Is it possible to adopt an adult in Russia?

Some adults need care and maintenance on an equal basis with minors. This can be caused by severe chronic diseases, addictions, mental disorders, age restrictions and other factors. The legislation of the Russian Federation contains provisions on the basis of which it can be concluded whether an adult can be adopted by another adult.

Is it possible to adopt an adult?

Expert opinion

Stanislav Evseev

Lawyer. Experience 12 years. Specialization: civil, family, inheritance law.

In [current_date format='Y'] year in the Russian Federation it is possible to adopt a citizen under the age of 18. From the moment of reaching the age of majority, a person can no longer be adopted. In addition, adoption cannot be canceled after age 18.

Adoption is understood as a form of placement for a minor deprived of the care of his natural parents. Therefore, adoptive parents essentially replace mother and father. Since parental rights and responsibilities last until the child reaches adulthood, adopting an adult does not make sense.

An eighteen-year-old person may also need outside help. For example, due to disability.

Forms of caring for an adult

The essence of the procedure

The direct ban on the adoption of an adult in Russian legislation is due to the essence and purpose of the procedure - a family arrangement of this type is designed to ensure the development of a child in a full-fledged family and create conditions for proper upbringing. It is traditionally believed that an 18-year-old citizen has already outgrown the period of basic formation and is an adult. From a legal point of view, this approach is quite logical. He can theoretically provide for himself and becomes responsible for his actions and actions.

In fact, adult subjects may need a family no less than small children. However, the legislator’s position is based on the aspect that adults can maintain close relationships without registering the status of adoptive parents and children. If we are talking about a material issue, including such privileges as security and the right of inheritance, adults can resolve these points by concluding civil transactions and a will. They are free to express their will and have full civil capacity.

How to adopt?

Adoption in the Russian Federation is possible only by court decision. However, the court does not accept applications for persons who have reached the age of majority.

Moreover, if the court decision is made a few days before the age of majority, but comes into force after the birthday, the document will not be valid.

How to adopt a minor can be found in the article: “How to adopt a child: conditions, procedure, rules.”

Basic moments

Adoption in Russian legal acts refers to the procedure for accepting a child left without parental care into a family for upbringing. When implementing it, adoptive parents and adopted children acquire all the rights and obligations that legal parents and their children have in relation to each other.

The main regulatory act regulating the process is the Family Code of the Russian Federation (Chapter 19). Art. 124 establishes that adoption is carried out only if a number of factors are met:

• A child accepted into a family is a person left completely without parental care.
• The purpose of adoption is to protect the interests of children, not adults. Adoptive parents must provide evidence that they can provide full upbringing and physical and mental development of the child. When carrying out a procedure in relation to children over 14 years of age, the latter’s permission must be sought. If refused, the adoption will not take place.
• Half-siblings must be adopted into the same family.
• Stateless persons and citizens of other states are given the opportunity to adopt Russian citizens only if the children cannot be placed in Russian families.

Expert commentary

Kamensky Yuri

Lawyer

Art. 124 of the RF IC also clearly indicates that only citizens who have not reached the age of majority can be adopted. According to Russian laws, this is 18 years (

Art. 21 Civil Code of the Russian Federation

). Upon reaching this age, a person acquires all the rights and obligations of citizens of the state. Those. According to family law, if necessary, an adult citizen pays maintenance to his parents. And following legal logic, he himself does not need such support. Although in practice it may look different.

In some cases, the court will not provide the opportunity to adopt a minor child. For example, if a citizen, under the age of 18, is employed and has a good income that allows him to live comfortably, it turns out that his legal status is equal to that of an adult citizen, but only on condition that he has received the written approval of the guardianship and trusteeship authorities or official guardians.

Another factor that may interfere with the adoption procedure is entering into an official marriage. Although the RF IC (

Art. 13

) allows the possibility of creating a family only for persons who have reached the age of majority, it also determines exceptions. Thus, in the presence of special circumstances (for example, pregnancy), it is possible to register the creation of a family after the age of 16. Plus, in a number of regions, with the permission of local authorities, Russian citizens are allowed to get married after turning 14 years of age. As soon as such citizens register their marital status with the registry office, they lose the right to be adopted.

