U.S. Embassy Addis Ababa and the Office of Children’s Issues have heard reports of delays in regional Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWCA) offices’ issuance of necessary documents for adoptive children. We are aware of prospective adoptive parents waiting a year or more in some cases for their adoptive child’s respective regional office to issue the documents. Despite our repeated inquiries, the Ethiopian government has not given reasons for the delays or a timeline for resolution of the issue. The State Department will continue to advocate for intercountry adoption as an option for Ethiopian children in need of permanent homes. Please be assured that if and when the Department of State obtains information from the Ethiopian government about developments that affect adoptions from Ethiopia to the United States, we will share that information promptly by updates to this website. If your adoption case is impacted by delays, please work closely with your adoption service provider. 

Please continue to monitor adoption.state.gov for updated information on intercountry adoption in Ethiopia. For questions about this notice or adoption-related visa processing, please contact the Office of Children’s Issues at Adoption@state.gov.