Adoption Information: Niger

On Sept. 1, 2021, the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention) went into effect in Niger. Niger is now a party to the Hague Adoption Convention. However, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) has determined that it will not be able to process Hague Adoption Convention cases from Niger, because Niger does not yet have the necessary infrastructure to carry out its responsibilities under the Hague Adoption Convention.

We advise U.S. prospective adoptive parents not to file any Form I-800, Petition to Classify Convention Adoptee as an Immediate Relative, on behalf of a child to be adopted from Niger, as we will reject these petitions. We also advise families not to file Form I-800A, Application for Determination of Suitability to Adopt a Child from a Convention Country, identifying Niger as the country they intend to adopt from.

In the United States, Hague Convention adoptions are processed using Form I-800 and Form I-800A. Due to the DOS determination, U.S. consular officers cannot issue Hague Adoption Certificates or Hague Custody Certificates at this time, so U.S. prospective adoptive parents cannot complete the Hague Adoption Convention process for an intercountry adoption from Niger. We cannot approve a Form I-800 without these certificates.

If there is a future determination that the processing of intercountry adoptions from Niger under the Hague Adoption Convention may proceed, we will begin processing Forms I-800 for Niger and we will promptly inform the public.

Note: Before the Hague Adoption Convention went into effect in Niger, we processed intercountry adoption cases from Niger using Form I-600A, Application for Advance Processing of an Orphan Petition, and Form I-600, Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative. With the exception of any cases treated as “transition cases,” as of Sept. 1, 2021, prospective adoptive parents should not file, and we will not process, a Form I-600 for a child from Niger or a Form I-600A that indicates Niger as the intended country for adoption.

For the latest information on Niger, see the Country Information page on the DOS website and the latest DOS adoption notices for Niger.