Have any of you seen the Playstation commercial (during football games) where a man spouts out "You're adopted!" as an insult to the person playing against, to throw them off their game? If you can spare a minute, email Playstation’s PR division and let them know what you think of it.

Unfortunately as big sports fans in our home, our 16 year old daughter saw it and commented very unfavorably to her adopted status in this poor advertisement. Why in these days of social tolerance is it ok to poke fun at adoptees by making them seem less on the social hierchy?  Shame on you Sony Playstation!! 

They show a woman being good at something counter-stereotypical: sports and video games.  On the less than pleasant note, the family does all they can to distract her from winning the game, including a man obviously meant to be playing the role of her father, growling at her:

After several months of waiting, families in the Kazakhstan Adoption Program and those still considering Kazakhstan Adoptions will be pleased to know that information has been officially released.

LMI understands there are also some key legislation pieces that need to be voted on and put into place as well before adoptions can commence.  All in all we feel this is great news!

The Dept of State, Office of Children's Issues has issued the below notice regarding adoptions from Kazakhstan. This notice can also be viewed on their website.

Kazakhstan will become a party to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Convention) on November 1, 2010.

Government of Kazakhstan stated it will not accept any new intercountry adoption dossiers until it completes adoption reforms, which is expected to be March 2011, at the earliest.

Processing of Convention adoptions from Kazakhstan

Until the Government of Kazakhstan becomes a party to the Convention, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will not process a Form I-800A (Application for Determination of Suitability to Adopt a Child from a Convention Country), that indicates an intention to adopt a child from Kazakhstan. For this reason, prospective adoptive parents should not attempt to initiate any new adoptions in Kazakhstan at this time. On or after November 1, 2010, a U.S. citizen seeking to complete a Convention adoption of a child habitually resident in Kazakhstan may file a Form I-800A as specified in the Form I-800A instructions.

Prospective adoptive parents and adoption service providers should be aware that the Government of Kazakhstan continues to revise its intercountry adoption regulations, including those that will establish the number of and requirements for foreign adoption service providers. The Government of Kazakhstan stated it will not accept any new intercountry adoption dossiers until the adoption reforms are complete and its intercountry adoption process meets Convention standards. The Government estimates these reforms will be in place and that new intercountry adoptions may resume in March 2011. Prospective adoptive parents are warned not to enter into any agreement, implied or stated, regarding the prospective adoption of a child in Kazakhstan until such a time as the Government of Kazakhstan establishes the requirements and regulations governing the intercountry adoption of its citizens. The United States Central Authority cautions adoption service providers that they should not offer or appear to offer adoption services in Kazakhstan (other than for those transition cases still being processed under the former regulations) until the Government of Kazakhstan authorizes specific adoption service providers

Transition (orphan) cases

Prospective adoptive parents who may already have filed a Form I-600 or Form I-600A should also be aware of the Government of Kazakhstan’s position on “transition” cases. The Government of Kazakhstan announced that cases will qualify as transition only if the Kazakhstani Embassy or Consulate General sent the dossier to the Kazakhstan Ministry of Foreign Affairs on or before May 25, 2010. These transition cases will be processed under the former procedures. Hague implementing measures will not affect the processing of these adoptions. Thus, prospective adoptive parents who filed a Form I-600A or Form I-600 before November 1, 2010, may need to file a Form I-800A, if the dossier was not sent by May 25, 2010.

Information regarding adoption requirements and procedures in Kazakhstan will be posted as soon as it is made available.

Look for Little Miracles at the Marathon for Adoption this Saturday in New Braunfels, TX! Employees, families and friends of LMI will be running for a great cause. Stop by the main food tent--that's where I (Anne), the non-runner, will be working.

Effective November 23, 2010, USCIS will increase its fees for all immigration filings. The fees for the I-600a/I-600 and I-800a/I-800 will increase to $720 (currently $670); Biometrics (fingerprinting) will increase to $85 (currently $80). For detailed information regarding the increase, please visit the USCIS website by clicking here .

Visa Services

Immigrant Visas

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico City will begin processing immigrant visas in the F4 and adoption categories on October 1, 2010. F4 beneficiaries are the brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens who have filed immigrant visa petitions on their behalf. The Department of State has only authorized the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City to process visas in the F4 and adoption categories. All other immigrant visa categories will continue to be processed at our state-of-the-art facility in Ciudad Juarez.

Applicants who will have their interviews in Mexico City will be contacted directly by the Department of State’s National Visa Center and given instructions on requirements they must fulfill before their immigrant visa interview. These applicants will be able to complete their required medical exams in Mexico City. Please see the medical exam information page for information on how to set up an appointment. Information on what to expect on the day of your interview is available on our applicant instruction page.

Applicants with an Existing Application in Ciudad Juarez

Applicants who have already had interviews in the F4 and adoption categories or who have upcoming appointments in Ciudad Juarez will have their cases completed by the Consulate in Ciudad Juarez. The Embassy will not be taking over any of these cases. If you have questions about the status of a case already under way in Ciudad Juarez, please contact the call center listed on the contact information page.

Guatemala Pilot Program

October 5, 2010

On October 5, 2010, the United States withdrew its letter of interest in participating in a pilot program to resume processing of intercountry adoption placements for a limited number of older children, groups of siblings, and children with special needs. The letter of interest had been previously submitted to the Guatemalan Central Authority for Adoptions, Consejo Nacional de Adopciones (CNA), in response to its November 2009 announcement of this limited pilot program.

The U.S. decision to withdraw its letter of interest is based on concerns that adoptions under the pilot program would not meet the requirements of the Hague Intercountry Adoption Convention. Specifically, the United States believes that more safeguards for children should be in place before the CNA could start processing new intercountry adoptions. In addition, the Guatemalan Government has not yet provided specific details for how adoption cases under the pilot program would be processed under Guatemala’s new adoption law.

The United States remains open to resumption of intercountry adoption placements from Guatemala, but will consider such a resumption only when it is confident that a Hague-compliant system is in place, including strong safeguards against abuses and resolution of the issues that led to corrupt and fraudulent practices prior to the 2007 halt in new adoptions.

It is our hope that the U.S. withdrawal from consideration for the pilot adoption program will allow CNA to focus its attention on resolving all pending transition cases.

VIEW- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: U.S. Withdrawal of Interest in Participating in Guatemala’s Pilot Adoption Program