Adoption of a child of a spouse from a first marriage: conditions of the procedure, legal consequences

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Published: December 26, 2019

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The family legislation of the Russian Federation provides for the possibility of adoption by both spouses and single candidates. If the spouse has a child from his first marriage, then he can be adopted with the adoption of the corresponding rights and obligations. At the same time, strict requirements are imposed on adoptive parents: they must undergo training with the guardianship and trusteeship authorities, and then go to court.

• Conditions for adopting a child from a single mother or single father
• Conditions for the procedure with a living biological father
• Grounds for refusal
• Information provided to guardianship authorities
• Required documents
• Statement of claim to court
• Trial
• Legal consequences

Conditions for adopting a child from a single mother or single father

Based on Art. 129 of the RF IC, the consent of his parents is required for the adoption of a minor. If a child has reached the age of 10, he also receives the right to vote. However, if the child lived with his stepfather or stepmother from birth, then the court will not require a written agreement with the adoptee. The consent of the blood parents is not required when the biological father or mother (Article 130 of the RF IC):

• have been recognized in court as limited in the acquisition and exercise of civil rights and obligations (incompetent);
• not identified, unknown , declared missing by the court;
• deprived of parental rights , and at least six months have passed since the court order was issued;
• do not live with the child for more than six months;
• evade or dishonestly fulfill obligations regarding education and maintenance.

There are other reasons that the court may consider sufficient. Among them are the use of physical violence against the ex-wife, alcoholism, drug and toxic addictions.

If these conditions are not met, then the written consent of the biological parent must be obtained before adopting the child of the spouse from the first marriage.

Features of the adoption procedure

The easiest way to formalize adoption is if there is no father and legally the spouse has the status of a “single mother”, while there is a dash in the father column on the birth certificate. It is more difficult to achieve the necessary re-registration if the father is recognized by law and fulfills all the parental responsibilities assigned to him (provides financially, takes care of the upbringing and health of the ward).

The process of accepting parental responsibilities presupposes compliance with the judicial procedure if the following circumstances exist:

• if the child is under 18 years of age;
• death or abandonment of the rights of a biological parent;
• refusal to educate the ward;
• if the father is deprived of parental rights by force of law.

If a man agrees to transfer parenthood, the legal procedure is faster. If there is disagreement, there will be a long, complex process in court with the preparation of a sufficient evidence base to deprive the biological parent of his rights and transfer them to the new spouse of the mother.

As a rule, the reasons for refusal are often associated with personal reluctance for the child to consider a stranger as a dad, or with mercantile desires, when maintaining paternity is more profitable than losing it.

Before deciding to adopt, a man must be aware that the rights of adopted and natural children are equal in everything, including property and inheritance. After adoption, the same rights in relation to the natural father are lost. It is also impossible to become related to only one of your wife’s children - adoption will affect everyone.

Adoption during the father's lifetime

If the father is alive, the simplest and most correct option is to convince the parent of the advisability of transferring rights to a man who will take full responsibility for the ward, freeing the biological father from the need to pay child support.

It is more advisable to conduct negotiations before the child reaches the age of 2-2.5 years, when the man does not show interest in the life of his own baby. It is enough for the man to obtain a notarized refusal without trial, and the rest of the arrangements are carried out by the mother’s new husband.

• Guardianship of a child with living parents: how to arrange it correctly?

Without the father’s consent, careful preparation and obtaining an extensive list of documents will be required that can convince the court that the transfer of the father’s powers to the mother’s spouse is more appropriate and in line with the interests of the child. Subject to full compliance with all obligations towards the minor, adoption can only be achieved with the mutual consent of the parties. At the same time, it will not matter in which country and what marital status the man is.

In order to achieve a decision in favor of adoption, it will first be necessary to prove that the real father is not fulfilling his duties properly, or there are serious reasons to believe that the transfer of powers is fully consistent with the interests of the ward. Common reasons used in court include:

• no alimony payments for 6 months or longer;
• lack of official income;
• avoidance of meetings with the baby;
• criminal acts directed at a minor or mother;
• attracting the ward to a life of crime.

