Adoption (Germany)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Adoption (from Latin adoptio ), now called adoption as a child in Germany , is the legal justification of a parent-child relationship between the adoptive and the child regardless of biological descent .

With adopted children may foster children not be confused.

history

The more recent German legislations have mainly retained the provisions of common law, but have adapted them to current social conditions and simplified them to operate.

Adoption instead of a child

The original regulation of the adoption of children instead of in the German Civil Code (BGB) was not aimed at placing underage children, now mostly newborn children, in a family from the point of view of child welfare . Acceptance of adults was the rule. The aim was to acquire an heir to secure their livelihood in old age. In the original BGB (§ 1744 BGB old version) the minimum age of the acceptor was therefore 50 years. It was not until 1961 that it was reduced to 35 with the FamÄndG . Other basic features were: the adoptive parents had to be childless, the adoption came about through a contract , the guardianship court was only required to give consent if the person to be adopted was underage ; the relationships with the previous family remained, no legal relationships arose with the family of the adoptive parents; an inheritance of adopters compared to the adopted child did not exist, and inheritance for the child from the adoptive parents could be excluded by contract. It was therefore an incomplete, “weak” adoption.

With the lowering of the minimum age to 35 years, the FamÄndG 1961 marked the beginning of the change of heart of this legal institution. In 1973, the minimum age was further reduced to 25 years ( § 1743 BGB) and the introduction of a guardianship court replacement of parental adoption consent in the event of a gross violation of parental obligations ( § 1748 BGB). This was, so to speak, a “small” reform of the adoption law.

Reform of adoption law 1976

With the Reform Act of 1976, which was much less controversial than the other changes in family law of these years, major changes were made in terms of content. The Adoption Placement Act was passed.

The new minor adoption is a full adoption, with the decision by the guardianship court , the adopted child gains the full status of a legitimate child in all areas of law. The family ties to the family of origin (restricted in the case of stepchild adoption ) and any claims (with the exception of orphan's pensions ) expire , and integration into the new family is complete; the adopted child is not only related to the adoptive parents, but also to their entire relatives , which also has an impact on the inheritance claims , which also make no distinction between blood relatives and adopted children.

Since then, a foreign minor child automatically receives German citizenship due to the adoption by German parents . In 2004, the adoption of biological children by same-sex partners was introduced. In 2017, same-sex married couples also allowed the adoption of non-biological children . At the beginning of October 2017, the first non-biological child was jointly adopted by a gay couple in Berlin.

German property law

Clearance for adoption

If approval for adoption is already being considered during pregnancy, the adoption agency can, at the request of the mother, ensure that the child is transferred to the family of the adoptive parents immediately after birth and the mother to the general women's ward and not to the maternity ward after delivery is relocated. If the mother becomes unsure of her decision, she has a right to see her child and to take it with her. The final release of the child for adoption is only possible eight weeks after the birth through a declaration of consent to a notary. Once the signed consent has been received by the family court, it is effective and cannot be reversed.

In principle, the consent of both parents is required for an adoption; if the identity of the biological father has not been established, his consent is not required. The biological father can, however, participate in the adoption process if he can credibly prove that he can be considered biologically as the father of the child.

If the adoptive parents withdraw their application, the guardianship court refuses to accept it, or the child is not accepted within three years of the consent becoming effective, the declaration of consent expires.

In 2010, 2184 of 4021 adoptions were made by stepparents, and a further 428 children were brought into the country for adoption. According to this, a maximum of 1,419 children within Germany no longer live with their biological parents after adoption. Between 1994 and 2010, there were 60 to 120 adoptions of children under one year old each year.

Consent Requirement

Parents must agree to the adoption of a child. It can be issued by the parents eight weeks after the birth of the child at the earliest ( Section 1747 BGB). In the event of a gross violation of parental obligations , the family court can replace the lack of consent with a resolution ( Section 1748 BGB). This is the case, for example, if the parent has persistently and grossly violated his duties towards the child or his behavior has shown that he is indifferent to the child, and if the failure to accept the child would be disproportionately disadvantageous for the child. Consent was replaced 248 times in 4021 adoptions in 2010.

If one of the parents is permanently incapable of doing business or has an unknown residence, their parental consent is also dispensable.

