Adoption
Chapter XV of Law nº 71/2024 (arts 312 to 342) governs adoption of children under 18, and adults only if they have a mental or multiple disability (art 324). A simple adoption starts before the civil registrar of the child's domicile, who draws up an adoption record that the competent court approves; a full adoption is first examined by the authority in charge of children, which sends the file to the civil registrar before it goes to the court (art 328). The law came into force on its gazette publication on 30 July 2024 and repealed Law nº 32/2016 on persons and family and Law nº 27/2016 on matrimonial regimes, donations and successions (arts 404 and 405).
Simple adoption is open in the situations listed in art 313: the child is a total orphan; one parent is dead and the survivor is judged unable to assume parental responsibilities by the organ that examines adoption requirements; the parents have been deprived of parental authority; the parents have a mental or other illness, certified by an approved doctor, that prevents them from parenting; one parent is mentally ill and the other unknown, absent or disappeared; the only parent, or both parents, have been sentenced to more than five years' imprisonment; or the organ in charge of children accepts another valid reason. Both living parents must consent, even if divorced; one parent suffices if the other is dead, incapable, absent or disappeared; failing both, the family council or the person who has custody consents; a foster family consents before the civil registrar for a child it hosts; and the head of a social welfare institution consents, with the registrar's authorisation, for a child living there. A child of at least 12 is consulted on the choice of adoptive parents (art 314). Full adoption is allowed only where the parents are unknown or have abandoned the child as declared by the court, where the child is a total orphan with no relatives up to the seventh degree, or where the child is under State guardianship (art 318); a child above 12 must consent unless unable to express a will, and a refusal stops the process (art 319).
The adopter, a person of integrity with enough resources and a fixed address, must be at least 21 and at least seven years older than the child; the gap is three years where the adopter is related to the child up to the seventh degree and the child has a mental or multiple disability, and the Minister in charge of children may reduce it for reasonable grounds (art 326). A conviction for genocide or genocide ideology and related crimes, trafficking in persons, child defilement, domestic violence or any other felony bars the applicant, as does a loss of parental authority. Spouses may adopt together; if one adopts, the other must consent; and a child cannot have several adoptive parents unless they are spouses (art 323). The file contains a motivation letter, a statement of the persons sharing the home, the applicant's ID, the consent of the spouse and of each child of at least 18, a certificate of marriage, celibacy, divorce or widowhood, a criminal record certificate, a medical certificate of each applicant and each child in the household issued within three months, and documents on the applicant's property (art 327). The court rules by summary proceedings on the child's interest and the other legal requirements (art 329); if the applicant dies before the decision the claim is suspended. The adoptive parent registers the judgment within two months of its becoming final, and the adoption takes effect on that date (art 330).
In a simple adoption the child keeps his or her family of origin, rights, duties and names, although the adopter may ask for a change of name (with the child's consent from 12), and the adopter exercises parental authority (art 315). On the adoptee's death without descendants, property received from the adoptive side returns to the adopter and property from the biological side to the biological family (art 316). A full adoptee has the same rights and duties as if the adopter were the biological parent, and where both biological parents are unknown the civil status documents name the adoptive parents, without retrospective effect on duties (art 320). An adoption by both spouses gives the child the position of a child born in wedlock; an adoption by one spouse creates rights and duties only towards that adopter (art 331). A court revokes an adoption made to kidnap, marry or traffic the child, or against the child's interests, or where the adopter no longer meets the conditions, or where the adoptee is convicted of trying to kill the adopter or a family member, or no longer wishes to be the adopter's child, or where the child's father or mother is found after the judgment became final, the adoptee being entitled to give an opinion (art 332); the child, a biological parent, the adopter, the family council's representative or an interested person may bring the claim, and heirs have one year to continue it after an adopter's death (arts 333 and 334). A new adoption is possible once the adopters have died or the previous adoption is revoked (art 338).
Inter-country adoption links a child and an adopter who are not domiciled in the same country, in either form (art 340). It applies where a child in Rwanda is to live abroad, a child is to be moved to Rwanda, or a child living in Rwanda has no authorisation to settle there (art 341). The requirements include that no one in the child's State of origin wishes to adopt, that those whose consent is needed gave it freely after advice, that the receiving State has shown the adopter's means and moral integrity, and that the adopter's country has approved the child's permanent entry and residence; a ministerial order may add requirements and procedure (art 342). Rwanda acceded to the 1993 Hague Convention on 28 March 2012, in force for it on 1 July 2012. The HCCH lists the National Child Development Agency (NCDA), in Kigali, as Central Authority (entry updated 13 February 2023); the U.S. State Department page still names the former National Commission for Children and reports that the Government of Rwanda charges only court fees set by law, that the Central Authority answers a dossier within 30 days, that a match may be proposed within six months, that an application is closed after six months if no suitable child is on the Register of Eligible Children, and that the whole process may take a year or longer.