In the event of the death of a parent

When the real father has already died, there are no obstacles to finding a new parent. This is the most favorable situation in order to feel the unification of the whole family. For the court, it will be enough to provide a death certificate and show that the spouse, children and man wish to become relatives.

After the adoption procedure, the child retains the right to receive a state survivor's pension.

An important nuance when adopting after the death of the father is the solution to the issue of preserving the family relationship between the baby and relatives on the part of the deceased parent. The court, as a rule, grants the requests of relatives, without having reasons for refusal.

Conditions for the procedure with a living biological father

In this case, the consent of the ex-spouse will be required. The only way to get around this condition is to file a claim for deprivation of parental rights or prove non-participation in raising the child for more than six months. The courts rarely make a positive decision in the latter case, but a strong argument here is the evasion of alimony. Grounds for deprivation of parental rights (Article 69 of the RF IC):

• alcohol and drug addiction , substance abuse;
• child abuse;
• committing a deliberate crime against family members;
• malicious evasion of payment of alimony and parental obligations.

If it is possible to reach a peaceful agreement, then the written, notarized consent of the biological father will be required, as well as participation in the trial. Keep in mind that the property relationship between the child and the biological parent ends in this case.

The obligation to maintain and pay alimony passes to the adoptive parent.

How to adopt your wife's child if she is a single mother

Unfortunately, often a mother raises her children on her own, without financial help from the father if he is missing or dead. In this case, the new spouse can adopt the child without his consent.

If a child was born to a single mother and there is no information about the biological father in the documents, you can use formal recognition of paternity . You can avoid the troublesome procedure by collecting documents and going to court.

You will only need your ID and your spouse's passport, her child's birth certificate and your marriage certificate.

At the nearest registry office, you submit an application to establish paternity, where you indicate that you are the father of the child, and you got married after his birth.

The registry office will change the entry based on the act of establishing paternity and indicate your last and middle name. A joint application can be submitted at any time before the child reaches adulthood.

By deciding to remain silent about the fact that you are not the biological father, you will make this procedure much easier for yourself. However, the blood father can challenge your paternity in court by providing evidence in the form of a genetic examination.

The stepfather has the right to adoption only if he has officially registered the marriage with the child’s mother. If a couple cohabits in a civil marriage, then such a right is not given to him.

Of course, there are also single fathers. If his new wife wishes to adopt her husband's child, the procedure and conditions will be the same.

Grounds for refusal

The guardianship and trusteeship authorities or the court will refuse adoption if one of the requirements established by Art. 127 RF IC. Among them:

• outstanding conviction or conviction for serious and especially serious crimes;
• limited or absolute incapacity;
• deprivation of parental rights , removal from guardianship and adoption in the past;
• diseases listed in the list of Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated February 14, 2013 N117;
• inability to provide a child with a living wage;
• lack of permanent registration;
• failure to undergo pedagogical and psychological training;
• unregistered marriage.

If the legal spouse of the adoptive parent is declared incompetent, and not he himself, then the adoption will also be denied.

Payments to adoptive parents

According to the law, the origin of a child from a specific mother and father is established on the basis of medical documents. If a son or daughter is born in an official marriage, paternity is determined automatically. If the spouses subsequently divorce and the child remains with the man, his new wife can adopt him or her. Before adopting your husband's child from his first marriage, you must obtain the written consent of the biological mother, but in some cases it is not required. Let's look at the features and step-by-step procedure for the adoptive parent.

• Persons who previously had limited or deprived rights to children;
• Citizens who were already guardians or adopted children, but the adoption or guardianship was canceled due to their fault;
• Recognized as incompetent or partially capable;
• Citizens who do not have a permanent place of residence;
• Having a criminal record for particularly serious or serious crimes;
• Convicted for crimes against health and life, against minors;
• Citizens who are in a same-sex marriage registered in another country.

