Federal Minister of Justice Dr. Marco Buschmann today published two key issues papers on the modernization of family law: a key issues paper on the reform of child custody law with proposals for new rules in custody, visitation and adoption law and a key issues paper on the reform of parentage law.

Source: BMJ

In particular, children in separated families, patchwork and rainbow families as well as non-marital partnerships should benefit from the proposed new regulations.

Federal Justice Minister Dr. Marco Buschmann:

“We need a boost to modernization in Germany - also in family law. Many children today grow up in separated families, in patchwork and rainbow families or with parents who are not married to each other. Our family law lags behind this reality. Parents and children pay the price: family law makes life unnecessarily difficult for many people.

Denmark's only adoption agency, Danish international Adoption, is now turning the key. Document inspection reveals double work and double pay for an employee in South Africa

Danish International Adoption, also called DIA, is from today the past as Denmark's only adoption agency. In a press release, the adoption agency writes that at an extraordinary board meeting they have decided to close and switch off.  

"It is a difficult decision for the DIA board to make. But we see no other way out. The area of ​​international adoption can no longer, under the current conditions in Denmark, be run by an NGO like ours", the press release states, among other things. 

The decision has come after the Danish Appeals Board informed DIA on Friday that they would recommend to the Minister of Social Affairs to stop the mediation from DIA's largest mediation country, South Africa. Two days later, the Appeals Board then announced that they would also suspend all adoptions from five other countries for a period. 

The Danish Appeals Board has for some time been concerned about South Africa in particular. Danwatch has obtained access to the correspondence between the Danish Appeals Agency and DIA, which shows that for more than a year the agency has been asking critical questions about a problematic employment relationship and opaque bookkeeping in the country.

Minister of Social Affairs and Housing Pernille Rosenkrantz-Theil (S) expresses great understanding for the difficult situation in which the 36 families who are currently waiting to adopt are in

Earlier in the day, Denmark's only mediator of international adoptions, Danish International Adoption (DIA), announced that they are stopping their work.

It was decided at an extraordinary board meeting in DIA and takes place after the organization has been hit by a number of sanctions from both the Danish Appeals Agency and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Housing and the Elderly, which is responsible for supervising the adoption agency.

And the latter ministry makes no secret of the fact that this is a serious situation in a press release on Tuesday afternoon.

'It is the most serious crisis in the area of ​​adoption in the past ten years,' they write.

ARC Adoption hit the milestone in December 2023.

A North East adoption agency is celebrating the momentous achievement of finding loving homes for over 300 children.

ARC Adoption North, which supports and prepares people to become approved adopted parents, achieved the milestone in December 2023.

Carly and Ashleigh, a North East based couple and now new parents, registered to start the adoption process with ARC Adoption in early 2023. After completing the preparation training and assessment process they were approved to adopt in August, before being matched with a gorgeous little boy who joined them just before Christmas.

“After going through many options to have a family together, adoption felt like it was the right thing for us and for our family," the couple said. "When thinking about the love and stability we had to give to a child, it was an easy choice to help a child in need and choose adoption.

Denmark's only mediator of international adoptions, Danish International Adoption, stops its work.

Danish International Adoption (DIA), which as the only organization in Denmark mediates international adoptions, has decided on Tuesday to stop mediating adoptions from abroad to Denmark.

This means that in practice it is no longer possible to adopt from abroad.

The decision was taken by DIA's board of directors after the Ministry of Social Affairs, Housing and the Elderly notified the organization that the last five countries from which DIA mediates adoptions will be suspended for a period of time.

Below you can learn more about how adoptions from abroad work:

Danish International Adoption (DIA), which as the only organization in Denmark mediates international adoptions, has decided on Tuesday to stop mediating adoptions from abroad to Denmark.

This means that in practice it is no longer possible to adopt from abroad.

The decision was made by DIA's board after the Ministry of Social Affairs, Housing and the Elderly notified the organization that the last five countries from which DIA mediates adoptions will be suspended for a period of time.

Below you can learn more about how adoptions from abroad work:

* What is DIA?

DIA is initiating a controlled winding down of its work as a mediator of international adoptions. DIA's board decided this at an extraordinary board meeting based on an assessment of the current framework for finances and supervision as well as a number of new sanctions from the Danish Appeals Agency and the Ministry of Social Affairs.

The Danish Appeals Board supervises DIA and approves all adoptions to Denmark. It is now up to the agency to organize the further process in the area of ​​adoption - a process that is described in advance in a contingency plan.

As part of the plan, DIA can assist the Danish Appeals Agency during a transition period to ensure that existing knowledge about adoption and archives with information about the adoptee's identity are not lost.

"It is a difficult decision for the board of DIA to make. But we see no other way out. The area of ​​international adoption can no longer, under the current conditions in Denmark, be run by an NGO like ours. We hope that the transition in the long term will create greater clarity about roles and responsibilities for the benefit of children who do not have the opportunity to grow up in their biological family or their home country, as well as clarity for, in the words of the Prime Minister in the New Year's speech, future mothers and fathers, families in all colors of the rainbow , which carries around a homeless love," says deputy chairman Anne Friis from DIA's board.

On Friday, the Danish Appeals Board informed DIA that the agency is recommending to the Minister of Social Affairs to stop mediation from DIA's largest mediation country, South Africa, after more than 20 years of cooperation. Yesterday, Monday, the Ministry of Social Affairs' department announced that DIA's five other country agreements will be suspended for a period. There are currently 36 applicants (couples/singles) on the waiting list in six countries.

The Minister of Social Affairs and Housing has agreed to suspend the adoption mediating organization DIA's work in mediating international adoptions with all countries.

In May, the Minister of Social Affairs and Housing revoked the adoption mediating organization Danish International Adoption's (DIA) permission to cooperate with Madagascar. In December 2023, the Danish Appeals Board suspended DIA's cooperation with South Africa. On 12 January 2024, the Danish Appeals Board notified DIA that it will recommend to the Minister of Social Affairs and Housing that the cooperation with South Africa be definitively stopped. On the basis of a briefing from the Danish Appeals Board, the ministry has recommended to the Minister of Social Affairs and Housing that mediation work with all countries be suspended, which the Minister has  accepted. The decision has been notified to DIA.

Against this background, DIA's board has initiated a controlled winding down of its work as a mediator of international adoptions.  

It is the most serious crisis in the area of ​​adoption in the past 10 years. It happens on the same day that Norway has decided to close international adoption. Although the background is different, the development bears witness to an area which over a number of years has proved difficult to handle with a view to the security of the background for the adoptions.

Minister of Social Affairs and Housing Pernille Rosenkrantz-Theil says:

Denmark's only mediator of international adoptions stops its work following sanctions from the Danish Appeals Board.

It has been decided at an extraordinary board meeting in DIA, after it has been hit by a number of sanctions from the Danish Appeals Agency and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Housing and the Elderly.

DIA states this in a press release on Tuesday.

The agency and the ministry supervise the adoption agency.

- It was a difficult decision for the board of DIA to make. But we see no other way out, says Anne Friis, who is deputy chairman of the bureau's board, in the announcement.

If Bufdir gets their way, no children will be adopted from abroad to Norway in the next two years. But the Minister for Children wants more information before she decides.