The child must also consent to the adoption ( Section 1746 BGB). For children under 14 years of age, this is done by the guardian (in the case of official guardianship by the youth welfare office ) in accordance with Section 1751 of the German Civil Code. A lack of consent from the guardian can also be replaced by the family court. From the age of 14, the child's consent must be given personally.

The declarations of consent as well as the adoption application itself must be certified by a notary .

Adoption Requirements

There are high legal requirements in Germany for the adoption of a child. Critics complain that the majority of the birth parents do not meet these requirements and that the requirements bypass today's reality. Only a tiny minority of potential adoptive parents could meet these requirements, while youth welfare offices and family courts placed far too low demands on the birth parents. This would mean that countless children would grow up in homes or be pushed back and forth between foster and birth parents, although they would be much better off with adoptive parents.

marital status

Adopters can only be married couples or individuals. Since February 2020, unmarried couples can also be adopters of the stepchild adoption.

If a child is taken in by a married couple , adoption is usually only possible jointly. Marriage is not absolutely necessary, but each adoption agency handles it differently. In the case of registered life partners , only a part can adopt as an individual. Since the law introducing the right to marriage for persons of the same sex came into force on October 1, 2017, married, same-sex couples have also been able to jointly adopt non-biological children.

A special case of single adoption is stepchild adoption . In March 2017, the Federal Court of Justice ruled that unmarried couples are not allowed to be jointly adopted. An unmarried widow and her new partner had complained. In May 2019, however, the Federal Constitutional Court overturned the decision of the Federal Court of Justice. The Federal Constitutional Court ruled that the legislature was required by March 31, 2020 to allow unmarried couples to jointly adopt non-biological children. In August 2019, the Ministry of Justice drafted a law on this. On February 13, 2020, stepchild adoption by unmarried couples was made possible by parliament in Germany.

Age

The minimum age is 25 years; if a couple is adopted, the second parent must be at least 21 years old. The Federal Working Group of State Youth Welfare Services recommends an age difference of no more than 40 years between adoptive parents and adoptive child. There is no formal maximum age for adoption either for the parents or for the child; all restrictive decisions can be complained about. According to the opinion of the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs expressed in May 2011, the narrow age limits for adoption should be broader.

(Non-) employment

The question of the employment of the adoptive parents also plays no small role; If children under the age of 10 are to be adopted, the youth welfare offices usually attach great importance to the fact that one of the parents is not or only marginally employed in order to be able to devote himself sufficiently to the new task.

In May 2011, the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs expressed its intention to relax the condition that one of the partners gives up work.

Housing conditions and psychological suitability

The youth welfare office checks whether there is sufficient living conditions as well as the psychological suitability criteria of the adoptive applicants (partnership stability, educational goals, conflict resolution strategies, emotional openness and ability to express themselves).

Certificate of good conduct and health

Adoptive applicants must present a certificate of good conduct from the Federal Office of Justice, whereby only relevant previous convictions (sexual offenses or assault offenses ) constitute an obstacle. In addition, a health certificate is required, which can usually be issued by the family doctor, or a form is handed out that the family doctor completes. It is assumed that the adoptive applicants do not have any life-shortening, mental or addictive illnesses.

Religious affiliation

Other questions, such as religious affiliation, have recently no longer played a role in the question of suitability for adoption.

Adoption mediation as a task in the best interests of the child

§ 2 Adoptionsvermittlungsgesetz (Adoption Mediation Act) transfers thetask of adoptionmediation to the youth welfare offices . The preparatory procedure for finding suitable parents for children looking for adoptive parentsis described in detailin Section 7 AdVermiG. Section 1744 of the German Civil Code (BGB) provides for an appropriate period of "adoption care" (usually 1 year), during which the child should acclimatise to the new family, accompanied by the youth welfare office , and the child welfare officeshould be assessedby the youth welfare officebeforethe family court . The aim of the work of the youth welfare office according to the new concept is to check whether the adoptive parents will be able to emotionally accept the child as their own andofferhim the best possible socialization conditions, which is particularly important for older children and existing socialization damage Meaning is.

In the case of older children in particular, “adoptive care” is preceded by “foster care with the aim of adoption”. Only with the consent of the birth parents or the judicial replacement of this consent does long-term care become adoption care.

