
satisfaction of all requirements of this section, provided the order clearly
evidences compliance with the applicable notice and consent requirements of
&#xA7; 63.2-1233.

B. A birth parent who has not reached the age of 18 shall have legal capacity to
give consent to adoption and perform all acts related to adoption, and shall be
as fully bound thereby as if the birth parent had attained the age of 18 years.

C. Consent shall be executed:

   1. By the birth mother and by any man who:
   				a. Is an acknowledged father under &#xA7; 20-49.1;
   				b. Is an adjudicated father under &#xA7; 20-49.8;
   				c. Is a presumed father under subsection D; or
   				d. Has registered with the Virginia Birth Father Registry pursuant to
   Article 7 (&#xA7; 63.2-1249 et seq.).
   				Verification of compliance with the notice provisions of the Virginia
   Birth Father Registry shall be provided to the court.

   2. By the child-placing agency or the local board having custody of the child,
   with right to place him for adoption, through court commitment or parental
   agreement as provided in &#xA7; 63.2-900, 63.2-903, or 63.2-1221; or an agency
   outside the Commonwealth that is licensed or otherwise duly authorized to
   place children for adoption by virtue of the laws under which it operates; and

   3. By the child if he is 14 years of age or older, unless the circuit court
   finds that the best interests of the child will be served by not requiring
   such consent.

D. A man shall be presumed to be the father of a child if:

   1. He and the mother of the child are married to each other and the child is
   born during the marriage;

   2. He and the mother of the child were married to each other and the child is
   born within 300 days of their date of separation, as evidenced by a written
   agreement or decree of separation, or within 300 days after the marriage is
   terminated by death, annulment, declaration of invalidity, or divorce; or

   3. Before the birth of the child, he and the mother of the child married each
   other in apparent compliance with the law, even if the attempted marriage is
   or could be declared invalid, and the child is born during the invalid
   marriage or within 300 days of their date of separation, as evidenced by a
   written agreement or decree of separation, or within 300 days after its
   termination by death, annulment, declaration of invalidity, or divorce.
   				Such presumption may be rebutted by sufficient evidence that would
   establish by a preponderance of the evidence the paternity of another man or
   the impossibility or improbability of cohabitation with the birth mother for a
   period of at least 300 days prior to the birth of the child.

E. No consent shall be required of a birth father if he denies under oath and in
writing the paternity of the child. Such denial of paternity may be withdrawn no
more than 10 days after it is executed. Once the child is 10 days old, any
executed denial of paternity is final and constitutes a waiver of all rights
with respect to the adoption of the child and cannot be withdrawn.

F. No consent shall be required of the birth father of a child when the birth
father is convicted of a violation of subsection A of &#xA7; 18.2-61, &#xA7;
18.2-63, subsection B of &#xA7; 18.2-366, or an equivalent offense of another
state, the United States, or any foreign jurisdiction, or has been found by
clear and convincing evidence to have engaged in the conduct prohibited by
subsection A of &#xA7; 18.2-61, &#xA7; 18.2-63, or subsection B of &#xA7;
18.2-366, whether or not the birth father has been charged with or convicted of
the alleged violation, and the child was conceived as a result of such violation
or conduct.

G. No notice or consent shall be required of any person whose parental rights
have been terminated by a court of competent jurisdiction, including foreign
courts that have competent jurisdiction. No notice or consent is required of any
birth parent of a child for whom a guardianship order was granted when the child
was approved by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services for
purposes of adoption.

H. No consent shall be required of a birth parent who, without just cause, has
neither visited nor contacted the child for a period of six months immediately
prior to the filing of the petition for adoption or the filing of a petition to
accept consent to an adoption. The prospective adoptive parent(s) shall
establish by clear and convincing evidence that the birth parent(s), without
just cause, has neither visited nor contacted the child for a period of six
months immediately prior to the filing of the petition for adoption or the
filing of a petition to accept consent to an adoption. This provision shall not
infringe upon the birth parent&#8217;s right to be noticed and heard on the
allegation of abandonment. For purposes of this section, the payment of child
support, in the absence of other contact with the child, shall not be considered
contact.

I. A birth father of the child may consent to the termination of all of his
parental rights prior to the birth of the child.

J. The failure of the nonconsenting party to appear at any scheduled hearing,
either in person or by counsel, after proper notice has been given to said
party, shall constitute a waiver of any objection and right to consent to the
adoption.

K. If a birth parent, legal guardian, or prospective adoptee, executing a
consent, entrustment, or other documents related to the adoption, cannot provide
the identification required pursuant to &#xA7; 47.1-14, the birth parent, legal
guardian, or prospective adoptee may execute a self-authenticating affidavit as
to his identity subject to the penalties contained in &#xA7; 63.2-1217.

L. A legal custodian of a child being placed for adoption, and any other named
parties in pending cases in which the custody or visitation of such child is at
issue, whether such case is in a circuit or district court, shall be entitled to
proper notice of any adoption proceeding and an opportunity to be heard.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 63-351; 1954, c. 489; 1956, c. 300; 1960, c. 331; 1962,
c. 603; 1968, c. 578, § 63.1-225; 1972, cc. 73, 475, 823; 1974, c. 620; 1978,
cc. 730, 735, 744; 1985, c. 18; 1986, c. 387; 1989, c. 647; 1993, c. 553; 1995,
cc. 772, 826; 1999, c. 1028; 2000, c. 830, § 63.1-219.10; 2002, c. 747; 2005,
c. 890; 2006, cc. 825, 848; 2007, cc. 606, 623; 2009, c. 805; 2011, c. 486;
2012, c. 424; 2017, c. 200; 2020, c. 3; 2025, c. 547.