Refence

The document has been developed by the Ministry of Education and Science to implement the President’s instructions No Pr- 68 of January 9, 2012 and No Pr-640 of March 25, 2013.

This Resolution approves amendments introduced in:

- The Statute on the Activity of Foreign Bodies and Organisations on Adopting Children in the Russian Federation and Control Over its Implementation, approved by  Government Resolution No 654 of November 4, 2006;

- Russian consular rules on registering children of Russian nationality adopted by foreigners or stateless individuals, approved by Government Resolution No 275 of March 29, 2000.

The document is aimed at improving the mechanisms for protecting the rights and legal interests of children of Russian nationality adopted by foreigners or stateless individuals.

To prevent illegal activities in the adoption of children, including by intermediaries, the resolution prohibits a representative office or its employees from transferring information on a child obtained with the aim of passing it to a foreign citizen or otherwise using this information.

In addition, the resolution establishes the requirement that the Ministry of the Interior shall check the data on all newly hired employees of a representative office to ensure the accuracy of the submitted data and compliance with Russian law by representative office employees.

To improve supervision of the living conditions and education of adopted children, the resolution stipulates the procedure and timeframe for submitting reports on the living conditions and education of children in adoptive families prepared by the relevant government body in the country where the adopted child resides.

The document establishes the procedure for information sharing between relevant federal and regional bodies on cases involving the death or abuse of adopted children and violations of their rights. The implementation of the provisions of the resolution on this issue will help to strengthen protections, including criminal and legal protections, of children adopted by foreigners.