The reasons why parents put their biological children up for adoption have so far been little explored. According to available empirical studies (from the years 1978 and 1993) there are primarily economic (insufficient income for another, perhaps not planned child) and personal (fear of being left alone by the partner or parents after the birth) motives ( Hoksbergen in: Paulitz, p. 49 ff.).

An important issue is the diet of adopted infants. For a woman who is a newborn or infant adopted, which has already been breastfed, it is possible to the baby breastfeeding , since it is possible even in women who have never been pregnant, the milk production through induced lactation get going .

Forms of Adoption

Minor adoption

Legally there is only the so-called incognito adoption for minors. The legislature does not provide for an opening of the incognito, and therefore there is no legal claim to it.

Incognito adoption

Incognito means the one-sided protection of the data of the adoptive family (name and address) against access by third parties. This is to ensure that the child's family of origin in particular cannot interfere with the upbringing and disrupt the child's relationship with the adoptive parents. The mediation file is to be kept by the mediating agency for 60 years. Adoptive parents and adoptees (under 16 years of age only with the consent of their adoptive parents) can view these placement files with professional support. Adopted children from the age of 16 also have the right to inspect the birth entry at the registry office , from which the data of the biological mother and, in some cases, the biological father are derived ( Section 63 (1) of the Civil Status Act ).

From the point of view of most adoption brokers and the professionals who work with adoptees, the adoptive parents' openness to the fact that their child has been adopted is very important for the child's self-confidence development and is a matter of course today. Educating the child has nothing to do with incognito adoption.

Adopted children and young people are often not or only insufficiently informed about their origin and their birth parents. As a result, they often develop distrust and insecurity, experience grief and anger, and their identity development is disturbed. The children have fantasies about their birth parents and often show a “negative identification” with them. Many adoptees try in adulthood to come into contact with their birth parents, unknown to them. In a guided biography study , adoptive children receive age-appropriate and respectful information about their birth parents. You can "get to know yourself better, better integrate your unusual life story into your life and develop joy in your future." Biography work is still in its infancy in the German-speaking countries (see life review therapy # Biography work with adopted and foster children ).

Semi-open adoption

With the so-called semi-open adoption, contact between birth parents and child can be maintained by means of letters and photos via the youth welfare office or the agency. Surrendering parents and adoptive parents can also get to know each other. This usually takes place in a neutral place, such as the adoption office or the youth welfare office.

Open adoption

In the case of open adoptions , there is sometimes already, often only after the birth of the child, a conversation between the giving and the receiving parents. Depending on how this first contact goes, this sometimes results in permanent meetings between the different parents and the child. For the biological parents, contact with the child is an opportunity to get their own picture of the child's further development. For the adoptive parents, personal contact with the birth parents is an opportunity to get a realistic picture of the personality of the transferring parents and to pass this picture on to the child if the contacts between the parents do not last until the child comes to an opinion of his own can educate his or her parents of origin. The effects of the various forms of open adoption on the children have not yet been investigated.

Kinship adoptions

Stepchild adoption

It is the most common type of adoption. Here, the adopter is a parent of the adoptee married . After consent to the adoption by the other birth parent, the stepparent's application for adoption of the stepchild and the consent of the parent who is married or partnered with the applicant to the notary , the care court will pronounce the adoption if the youth welfare office does not raise any objections and the family judge in the personal hearing of the applicant and the child did not raise concerns about the adoption. From the age of 14, the child's consent to the notary is also required. If the child is not a German citizen, consent may be required from the age of 10 or 12. If there are other children of the stepparent, they will be asked about adoption. Purely inheritance reasons cannot be successfully brought forward against an adoption. What is special about the stepchild adoption is that - unlike other adoptions - the legal descent relationship to the parent married or partnered with the adopting parent is maintained and only the descent relationship to the other biological parent is ended. According to a decision by the Federal Constitutional Court in 2019, however, this must also apply if the stepchild is to be adopted in the context of an illegitimate cohabitation. As a result, the child then becomes a common child of the spouses or life partners , which is precisely the aim of this type of adoption.

If the other birth parent does not consent to the stepchild adoption, their consent can in certain cases be replaced by the care court under strict conditions. Since a decision by the Federal Court of Justice in 2005, such an adoption can only take place “if the adoption would offer such a significant advantage for the child that a parent who cares for his child would not insist on maintaining the relationship”. The goal of thwarting the right of access of a birth parent through adoption was expressly declared to be inadequate.