Key points
| Forms | Simple (lineage link with family of origin kept) and full (filiation ties severed) (arts 312 and 317) |
|---|---|
| Full adoption only if | Parents unknown or abandoned (court declaration), total orphan with no kin to the 7th degree, or child under State guardianship (art 318) |
| Adopter | Integrity, resources, fixed address, at least 21 and 7 years older than the child; the Minister may reduce the gap (art 326) |
| Age of the adoptee | Under 18; 18 or over only with a mental or multiple disability (art 324) |
| Child's say | Consulted from 12 (simple, art 314(6)); consent mandatory above 12 (full, art 319) |
| Procedure | Civil registrar draws up the record, court approves by summary proceedings; full adoption goes first to the authority in charge of children (arts 328 and 329) |
| Registration | Within 2 months of the judgment becoming final; effect from that date (art 330) |
| Hague Adoption Convention | Accession 28 March 2012; in force 1 July 2012 (HCCH) |
| Central Authority | National Child Development Agency (NCDA) according to the HCCH (2023); the U.S. page of January 2025 still names the National Commission for Children |
In practice
- Match the child's situation to the legal grounds before filing: art 313 lists what opens a simple adoption and art 318 the narrower cases of full adoption, which also needs the authority in charge of children to examine the file first (art 328(3)).
- Assemble the file listed in art 327, including the criminal record certificate and the medical certificates dated within three months for each applicant and each child living in the household, and the written consent of the spouse and of every child of at least 18.
- For a simple adoption, appear before the civil registrar of the child's domicile with the child's parents (or the head of the family council) and at least two witnesses (art 328(1)); the registrar's record then goes to the court.
- After the judgment becomes final, register it in the civil register within two months and have it mentioned in the birth record (art 330).
- For an inter-country adoption from the United States, the State Department steps are to choose an authorised adoption service provider, obtain USCIS approval, submit the dossier to Rwanda's Central Authority (the NCDA according to the HCCH) and finalise the adoption in Rwanda's courts only after the U.S. approvals are in place.
Cost and coverage
The U.S. State Department reports that the Government of Rwanda says the only fees are court fees set by law; none of the sources opened states an amount.
Recent changes
Law nº 71/2024 took effect on its gazette publication on 30 July 2024, and the HCCH status table, updated on 17 June 2025, still shows Rwanda among the 107 Contracting Parties of the 1993 Adoption Convention.
Where to go
- The civil registrar at the level of the decentralised administrative entity where the child is domiciled, who draws up the adoption record (arts 60 and 328).
- The authority in charge of children, which examines every full adoption before the file goes to the civil registrar (art 328(3)); according to the HCCH, the National Child Development Agency (NCDA, www.ncda.gov.rw) is the Central Authority under the Hague Convention.
- The competent court, which approves the adoption record by summary proceedings and hears revocation claims (arts 329 and 333).
- The family council, which consents for a child who has no parent able to do so (arts 154 and 314(3)).
Worth knowing
Two dates circulate for the Hague Convention's entry into force in Rwanda: the HCCH table, the official depositary record, gives 1 July 2012, whereas the U.S. State Department page gives 1 August 2012; and the State Department adds that, for U.S. immigration purposes, only a full adoption generally qualifies, which matters because most grounds in art 313 lead to a simple adoption.
Frequently asked questions
Can a foreigner adopt a child from Rwanda?
Yes, through inter-country adoption (arts 340 to 342): no one in Rwanda must wish to adopt the child, the adopter's country must have shown suitability and approved the child's entry and permanent residence, and the adopter must meet art 326, including being at least 21 and seven years older. Rwanda has been party to the Hague Convention since 1 July 2012, and the National Child Development Agency (NCDA) is its Central Authority according to the HCCH.
Does an adopted child keep ties with the birth family?
It depends on the form: a simple adoption keeps the child's family of origin, rights, duties and names (art 315), whereas a full adoption severs the filiation ties with it, although the lineage link does not cost the child the rights attached to his or her country (art 317).
At what age must a child agree to being adopted?
A child of at least 12 is consulted on the choice of adoptive parents in a simple adoption (art 314(6)), and above 12 the child's consent to a full adoption is mandatory unless he or she cannot express a will; a refusal ends the adoption process (art 319).
Sources
- Law nº 71/2024 of 26/06/2024 governing persons and family, Official Gazette Special of 30/07/2024 (trilingual gazette, English column; Ministry of Justice copy) — arts 60, 154, 312 to 342, 404 and 405 (English column of the gazette; truncated lines cross-checked against the French column)
- HCCH, status table of the Convention of 29 May 1993 on Intercountry Adoption (last update 17 June 2025) — Rwanda row: accession 28-III-2012, entry into force 1-VII-2012; 107 Contracting Parties, 17 June 2025
- HCCH, Central Authority for Rwanda under the 1993 Adoption Convention: National Child Development Agency (page last updated 13 February 2023) — Central Authority of Rwanda for the 1993 Convention: National Child Development Agency, Kacyiru, Kigali, www.ncda.gov.rw (entry of 13 February 2023)
- U.S. Department of State, "Intercountry Adoption -- Rwanda" country page (last updated 30 January 2025) — Central Authority named as the National Commission for Children, eligibility, fees, timeline, full and simple adoption, entry into force given as 1 August 2012 (page last updated 30 January 2025)
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