Information provided to guardianship authorities

Before going to court, you must obtain a certificate of right to be an adoptive parent. It is authorized to be issued by guardianship and trusteeship authorities. Together with the main package of documents, the candidate writes an application that reflects the following information (clause 6 of the Rules of Government Decree of March 29, 2000 N275):

• personal and passport details of the adoptive parent;
• number of residents at the place of registration of the applicant;
• confirmation of obstacles to adoption approved by Art. 127 RF IC;
• sources of income, pensions, allowances and benefits.

The candidate attaches to the application a short autobiography, which lists information about education, work activity, marital status, and changes in personal data.

It is imperative to indicate the applicant’s relationship with the adoptee, a description of the living conditions, the availability of a separate room, and the period of cohabitation with the child’s parent.

What benefits can a foster parent receive?

By adopting your husband's (wife's) child, you can claim benefits and material compensation provided by the state. Let's list them:

• leave to care for a child up to three years old;
• cash benefit;
• paid sick leave.

What a wife is unlikely to get when adopting her husband’s child:

• maternity capital (when a number of conditions are not met);
• other payments from the regional budget that are received when a child is taken from an orphanage.

Required documents

Together with the curriculum vitae and application, candidates provide:

• notarized consent of the blood parent , court decision or death certificate;
• child's birth certificate;
• certificate of income for the last year;
• medical report according to registration form 164/у;
• Marriage certificate;
• certificate of no criminal record;
• certificate of completion of training in the guardianship and trusteeship authorities;
• extract from financial account and house register;
• spouse's statement of consent to adoption.

The period for producing a certificate of the right to be an adoptive parent is 5 working days.

What other documents are needed: complete list

1. A certificate stating that the future stepfather/stepmother has no criminal record. The document is prepared within a month and is valid for six months.
2. Medical certificate. It is issued by a therapist, who issues a referral to a neurologist, psychiatrist, narcologist, oncologist, infectious disease specialist and other doctors.
3. Certificate of income. It is important that this indicator does not fall below the minimum.
4. Extract from the house register. The extract is issued to the applicant at the place of his registration. Specialists from the guardianship department will come to the place of registration and check the candidate’s housing for compliance with sanitary and hygienic requirements.
5. Characteristics from the place of work.
6. Autobiography. It is drawn up in free form and does not require notarization.
7. An extract from the child’s medical record and a note from the applicant that he has no complaints about the child’s health condition.
8. Consent of the child's mother.

Let’s take a closer look at how to properly prepare the following documents:

• autobiography for the adoption of a wife/husband’s child;
• consent of the wife/husband to adopt a child;
• consent/permission of the former spouse for adoption.

Autobiography

The purpose of this document is to provide a description of one's life in order to reflect the prospects that a child will receive from adoption by a given citizen.

An autobiography can be prepared either in any form or by filling out a special form based on the sample. The document size usually does not exceed 1-2 pages of printed text.

So, the adoptive parent’s autobiography must contain the following information :

1. Full name of the person applying for adoption.
2. In accordance with paragraph 1 of Art. 123 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation, it is necessary to indicate nationality.
3. Birth data.
4. Actual place of residence.
5. Education (names of educational institutions completed, time of study).
6. Current place of work (you can also indicate previous places of work if the author has proven himself there positively and previous employers can give him a description that will help the court make a decision).
7. Marital status and presence of children.
8. If the passport data has been changed, this information and the reasons why the data was changed should be indicated.
9. Additional information relevant to the issue of adoption (for example, experience in raising children, education in the field of working with children, experience in working with adolescents, etc.).
10. The reason why the applicant wants to adopt the minor.

Example of wording: “I perceive my wife’s child as my own, I provide him with quality clothing and food, I raise him like a legal parent: I take him to clubs, pick him up from school, we spend weekends together, we have developed a warm, trusting relationship. “First of all, I have the interests of the child in mind, so I would like to become his legal father.”

The autobiography must end with a signature with a transcript, which is placed on the right and the date of completion on the left.