Facilitated adoption of relatives

In the event that the parents of one or more minor children die, the requirements for the adopting relative are usually reduced for reasons of child welfare (although there is no legal basis for this). In particular, age limits are to a certain extent ignored in order to allow the children to be adopted by their trusted grandparents or by siblings who are already of legal age. The other requirements are also checked less strictly.

Adult adoption

The adoption of adults by adults ( § 1767 BGB) is usually not a full adoption , in particular the ties to the biological family do not apply ( § 1770 BGB). This prevents, for example, the abandonment of maintenance obligations .

Adult adoption under the law of minors

In Germany there is the special form of adult adoption to minors law ( § 1772 ) - this is usually as a motive of the request on that one by a foster relationship grown parental or family relationship formalized by adoption and a biological relationship to be treated equally if, for example, the birth parents prevented the child from wanting to join his social family until he came of age. In this case, both sides acquire the same rights and obligations ( inheritance law , supply obligations ) that arise from a physical relationship. The adoptees have to take the name of the adopting person (s) as the maiden name, the "real" maiden name no longer appears in the documents of the adoptee. However, upon request, the previous surname of the adopted person can be placed in front of or added to the new maiden name. However, the change of the maiden name in the case of married or partnered adoptees does not extend to a jointly used marriage or civil partnership name, unless the partner agrees to the name change by declaring to the family court. As a result of this form of adoption, all rights and obligations of the adoptive person towards his biological family expire.

International adoption

On September 27, 2001, the German Federal Council approved the law regulating legal questions in the field of international adoption and the further development of adoption placement law. The Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in the Field of International Adoption of May 29, 1993 (“Hague Adoption Convention”) was thus ratified and implemented for Germany . The Federal Republic of Germany became a signatory state on March 1, 2002.

The law regulating legal issues in the field of international adoption and the further development of adoption placement law implemented the convention in national law and came into force on January 1, 2002. It essentially consists of three sub-laws, which also contain regulations for national adoptions and international adoptions from non-contracting states:

International adoption is the adoption of a child from abroad mostly through foreign organizations, associations or recognized private placement agencies. After the legal changes in the course of the ratification of the Hague Minors Protection Agreement by the Federal Republic of Germany, the participation of an international adoption agency approved in Germany in the procedure is mandatory. In practice, however, the authorities usually have no control over so-called self-acquisition adoptions. Information about officially approved foreign adoption agencies can be obtained from the central agencies of the respective state youth welfare offices.

In the case of private or self-procurement adoption, the interested parties usually already have private contacts in a certain country (lawyers or authorities). The adoption will then be carried out abroad and must be recognized by the local youth welfare office after returning home. Such private adoptions are possible in Russia or the United States, for example. In 2006, 49 percent of international adoptions were carried out privately.

Terre des hommes takes a critical view of the adoption of children from third world countries, both from a legal point of view (Despite the new agreements, there is a risk of child trafficking . Whether consent to the adoption was actually given voluntarily, whether the child is actually abandoned, is assumed -Procedures often cannot be clarified) such as for moral reasons (the financial outlay for a single adoption is sufficient to support families in such a way that they can provide for the nutrition and education of several children) .

As a rule, however, adoption abroad is the easiest way for couples who cannot have children biologically to fulfill their wish to have children. A procedure takes 2–5 years from the establishment of contact with a foreign exchange agency to the judicial conclusion and is not only a special burden because of the duration.

Statistics for Germany

Adoptions in Germany since 1991

A total of 3888 (2012: 3886; 2011: 4060; 2010: 4021) minors were adopted in Germany in 2017 . This means that the number has fallen slightly after having increased from 2014 to 2016. 61% of the cases took place in the so-called step-parent adoption by the new partner of a biological parent, another 4% by relatives. 41% of the adoptees were under three years old, 25% between three and eleven and 21% between twelve and eighteen years old; 13% did not have German citizenship .

