Adopted children & birth certificates...?

Question

Should birth certificates be changed after the child is adopted? If so, how would you change it? If no, why not?

What other document shows that the adoptive parents are the parents now, legally? If there are no other documents, what sort of document could be created for this issue?

Answer 1

As an adoptive parent myself, I think that a new birth/adoption certificate should be issued with both the biological and adoptive parents names on it. There could be a "born to" space for the first parents, and "adopted by" space for adoptive parents.

Honestly I felt a little uncomfortable when my oldest son's birth certificate arrived. He never had an "original" one, because they don't use actual birth certificates in the contry he was born in, but still it seemed like it was meant to hide the fact he was adopted. My son's adoptions aren't secret in real life, so I don't think they should be on paper, and I think it send a negetive message to the child that their life didn't begin untill they were adopted.

Answer 2

Are you asking for the current practices, or hypothetical better practices?

Currently in the US and amended birth certificate is created once an adoption is finalized.

ETA:

Why the thumbs down? I asked for clarification as it wasn't clear what the asker is looking for.

Answer 3

Hi Kristy,

A birth certifcate is a historical document recording the facts of just that - a birth.  Whether custody of that child later changes, the facts of that birth never change.

A birth certificate is not a deed akin to ownership, as one would get for a car, that needs to be changed with each change in ownership.  Children are not possessions that can nor should be owned.

Tampering with a person's birth certificate in an attempt to pretend that someone other than the actual parents gave birth is equivalent to forging legal documents.  It permits for the shady, unethical practice of allowing adoption deception to occur with regards to the actual facts of a person's birth.  I believe everyone is entitled to the truth of his/her origins.  Some APs out there today still want their adopted children to believe that they gave birth to them.  This is dishonest.  Let me add this is by no means something that ALL AP's want to do.  Many enlightened ones are very much in tune with what is ethically correct, and best for the child.  

There already is legal paperwork that shows a child now has different legal parents.  It's called an adoption decree.  Each & every U.S. adoption upon finalization is issued this.  It clearly states who the current legal parents of the child are.  There is no reason whatsoever to go back and try to alter history.  The facts of a birth certificate belong to every person named on their own certificate.  Say that a child were to lose his/her parents in a tragic accident.  If Grandma or Auntie & Uncle raise the child, they would never require that the child's facts of birth be deleted in order for him/her to be loved & cared for!  It is wrong for the government to participate in the permanent forging of someone's legal identity without that person's knowledge or consent.

The point of adoption is to love and care for a child.  It is totally unnecessary to change the birth data in order for that to happen.  My opinion is it is done primarily to meet desires of some industry workers & of some APs who would prefer to erase the reality that the child came from a different family.  

The worst part of the situation is that in most states, it is NEVER rectified even when the person becomes a legal adult.  They are permanently denied the real facts of their births.  Even if someone else saves them a copy of their original birth certificate, the fact that the person him/herself cannot legally obtain one for themselves, at any age, is among the biggest autrocities in adoption practices today.  Create an additional document if you feel you must.  Leave birth certificates alone!  

Thank you for asking about this so we can help get awareness out there.  I'm sure there are many people who have no idea this is what's still going on today in every adoption.  Even in "open" adoptions.

julie j

reunited adoptee

Answer 4

I think children should have their original birth certificates (or for my children, Certificate of Foreign Birth), ammended with a line at the bottom showing the adoptive parents' names and date the adoption was finalized.  

But really, I'd be fine with carrying around their original birth certificates and a copy of the adoption decree.  After all, when I got married they didn't change my birth certificate. I have my OBC, my marriage certificate, and my change of name certificate.

Answer 5

i have my sons birth certificate and his AP's went to a judge and got an altered one...

Answer 6

I hate that I have two birth certificates.  The adoptive one is 'amended' which looks different from other citizens.  It also promotes a lie, stating that my amother gave birth to me, who at the time was an infertile woman.

I would have like ALL my information on the certificate, i.e. all my parents, the ones who MADE me, and the ones who adopted me.

But this is yet another example of what is COMFORTABLE for the aparents, not what's HEALTHY (the truth) for the child.

Answer 7

They are changed in some cases. I adopted my son 4 years ago and the mother did a relinquishment. The hospital did the regular birth certificate but once the adoption was finalized after 6 months the state of california replaced the original birth certificate with a new one that had my husband and I down as the parents.  It looks like I was actually in the hospital and gave birth to him.

I personally don't agree with it. It is like the state is trying to erase the records of him ever being adopted.  It seems really strange to me.

Answer 8

I would like to see one certificate: Birth/Adoption. That listed the parents who gave birth and then another line that might say: and adopted by: _____________

That seems honest and respectful to everyone.

Answer 9

There is no actual need for a falsified birth certificate.  A birth certificate is to record the facts of a birth.  An adoption decree shows that a person was adopted.  They are two different documents that record two separate events in the adopted person's life.  

If adoption is a good thing, then it is not necessary to falsify a birth certificate to make it look as though the person was born to the adoptive parents, rather than adopted by them.  It only furthers stigma.

Answer 10

In the UK (sorry can't speak for anywhere else)

The adoptive parents receive a copy of the original birth certificate and then when the adoption is finalised the child receives a new birth certificate with the name of the adoptive parents given as mother and father.  It lookes exactly the same as a regular birth certificate and no one could tell the difference - this is how come many people never ever realised they were ever adopted...they had seen their birth certifcates!

The only difference is that the original certificate is entered in the births section of the records office, and the second version, although looking identical to a birth certificate, is registered in the adoption register rather than the births one.

Answer 11

We were issued a new birth certificate once the adoption was finalized.  It arrived about 6 months after the finalization.  To this day, I still feel strange that it lists my husband and I as the parents on a "birth certificate".  

We also received an adoption decree that granted us legal custody prior to finalization.  In that case, it was actually the agency who had "custody" but stated that he was placed with us for purposes of parenting and granted us all legal rights associated with providing him medical care, etc.

Answer 12

Dear Googly,

The "lovely" Miss Georgia Tann and her cronie, the "Honorable" Judge Camille Kelly can be thanked for this mess. They are the "Mothers" of altered records which were created to cover up their disgusting actions.

I think it is deplorable that the government and Courts of ANY country would condone the falsification of legal documents.

The honest way to do it would be to have a birth certificate and an adoption certificate. Why is that so hard?! The only reasons I can think of to have a falsified document about a child's birth is to cover up something shady (unethical facilitators) or to "pretend" (APs with issues). I am glad to know that there are so many APs that are bothered by this.

Has an AP ever requested NOT to have the OBC altered? What happens if you do?

Answer 13

There are many adoption papers that show that you have adopted the child.  I have both birth certificates.  My daughters birthmother asked for 2 copies of the original to be made so we both have one.  I don't know about any other situations, but after the adoption was finalized I received another birth certificate naming my husband and I as the parents.  We never applied for it, but I believe the adoption attorney did.  Also, in order to have our health insurance cover our daughters they told us they needed to see the "amended" birth certificate.  This may have changed now since our adoptions were a few years ago.

Answer 14

I think adoptive parents should be given the original and an altered birth certificate.  Then, passed on to the child.

I think there are times when a child may not want to draw attention to the fact they are adopted and have multiple questions thrown at them.

Answer 15

Their are papers that prove the adoption.

It would be very rare for a birth certificate to be changed.

fs

Answer 16

there is usually a adoption certaficate.

i was adopted from birth soihave my parents now names on the certaficate!