It looks like the new adoption specific law has or will soon pass in Viet Nam. I haven’t been able to get the text yet (in Vietnamese or English), so it’s impossible to say what has or will change.

The enactment of the new Adoption Law will help orphans find responsible and caring adoptive parents, deputies said at yesterday’s National Assembly session.

The law received majority approval from deputies, who said that it would support the country’s commitment to protecting children’s rights. However, opinions on whether to have adopted children under the age of 15 be in accordance with the Law on Marriage and Family or to have those under 16 match the Law on Protecting, Caring for and Educating Children still varied between deputies.

Since no agreement seems close to happening with the USA on reopening adoptions, it will be interesting to see if the changes in this area of law in Viet Nam will have any affect on that.

Considering what we know has happened in the previous 3-4 years, and is likely still happening with adoptions from Viet Nam to other countries, it’s probably best that they are still closed until a much more regulated, functional, and legitimate system can be implemented.

I know I would very much love to adopt again from Viet Nam, but not under the past system, there’s just too much grey area under the previous agreement’s implementation – way too much room for illegal things to happen.