In 2007, 55% of adopted minors were adopted as children by a step-parent or relative ; 45% of the adoptees were under six years old, 30% were between six and eleven years and 25% were twelve years or older; 32% did not have German citizenship. In 2008, 2950 domestic children and 1137 foreign children were adopted. In 2009, in 52 percent of the cases, the children were adopted by a new partner of the birth parent in a so-called step-parent adoption. 185 children were adopted by relatives, 1692 by unrelated persons. 30 percent of the adopted children were younger than three years. In 2012, 57% of adoptions were by step parents. 34% of the adoptees were under three years old. From 1994 to 2009 the number of adoptions had decreased continuously, by a total of 45%. In 2014, 3,805 children and young people were adopted, 2,190 (57.6%) of them by their step-parents. 38.1% of all adoptees were under three years old. There were 622 adoptions abroad.

At the end of 2007, 886 children and young people were earmarked for adoption. In contrast, the adoption agencies had a total of 8,914 adoption applications.

The decline in adoptions has various causes.

On the output side:

  • Socially: The stigmatization of single mothers and children born out of wedlock, which was common in the past , has declined.
  • Economic: Various social policy measures improve the economic situation of young mothers.
  • Medical: Improved prenatal diagnostics reduce the number of handicapped births.
  • Political: The number of adoptions abroad is decreasing due to the changed political framework conditions in different countries of origin (e.g. Ethiopia ).

On the accepting side:

  • Medical: Improved reproductive medicine enables more childless couples to fulfill their desire to have children without adoption.

International private law

For adoption, the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Cooperation in the Field of International Adoption has priority. In autonomous law, the following applies: If an individual adopts a person as a child , according to Art. 22 EGBGB, this person is subject to his / her home law at the time of adoption; for spouses, the marriage statute of Art. 14 EGBGB applies. Regardless of the wording of the law ("child"), these rules also apply to adult adoption. The scope of application includes the admissibility, requirements and effects of the adoption.

Whether the inheritance law of the adopted child is subject to the inheritance statute or the adoption statute has long been a controversial question of qualification . Article 22, Paragraph 2 of the EGBGB has now decided that the effects of adoption on family relationships are subject to the adoption statute, and the nature and extent of the inheritance law to the inheritance statute.

literature

  • Rolf P. Bach, Harald Paulitz (Ed.): Adoption: Positions, Impulses, Perspektiven - a practical handbook. Beck Verlag, Munich 2006, ISBN 3-406-55218-8 .
  • Momo Evers, Ellen-Verena Friedemann, Sabine Pause: Handbook Adoption: the guide to a happy family . With the contribution. Permanent maintenance by Sabine Pause, Südwestverlag, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-517-08275-2 .
  • Gabriele Müller, Robert Sieghörtner, Nicole Emmerling de Oliveira: Adoption Law in Practice - Including Foreign Relations. 2nd edition, Gieseking, Bielefeld 2011, ISBN 978-3-7694-1082-2 .
  • Christoph Neukirchen: The legal historical development of adoption. Lang, Frankfurt am Main 2005, ISBN 3-631-54130-9 .
  • Monika Nienstedt, Arnim Westermann: Foster children and their development opportunities after early traumatic experiences. With a foreword by Arno Grün, Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart 2007, 2nd edition 2008, ISBN 978-3-608-96007-5 .
  • Barbara Gillig-Riedle, Herbert Riedle, Brigitte Riedle: Adoption: everything you need to know . TiVan-Verlag, Würzburg 2005, ISBN 978-3-9808660-1-9 .
  • Herbert Riedle, Barbara Gillig-Riedle: Adoption Guide: Ways, Procedures, Chances . Tivan Verlag, Würzburg 2010, ISBN 978-3-9808660-6-4 .
  • Stefanie Sauer: Bicultural adoptive families in Germany. Challenges for children, parents and professionals . Budrich, Opladen / Berlin / Toronto 2019, ISBN 978-3-8474-2235-8 .
  • Michael Wuppermann: Adoption: a manual for practice; Adoption preparation and adoptions at home and abroad. Bundesanzeiger-Verlag, Cologne 2006, ISBN 978-3-89817-497-8 .
  • A commentary on the adoption mediation law (by Oberloskamp) with an extract of the recommendations of the state youth welfare offices for adoption mediation can be found at: Wiesner: Commentary on SGB VIII. Munich, 3rd edition 2006, ISBN 3-406-51969-5 in the appendix.

