Sri Lanka is a beautiful island in the Indian ocean, with a rich history that has strong influences from Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam. One of Sri Lanka’s incredible attributes is its wide-ranging diversity. Sri Lanka is home to several ethnic groups, each with its own cultural heritage. The Sinhalese, Tamil, and Muslim make up most of the population, with the Sinhalese accounting for the largest share. Both the Sinhalese and Tamil populations speak their own languages, Sinhala and Tamil respectively. More than 85% of the population is literate, ranking Sri Lanka as one of the highest literacy rates in developing nations.  

The history of adoption in Sri Lanka had a difficult start. After gaining independence in 1948, the country struggled to maintain stability, and a civil war waged during the 1970s and 1980s. During this time, adoption in Sri Lanka was not well regulated and thousands of children and mothers suffered because of this. “Baby Farms” sprung up in the country, with people taking advantage of young, often poor, desperate mothers who had no real options. Up to 11,000 children may have been “sold” during these years to European families in the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland. The Sri Lankan government temporarily halted all foreign adoptions in 1987, after a “baby farm” was raided and 20 newborns were found.  

In 1993 Sri Lanka was one of the first of three countries to agree and sign the Hague Intercountry Adoption Agreement, which is an international treaty put in place to protect children adopted internationally. The Hague Adoption Convention implements and enforces standards for every participating country; ensuring that there are safeguards in place for waiting children and the adoption process. One of those safeguards requires all adoptions to go through a U.S. Hague accredited adoption service provider, like Agape Adoptions! 

Waiting children in Sri Lanka  

In October of 2022 Agape Adoptions became one of only two agencies approved to facilitate adoptions from Sri Lanka to the United States. While the program is new and still in development, we’re honored to begin to work closely with the Sri Lankan government to process ethical adoptions and advocate for children in Sri Lanka in need of families. Children between the ages of 3 months and 14 years can be adopted from Sri Lanka. Most children are less than 3 years old; and a large portion of children available for intercountry adoption have some special need. Sri Lankan families often prefer girls, so there are more boys available for adoption in the country.  

Myriam Avery, Agape Adoptions Executive Director, will be traveling to Sri Lanka to meet with adoption authorities in May 2023. You can sign up to receive updates throughout her trip here. 

Parental Eligibility and Travel Requirements 

Applicants applying to adopt from Sri Lanka must be at least 25 years old and at least 21 years older than the child they desire to adopt. Only married applicants may adopt from Sri Lanka; the country does not allow for single individuals or same sex couples to adopt. As the program is small and in its early stages, families should also be open to things changing throughout the process and have a sense of adventure (Since 1999 Sri Lanka has placed less than 100 children with families in the United States). If you would like to learn more about the adoption criteria for waiting children in Sri Lanka, you can visit our website. 

When adopting from Sri Lanka, both parents must travel to be present for court proceedings. Prospective adoptive parents should be prepared to stay in Sri Lanka from one to two months for the adoption proceedings. If you are concerned about travel requirements check out our blog posts about a family who lived in the Dominican Republic for up to SIX months! Meet the Tejada-Acosta Family here and the Harrison family here. 

Why adopt a Sri Lankan child through Agape Adoptions? 

Agape Adoptions would love to help you on your adoption journey; whether that be providing information, connecting you with resources, or facilitating your adoption process. Agape loves connecting children with the best families for them. Sri Lanka is one of several countries we work with, and you can learn more about our other programs on our website. We also have monthly information meetings for families with questions about the adoption process and if you’re interested in learning more about these, you can sign up here. We would love to get you started on your adoption journey!