The RF IC has a number of requirements that the adoptive parent must meet:

• Be an adult, capable and free of serious illnesses.
• Have your own living space and sufficient material support.
• The applicant must not have had any history of deprivation or restriction of parental rights in relation to any child.
• The applicant must not have been removed from guardianship by a court in the past.
• Have no convictions for serious crimes, etc. (Article 127 of the RF IC).

Establishing paternity

If the opportunity arises to obtain parental rights in relation to an adult citizen, then it is possible to establish paternity. The age of the child in this situation does not matter, but his consent must be obtained.

Important! The method is suitable for blood parents, as well as for citizens who are ready to establish an official relationship on a voluntary basis.

If the issue is resolved in relation to an incapacitated adult, the consent of his guardian will be required.

If the initiator of establishing paternity is a man, then with the consent of the child’s mother, it is possible to contact the civil registry office. Citizens must submit a joint application and pay a state fee.

When establishing paternity of an adult, the possibility of contacting the guardianship department is not provided. In other cases, it is necessary to go to court.

Invalidation of adoption

Conditions and grounds for termination of adoption

The basis for termination of adoption is fictitious adoption based on deliberately false, forged documents. The basis for canceling the adoption of an adult may be the lack of consent of other bodies and persons interested in the adoption.

Who can initiate the cancellation of adoption

The initiator of the cancellation of adoption can be any of the parties, both the guardian and the ward, as well as the guardianship and trusteeship authorities.

Patronage of the elderly

The law also does not provide for the adoption of an old person. The initiator can arrange patronage for an elderly person.

Patronage means the provision of physical assistance and support to an adult capable person who, due to age or health condition, cannot independently provide for his needs.

To apply for patronage, you must contact the social protection department. A person is given the right to provide assistance, but not to represent the interests of an elderly person.

Step-by-step instruction

To adopt a child, a single woman will need to collect a certain package of documents, but it is absolutely no different from the package that a full-fledged pair of parents would have to collect. For both, the package of documents is standard.

It is necessary to understand that the requirements for a single woman in the guardianship authorities and in court will be much more serious and stringent.

Collection of important documents: official document (certificate) from the police department confirming no criminal record; a certificate of real estate that confirms ownership; an extract from the house register with the number of registered people; medical report, which records all health parameters; current certificates of income from a permanent place of work (indicating the position and amount of income); birth certificates of the adoption initiator (single woman) and her children; autobiography of one’s own composition and presentation (the main stages of life are briefly recorded). Similarly, you can find out what information should be in this document by reading the samples. After all the documents have been collected, you need to prepare them.

Preparation of all documents and submission of them to the guardianship authorities (guardianship council) at the place of residence. Next, a special commission must check all submitted documents. Then, within two weeks, the candidate for adoption will be visited by employees of the guardianship department in order to check the living conditions and their suitability for the adoption procedure. If all checks are completed successfully and the documents are in order, then the prospective adoptive parent is entered into the database of successful candidates for adoption.

Additionally, the successful candidate receives a document with permission to carry out the adoption procedure. The adoptive parent must provide information about the desired baby to the data bank (data on age, nationality, external characteristics, etc.) After processing all the information provided, the data bank will select a suitable baby .

The successful candidate is then given a notification with information about the child and his location. If the initiator is satisfied with everything, then it is possible to hold a meeting with the baby. The meeting is held in the presence of witnesses (as a rule, these are employees of the guardianship authority). This is necessary to confirm the fact of a personal meeting in court. If for some reason a suitable child could not be found in the region of residence of the potential adoptive parent, then he can make a request to any region. The bank operator will accept the request and process it.

After the meeting, the adoptive parent is obliged to notify representatives of the guardianship commission of his intention to adopt this particular child. In this case, the data bank operator must also be notified. Next, all documents from the potential adoptive parent and the guardianship commission are submitted to the court, after which a hearing is scheduled. If the court makes a decision in favor of the plaintiff (adoptive parent), then the accompanying documents are drawn up with the court decision in the institution where the baby is located

After completion of the registration, the adoptive parent has the right to take the child with him. Upon completion of all formal details, the parent is given a certificate documenting the fact of adoption. Attention: representatives of the guardianship authorities, the prosecutor's office, the adoptive parent, as well as the child himself, if he is over 14 years old, must be present at the court hearing.

