The Ministry of Justice has informed all accredited organizations about some prescriptive criteria for candidate-adopters which the Intercountry Adoption Council takes into consideration in their work. Most Bulgarian accredited organizations have filed negative statements against the introduction of these restrictive criteria which have not been stated in the Bulgarian legislation. Due to that these have not been officially published. However, since the Intercountry Adoption Council abides by them in their work, we believe it is necessary that we let all candidate-adopters know about them:
1. AGE DIFFERENCE
“There should not be more that 50 years age difference between the adoptee and the younger spouse in a married couple and there should not be more that 55 years age difference between the adoptee and the older spouse in a married couple. When a child is adopted by a single adopter, the lower age difference (of 50 years) should be considered.”
2. MARITAL STATUS
“In accordance with the Bulgarian Family Code, the adoptive parents should have entered into marriage - adoption is not permissible in a cohabitation regime /registered or unregistered/. A single parent can also adopt.”
3. HEALTH CONDITION
“Adopters should be in good physical and mental health and they should not suffer from diseases which could pose a threat to the child's life and health or diseases which would be an obstacle for the adequate satisfaction of the child's needs.”
4. SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS
“Adopters should have a socio-economic status correspondent to the average socio-economic status in the country of their habitual residence.”