China Implements Restrictions on Foreign Adoptions: A Shift from Past Policies

China’s Shift in Adoption Policy: A Historical Perspective

For nearly thirty years, China facilitated the international adoption of tens of thousands of children, largely as a consequence of its stringent one-child policy, which led many families to abandon their infants. However, the Chinese government has now announced a significant restriction on foreign adoptions, claiming that this move aligns with global trends in child welfare and adoption practices.

This new ban has raised numerous concerns among the hundreds of American families who were in various stages of adopting children from China. Just earlier this week, adoption agencies informed prospective parents that China was poised to implement these restrictions. The official confirmation of the policy change came through a terse statement from China’s foreign ministry on Thursday.

“We appreciate the intentions and affection shown by governments and families from other countries wishing to adopt Chinese children,” stated Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the ministry. She provided limited insight into the new policy, mentioning that exceptions would only be permitted for foreigners adopting stepchildren or children who are blood relatives residing in China.

Prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, China was one of the leading sources of children for international adoption, having facilitated the overseas adoption of over 160,000 children since the early 1990s. Unfortunately, its adoption program has often been marred by allegations of corruption as well as its association with the country’s harsh birth control measures. Many parents, fearing severe penalties for violating the one-child policy, abandoned their infants in public places such as alleyways or at the thresholds of police stations and social welfare institutions.

As orphanages struggled to provide care for these children, they increasingly turned to international adoption as a means to secure funding for their operations. In 1992, China officially opened its doors to international adoptions, seeking to alleviate the crisis.

“This marks the end of an era and signifies the closure of one of the most troubling chapters in the three and a half decades of social engineering characterized by the one-child policy,” remarked Wang Feng, a sociology professor at the University of California, Irvine, who specializes in demographic trends in China. “The Chinese government created this issue and subsequently struggled to address the financial burdens, ultimately resorting to foreign adoption as a final solution.”