Guatemala Adoption Process: Immigrant Visa

Before your child will be granted an immigrant visa, it must be confirmed by a consular officer that the child fits the US legal definition of an ‘orphan’ and that the adoption case is otherwise in order. The officer will also decide which category of visa the child is entitled to: IR-3 visas are for children who met their adoptive parents prior to the adoption and IR-4 for the other children who will have to be adopted in the US upon their arrival.

If the child is to be classified as an IR-3 category visa, the officer will provide entry stamps to verify the meeting of parents and child prior to the adoption.

In most cases of Guatemalan intercountry adoption, the child qualifies in the IR-4 category, because the adoption procedure has been carried out by an attorney, working on behalf of the parents who haven’t yet met the child. In these cases, the child will usually have to be readopted upon their arrival in the US.

Once confirmed, a visa will be granted and available for collection within twenty-four hours.

In 2001, the Child Citizenship Act came into effect, making it easier for children adopted overseas by US citizens to acquire US citizenship upon their arrival in the country. As a result, children under the age of eighteen, adopted by an US citizen and intending to remain in the US in their legal custody, automatically become American citizens on entering the country. In the case of IR-4 category adoptions, the child will be considered a ‘lawful permanent resident’ but will not receive their citizenship until they have been readopted in the US.

More information on the Child Citizenship Act can be found online at the Department of State’s website, which also provides a lot of useful information on the passport application process that will be required for your child.

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