How to properly file an application to the court?

• In the upper right corner of the application, the details of the court (name, address), information about the plaintiff (adoptive parent), as well as information about the interested party (guardianship authorities) are always indicated. According to Articles 269, 270 and 271 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, the claim is filed at the place of residence and registration of the baby.
• The name of the document (application) is indicated in the middle. Next in the line should be a brief text about the plaintiff’s marital status, the composition of his family and general well-being.
• After information about the family, the applicant states his intention (desire) to adopt a specific child and indicates all the information about him (age, gender, full name, date of birth and address).
• If a positive decision on adoption was received from the guardianship council, this must be indicated. If such a document is missing, you must indicate the reasons for its absence.
• Next, you can indicate and list all the courses that the applicant has completed, as well as the time spent in the adoptive parents database.
• Then data is indicated on the financial capabilities to support children and the presence of permanent residence.
• You can supplement the application with other circumstances, such as: a petition to maintain the secrecy of adoption, change of the child’s full name, etc.
• The date and signature are placed at the bottom of the application. In addition, all applications are included.

General concepts

The priority arrangement for minor children left without parents is adoption.

Adoption is a procedure in which a person who is not the biological parent of a child becomes the actual parent of the child and is fully responsible for him, realizing the rights and responsibilities of the adopted child.

An adult is a person who has reached the age of eighteen and is recognized as legally capable, that is, endowed with all the rights and responsibilities of a citizen of the Russian Federation.

The procedure for registering guardianship in Russia

An adult who has serious illnesses that do not allow him to objectively assess the situation and be responsible for the consequences of his own actions may be declared incompetent by the court, fully or partially.

Such people require care and guardianship even more than minors. To organize the life of such a person, guardianship becomes the most suitable form when home conditions are maintained for them, and additional care is provided to them.

In order for an adult to be declared incompetent, it is necessary to submit an application to the court. The claim can be drawn up by: competent adult relatives, guardianship authorities, representatives of a psychiatric institution. The judicial institution can be selected at the citizen’s place of residence, or at the address of the clinic where he is undergoing treatment.

The statement of claim must cover:

• circumstances demonstrating mental disorder;
• factors as a result of which the patient cannot independently manage his actions.

Guardians and trustees acquire the status of legal representatives of those under their care. They are appointed by guardianship and trusteeship authorities. Guardians have the right to act on behalf of their wards. As soon as an adult citizen has lost or become limited in legal capacity, persons claiming to be guardians can be appointed as such upon application within a month.

It should be understood that any legally competent adult can submit an application: an old friend, neighbor or just a stranger, but if there are close relatives among the applicants, they will be given preference.

Those who were once deprived of parental rights will not be able to obtain guardianship; has a criminal record for serious crimes.

Now you should contact the guardianship and trusteeship department at your place of residence. On the spot, the applicant for the role of guardian fills out and submits an application. One statement is not enough. You will also need a whole set of documents:

1. passports of applicants for the role of guardian and ward;
2. SNILS of both sides;
3. a certificate from your place of employment indicating your income for the last year and your position;
4. health certificate of the candidate for guardianship;
5. a certificate of no problems with the law;
6. document on marital status (if there are blood relatives, their consent to register guardianship over the incompetent);
7. act of living conditions of the adoptive parent;
8. autobiography of the applicant for guardianship;
9. certificate of income of the incapacitated person;
10. TIN and health insurance policy adopted with copies;
11. document confirming the adoptee's incapacity;
12. an inventory of the incapacitated person’s property with all papers;
13. bank statements from the ward's accounts.

After their analysis, the guardianship commission will prepare a conclusion. If it is positive, the applicant will be placed in a queue.

With the establishment of guardianship and trusteeship over incapacitated adults, checks will be carried out at the place of residence of the ward. This responsibility is assigned to representatives of the trustee committee who will conduct inspections.

In addition, the guardian must provide reports on the flow of funds of his sponsored person and on the use of his property.