Update on Ethiopia-Australia Intercountry Adoption Program –New Fee Structure and Requirement to Attend Court Hearing – 21 May 2
Update on Ethiopia-Australia Intercountry Adoption Program –New Fee Structure and Requirement to Attend Court Hearing – 21 May 2010
New fee structure
The new fee structure for the Ethiopia program has now been finalised. All files with activity from 6 April 2010 will attract a fee of $9,500USD per application. This includes files already in Ethiopia and files yet to be sent.
This amount will be payable in three instalments–$5,300USD at the time the file is sent, $3,900USD at the time an allocation is accepted and a $300USD in-kind donation to Koala House at the time the child is collected. A summary of the fees is outlined in the below table.
The increase of fees will include sufficient funding for the Australian program administration. A new program fee of $5,400USD will include court processing fees, medical and immigration fees, document verification services, the Australian representatives’ salary, staff salaries and running costs of the program office and Koala House.
It also includes a foster care fee of $1,500USD which will be payable to the orphanage (through the program) for the costs of caring for the adopted child (food, formula, clothes etc) as well as the ongoing costs of the orphanage, including children who may not be adopted.
A development assistance fee of $2,300USD will also be included in the new fee structure. This amount will be required at the time the file is sent and will be payable directly to an NGO (to be determined) undertaking development assistance on behalf of the Australian program.
Families will also be asked to purchase certain products to the value of $300USD which are difficult to obtain in Ethiopia, such as lactose free formula or nappies, at the time of travel. The in-kind donation will be given to Koala House for the continued care of the children. This amount has been built into the fees and will mean the program no longer needs to rely on family support groups to make such contributions.
Summary of new fee structure for Ethiopia program
Amount
Time of payment
$3,000 Program administrative fee (to program)
$2,300 Development assistance fee (to NGO)
TOTAL: $5,300USD
At the time the file is sent
$2,400 program fee (to program)
$1,500 foster care fee (to program)
TOTAL $3,900
At time allocation is accepted
In-kind donation to Koala House (formula, clothes, nappies etc)
TOTAL $300
At the time of travel to Ethiopia
Families with files already in Ethiopia will be required to pay the difference between the amount already paid and the new fee amount, at the time an allocation is accepted.
If siblings are adopted, the foster care fee will need to be paid twice as it reflects the costs of caring for multiple children. However, the program administration costs and development assistance fee will only be paid once.
If you have any further questions, please contact your State or Territory Central Authority.
New requirement to attend court hearings
From 9 May 2010, the Federal First Instance Court will require parents to physically attend the court hearing for the issuing of the adoption order in Ethiopia. The Court considers this to be in the best interests of the child.
This differs significantly from previous practice where parents only travelled after the final court order was made and immigration processes were completed.
It is anticipated that a court date will be set approximately one month before the hearing. Parents will be required to attend the hearing and then remain in Ethiopia while the immigration processes are completed (ie the issuing of the birth certificate, passport and visa). This process will take approximately four to six weeks.
It will be appropriate for families to take custody of the child once the final adoption order is obtained from the court.
The Attorney-General’s Department, State and Territory Central Authorities and the Australian African Children’s Aid and Support Association will work together to develop an information package including recommended hotels, drivers, restaurants etc, to assist families during their stay in Ethiopia.
The Department encourages families to use their time in Ethiopia to further their understanding of the country and culture of their child’s place of birth.