Adoption Agencies and Information for the Netherlands

Adoption in the Netherlands is an involved procedure that can take years to finalize. American citizens contemplating adopting a Dutch child, or American citizens residing in Holland contemplating adopting a foreign child under Dutch law, are urged to contact the Dutch adoption authority listed below for the most up-to-date information on adoption procedures.  In recent years about 50 Dutch-born children have been given up for adoption per year, all of whom were adopted in the Netherlands. Each year there are between 2,000 and 2,500 requests by residents of the Netherlands to register for the adoption of a child from overseas.  The U.S. Consulate General in Amsterdam has not processed any cases involving native Dutch children for adoption in the United States in many years.

EMBASSY OF THE NETHERLANDS IN THE UNITED STATES:
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
4200 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20016-2138
Tel: (202) 244-5300

For more information about adoption from this country and about adoption agencies that can assist you, please visit the websites below.  Prospective adoptive parents are advised to fully research any of the adoption agencies they plan to use for adoption services.

The U.S. Department of State: The Netherlands Adoption and Adoption Agencies
The U.S. Department of State: Authentications Office
Child Citizenship Act of 2000
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
U.S. Foreign travel registration
U.S. Government Consular Information Sheets

*Footnote: The Joint Council for International Children’s Services (JCICS) is one of the oldest and largest membership associations of licensed non-profit international adoption agencies.  All of the above adoption agencies are listed as members of JCICS.