Web links

Wiktionary: Adoption  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Spiegel.de: Gay couple adopts a child
  2. ^ State of Baden-Württemberg: Giving up a child for adoption. Retrieved April 20, 2018 .
  3. ↑ a b Adoption as an alternative. In: osnabrueck.de. Retrieved March 3, 2012 .
  4. ↑ a b Statistics of child and youth welfare - adoptions. (PDF; 188 kB) Federal Statistical Office Wiesbaden, 2011, archived from the original on November 14, 2011 ; accessed on May 13, 2015 .
  5. ↑ Giving up a child for adoption. In: sachsen.de. Retrieved March 3, 2012 .
  6. ↑ Michael Tsokos , Saskia Guddat: Germany abuses its children . Droemer, Munich 2014, ISBN 978-3-426-27616-7 , pp. 199, 200, 203, 204 .
  7. ^ Text of the law introducing the right to marry for persons of the same sex
  8. ↑ Sueddeutsche.de: Ehe für alle, That changes for homosexual couples
  9. ^ Faz.net : Only married people are allowed to adopt stepchildren
  10. ↑ Sueddeutsche.de: Unmarried couples are also allowed to adopt stepchildren , accessed on August 14, 2019
  11. ↑ NRZ.de: Stepchild adoption also possible for unmarried people in the future
  12. ↑ Anne Hesse in conversation with Nicole Dittmer: Adoption of stepchildren: After four years, unmarried couples are also allowed. In: Deutschlandfunk Kultur . February 13, 2020, accessed on February 14, 2020.
    Announcement: Stepchild option possible in future without marriage certificate. In: Zeit.de. February 13, 2020, accessed February 14, 2020.
  13. ↑ a b Family Policy: Lindner provokes Schröder , Focus, May 15, 2011
  14. ^ E. Breitinger: Familiar foreignness. Adopted tell. Ch. Links, Berlin, 2011.
  15. ^ I. Wiemann: Biography work with adopted and foster children. In: C. Hölzle, I. Jansen (Ed.): Resource-oriented biography work. Basics - target groups - creative methods. VS Verlag, Wiesbaden, 2nd edition 2011, pp. 108–122.
  16. ^ 1 Senate Federal Constitutional Court: Federal Constitutional Court - Decisions - Complete exclusion of stepchild adoption in illegitimate families is unconstitutional. March 26, 2019, accessed on May 17, 2019 (for more information see http://www.juraexamen.info/bverfg-verfassungswidrigkeit-des-vollstaendigen-ausschlusses-der-stiefkindadoption-in-nichtehelichen-familien/ ).
  17. ^ Federal Constitutional Court on the constitutionality of adoptions in civil partnerships
  18. ↑ On the requirements and limits of adoption even against the will of the parents, legal tip from lawyer Gregor Völtz at Rechtstipps.net  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.rechtstipps.net  
  19. ↑ n-tv.de: There is no such thing as complete security
  20. ↑ http://www.taz.de/pt/2006/11/02/a0184.1/text
  21. ↑ Süddeutsche: Boundless desire for children
  22. ^ "Terre des hommes" Germany on adoptions abroad ( Memento from November 3, 2004 in the Internet Archive )
  23. ↑ Statistics of child and youth welfare. (PDF; 428 KB) Adoptions. In: know.use. Federal Statistical Office, September 26, 2018, p. 5 .;
  24. ↑ Number of adoptions declining again in 2012 (press release by the Federal Statistical Office)
  25. ↑ Number of adoptions in 2011 almost stable (press release by the Federal Statistical Office). Retrieved April 20, 2018 .
  26. ↑ Adoptions, time series. Retrieved June 29, 2019 .
  27. ↑ FOCUS Online: My son, the psychopath. In: Focus magazine. March 15, 2010 : "In 2008, 1137 adopted children from abroad came to Germany.";
  28. ↑ The number of adoptions in 2009 again fell significantly. In: www.presseportal.de. Federal Statistical Office Germany, August 4, 2010, accessed on May 13, 2015 .
  29. ↑ Statistics of child and youth welfare, page 5. (PDF) In: www.destatis.de. Federal Statistical Office Wiesbaden, September 29, 2015, accessed on June 30, 2016 .
  30. ^ Adoption figures from the German Federal Statistical Office
  31. ↑ Ethiopia no longer allows adoptions by foreigners. In: www.spiegel.de. Spiegel, January 10, 2018, accessed September 7, 2018 .