We do not recommend completing the documents yourself. Save time - contact our lawyers by phone:

8 (800) 350-29-87

Consent of wife/husband to adopt a minor

The document is drawn up in writing and includes points:

• name of the court;
• passport details of the husband/wife who agrees with the adoption of the child;
• name of the document (consent to adopt a child);
• information about biological relationship with the child (father/mother);
• information about the official marriage with the plaintiff (marriage certificate, document details);
• permission for adoption (example wording: “I am married to a citizen_____ and I give consent to the establishment of adoption and change of the surname and patronymic of my child_____”);
• date and signature.

We do not recommend completing the documents yourself. Save time - contact our lawyers by phone:

8 (800) 350-29-87

Consent or refusal of the former spouse

So, the permission of the ex-husband/wife to adopt his child should be structured as follows:

• name of the court;
• details of your ex-spouse;
• name of the document (consent);
• information about the relationship with the child (father/mother);
• details of the child’s birth certificate;
• data on the consent of the father/mother to the adoption of a child by another person;
• agreement that the applicant is informed of the consequences his decision may entail and has no complaints;
• date, signature and signature transcript.

Example of wording: “I give my consent to the adoption and upbringing of my child by a citizen of _______, I have no claims of a property nature.”

We do not recommend completing the documents yourself. Save time - contact our lawyers by phone:

8 (800) 350-29-87

All of the above documents are valid for 6 months from the date of issue.

After all the documents have been collected, specialists from the guardianship and trusteeship department will visit the place of residence, examine living conditions and examine family relationships, after which the head of the department will review all the materials and, if a positive decision is made, issue a conclusion on the possibility of becoming an adoptive parent.

The conclusion is submitted with the rest of the documents to the court.

Statement of claim to court

The application must be submitted to the district court at the place of permanent registration of the adoptive parent or the place of residence of the child. The header lists the full names and registration addresses of the adoptive parent and interested parties (spouse, natural parent). In the middle is the name of the document “Application for establishing adoption”. The main part lists:

• duration of marriage and cohabitation with spouse;
• name, date and place of birth of the child;
• name of the blood parent , information about his consent or other grounds for adoption;
• residential address shared with child and spouse;
• information about living conditions , room area, landscaping;
• information about the current relationship with the adoptee and the conditions for his adoption;
• lack of reasons to be an adoptive parent in accordance with Art. 127 RF IC;
• consent of the spouse and the child, if he is 10 years old;
• please establish adoption, change the child's surname (if necessary), and register as a parent.

Below is a list of the attached documents. The application is drawn up in two copies. The document is dated and signed by the plaintiff.

How to Adopt a Husband's Child from a First Marriage

The first problem that potential adoptive parents usually face is collecting documents . Each region has its own requirements for certificates provided to the OOiP. And to find out the details, you need to familiarize yourself with regional laws.

1. Make an appointment at the notary's office and come on the appointed date. The biological mother and the second parent come, the adoptive mother comes at will.
2. An application for consent to adoption is drawn up. It can indicate who specifically can be the adoptive parent. If there is a reference to a specific person, another will not be able to adopt a minor. In the absence of information about a possible adoptive parent, adoption is possible by anyone.
3. Written consent is signed by the mother and certified by the signature and seal of a notary.

Deadlines (read more...)

Trial

Adoption is carried out in accordance with special proceedings in accordance with Chapter. 29 subsection IV of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation. The meeting is held with the participation of the adoptive parent, a representative of the guardianship and trusteeship authorities, a prosecutor, a 14-year-old child and other interested parties.

The rights and obligations of the adoptive parent come into force from the moment a positive decision is made. The decision can be appealed within 10 days. After 13 days from the date of the decision, a copy of it is sent to the registry office to register the adoption.

Possibility of adopting a child of a legal spouse

In accordance with legislatively established norms, a citizen of the Russian Federation who is legally married and is not the biological father of a minor child or children of his wife has the right to initiate the adoption procedure for him (the child).

In this case, an important circumstance is that there is no need for a sixteen-year age difference between the stepfather and the wife's child (unlike the adoption of children who do not have legal guardians or guardians).

However, the candidate adoptive parent must be an adult and meet the legally established requirements and criteria. In addition, adoption can only be carried out on a voluntary basis, subject to the consent of both biological parents, as well as the child himself, but only if he has already reached the age of ten.