Can I Bring My Adopted Child to the UK?

Whether you can bring your adopted child to the UK depends on the type of adoption and your immigration status. If you want to bring your adopted child to the UK, the application will usually fall under Appendix Adoption of the Immigration Rules. There are four main routes, depending on where and how the adoption took place, such as:

• Hague Convention Adoption – Applies where the adoption takes place under the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption. The adoption must be the subject of an agreement under Article 17(c) of the Convention, and the child must have been entrusted to you by the competent authority of the child’s country of origin. This means the authority in your child’s country and the UK must both formally agree to the adoption and officially place your child in your care.
• Recognised Overseas Adoption – Applies if your child was adopted in another country and that adoption is already recognised by UK law, or, if it is not automatically recognised, a High Court judge can still decide to recognise it.
• De Facto Adoption – Applies where there is no formal legal adoption recognised under UK law, but the child has been living with the adoptive parents as part of their family. Both parents must have lived together overseas for at least 18 months and lived with the child for the 12 months immediately before the application.
• Coming to the UK for Adoption – Applies where the child is coming to the UK to be adopted here. The adoption must be in accordance with UK adoption law, and the child will be granted temporary permission for up to 24 months to allow the adoption process to be completed.

To bring your adopted child to the UK, the adoptive parent (known as the sponsor) must fall into one of the following immigration status categories set out in Appendix Adoption:

• A British citizen
• A person who is settled in the UK or has a right to stay without restriction (for example, a person with Indefinite Leave to Remain)
• A person on a route to settlement in the UK (for example, a person on a Skilled Worker visa)

It is important to note that if you have settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), your adopted child may sometimes be able to come the UK under Appendix EU as your family member instead of under Appendix Adoption. In some Hague Convention adoptions, the child becomes British automatically and does not need a visa. If you are unsure which route applies to you, please speak to our immigration lawyers for advice tailored to your situation and that of the child.

What visa should an adopted child apply for to come to the UK?

In most cases, an adopted child must apply for entry clearance under Appendix Adoption of the Immigration Rules. The appropriate route depends on:

• Whether the adoption is legally recognised in the UK
• Whether the child will be adopted in the UK
• The immigration status of the adoptive parent

The visa your adopted child needs will depend on both the type of adoption and the sponsor’s immigration status. Below, we explain which routes apply to each category of adoptive parent.

Adoptive parent is a British citizen

If the adoptive parent is a British citizen, the visa route depends on how the adoption took place:

• Hague Convention Adoption – If the adoption is under the Hague Convention, the child may automatically acquire British citizenship. If so, no visa application is needed. If the child does not automatically acquire citizenship, they can apply for settlement.
• Recognised Overseas Adoption – The child can apply for entry clearance for settlement. Once granted, the child will have Indefinite Leave to Enter the UK.
• De Facto Adoption – The child can apply for settlement, provided that the de facto adoption requirements are met, including that the parents lived together overseas for at least 18 months and with the child for at least 12 months before the application
• Coming to the UK for Adoption – The child can apply for entry clearance for the purpose of being adopted in the UK. This grants temporary permission for up to 24 months. Once the adoption is completed in the UK, further applications can be made.

Adoptive parent is settled or has a right to stay without restriction

If the adoptive parent is settled in the UK (e.g. they hold ILR) or has a right to stay without restriction, the adopted child can apply under the same four routes as above. The key difference is that a Hague Convention adoption will not give the child automatic British citizenship in this case. Instead, the child will need to apply for entry clearance for settlement.

For all four adoption routes, the child will generally be granted settlement (Indefinite Leave to Enter) if both adoptive parents are settled. If only one parent is settled and the other is on a route to settlement, the child may be granted limited leave instead, in line with the parent who has limited leave.

Adoptive parent is on a route to settlement

If the adoptive parent is on a route to settlement in the UK (e.g. if they hold a Skilled Worker visa or a Spouse visa), the adopted child can still apply under Appendix Adoption. The child will usually be granted limited leave rather than settlement, with the duration of leave generally aligned to the adoptive parent’s remaining leave.

Once the adoptive parent obtains settlement, the child can then apply for settlement as a dependant. This means the child’s immigration status will follow the parent’s journey to permanent residence in the UK.

Visa requirements for adopted child

No matter which adoption route you are considering, the adopted child must meet a set of general eligibility requirements, financial requirements and suitability requirements. The main eligibility requirements include:

• The child must be under 18
• The child must not be living an independent life, be married or in a civil partnership
• There must be suitable arrangements for the child’s care and accommodation in the UK
• The decision maker must be satisfied that the adoption is not one of convenience to secure the child’s future in the UK
• There must have been a genuine transfer of parental responsibility from the birth parents (or previous carers) to the adoptive parents
• It must be clear that the adoption is in the child’s best interests and that the child will be treated in the same way as any other child in the family.

There is also a financial requirement. The adoptive parent must be able to support the child in the UK without needing public funds and must meet any financial rules that apply to their route (e.g. the ‘adequate maintenance’ test or the dependent child financial requirement under Appendix FM). In addition, the child must meet the suitability requirements, which include not having a criminal record and not falling foul of the general grounds for refusal under the Immigration Rules.

Even if an adopted child does not meet all of the eligibility requirements under Appendix Adoption, the Home Office must still consider whether refusing the application would breach the child’s right to family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Article 8 cases are assessed on a case-by-case basis, and the threshold for success is high. As such, it is not a guaranteed fallback if the main requirements are not met.

Reference:

GOV.UK: Immigration Rules Appendix Adoption