Report: Thailand remains a popular choice for Finnish families looking to adopt

Figures from Statistic Finland show that the pandemic did not affect international adoption in Finland in 2020 and 82 children born abroad were adopted last year which is an increase of 3 children compared to the year before.

Out of the 82 children, Thailand remains a popular choice for Finnish families looking to adopt and a total of 23 children from Thailand were adopted in 2020. 12 Russian children and 11 children born in the Philippines were also amongst the 82 children adopted in Finland last year. Thailand has also been the most common adoption country in previous years. The number of children adopted from Russia increased significantly from previous years.

Domestic adoptions, on the other hand, declined steadily in 2020. A total of 211 children born in Finland were adopted last year which is 80 fewer than in 2019. According to Laura Lipasti, chief actuary at Statistics Finland, this is partly explained by the new Maternity Act which makes it possible to recognize two mothers for a child born through assisted reproduction even before the child is born and this has reduced the need for adoptions within families.

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