Can Single Parents Adopt a Child?

PERTANYAAN

Nowadays, there are a lot of single public figures who adopt children from orphanages. Can people who are not bound by marriage adopt a child? Aren't they supposed to be married, so that their adopted children have parents consisting of a mother and a father?

INTISARI JAWABAN

Formerly, single parents are not allowed to adopt children according to Government Regulation Number 54 of 2007 on the Implementation of Child Adoption.

However, through a permit from the Minister of Social Affairs (delegation of the head of the social agency at the provincial level) and a court decision or stipulation, single parents are allowed to adopt children.

Please read the review below for a further explanation and case studies.

ULASAN LENGKAP

This article is an English translation of Bolehkah Single Parent Mengadopsi Anak? which was written by Ricky Pratomo and was published on Tuesday, 18 December 2018.

All legal informations which are available through Klinik hukumonline.com have been prepared for educational purposes only and are general in nature (read the complete Disclaimer). In order to obtain legal advice specific to your case, please consult with Justika Partner Consultant.

Adoptive Parents

Regulations regarding child adoption can be found in Government Regulation Number 54 of 2007 on the Implementation of Child Adoption ("Government Regulation 54/2007"). Parents (prospective adoptive parents) who are going to adopt a child must fulfill the requirements that have been determined. Several provisions for prospective adoptive parents are as follows:[1]

1. physically and mentally healthy;
2. the minimum age is 30 years old and the maximum age is 55 years old;
3. have the same religion as the adopted child;
4. have good behavior and must have never been convicted of any crime;
5. bound by marriage for a minimum of 5 years;
6. not a same-sex couple;
7. do not have or have not had children or have only one child;
8. are economically and socially capable;
9. obtain the child's consent and written permission from the child's parents or guardian;
10. make a written statement that the adoption is in the best interests of the child, child welfare, and protection;
11. have social reports from local social workers;
12. have cared for a prospective adopted child for a minimum of 6 months, since the parenting permit was granted; an
13. obtain a license from the Minister and/or head of the social agency.

Thus, as stipulated in Article 13 letter e Government Regulation 54/2007, prospective adoptive parents must be bound by marriage for at least 5 years. However, there are exceptions to this provision, as regulated under Article 16 Government Regulation 54/2007 which allows single parents to adopt children with a permit from the Minister of Social Affairs. The permit may be delegated to the head of the social agency at the provincial level.[2]

"Single parent" means a person who is not married or is a widow/widower.[3]

Child adoption by a single parent is further regulated under Regulation of the Minister of Social Affairs Number 110/HUK/2009 of 2009 on Child Adoption Requirements (“Regulation of the Minister of Social Affairs 110/2009”).

Regulation of the Minister of Social Affairs 110/2009 also stipulates that in order to adopt a child, a single parent must obtain a permit from the Minister of Social Affairs, and said permit may be delegated to the head of the provincial social agency. The head of the provincial social agency has the authority to:[4]

1. grant a permit to adopt children among Indonesian citizens to be further stipulated in court; and
2. give a recommendation for a Child Adoption permit that is granted by the Minister of Social Affairs.

So, basically, single parents are not allowed to adopt children. However, this can only be done if the single parents have first secured a permit from the Minister of Social Affairs (delegated to the head of the provincial social agency) and must subsequently secure a stipulation from the court.

In order to know the whole procedure and process of child adoption, you may refer to it further in the following article Adopted Children, Procedures and Their Inheritance Rights.

Foster Parents

However, it is preferable for prospective adoptive parents who are single parents to become foster parents first, as regulated under Government Regulation Number 44 of 2017 on the Implementation of Childcare (“Government Regulation 44/2017”).

Foster parents are husband and wife or single parents other than the family who receive the authority to undertake temporary childcare.[5]

According to Government Regulation 44/2017, single parents may become foster parents, under the following conditions:[6]

1. Indonesian citizens who are permanently domiciled in Indonesia;
2. Must be at least 30 (thirty) years old and 55 (fifty-five) years old at the most;
3. Physically and mentally healthy as evidenced by a health certificate issued by a government hospital, that is managed by the Central Government or Regional Governments;
4. Police record certificate;
5. Have the same religion as foster children;
6. Have competence in nurturing children by passing the selection and verification for prospective foster parents;
7. Willing to become a foster parent stated in a stamped affidavit; and
8. Make a written statement that he/she has never been and will never commit violence, exploitation, neglect, and mistreatment of children, or the implementation of corporal punishment for any reason, including for the enforcement of discipline which is stated in stamped affidavits, acknowledged by the neighborhood and community association, or other names.

Foster parents include:[7]

1. husband and wife; or
2. single parent, i.e. a person who is not married or is a widow/widower.[8]

The purpose of becoming a foster parent is so that the position of the single parent becomes stronger in the eyes of the court. The reason is that the prospective adoptive parent has actually taken care of the child to be adopted.

Case Studies

Some examples of cases regarding child adoption by single parents are as follows:

1. Court Stipulation of the Takengon Court Number. 04/Pdt.P/2014/PN.Tkn, in which the applicant is a single parent who was married and worked as a Civil Servant and has been nurturing a prospective adopted child for approximately two years. The applicant has previously obtained a letter of recommendation from the Head of Social Service of Labor and Transmigration, Central Aceh District, so that applicant could be declared as a prospective foster parent. The judge granted the application for the child adoption with the consideration that the applicant is legitimate as a prospective foster parent and considers the adopted child as his own biological child.
2. Court Stipulation of the Kandangan Court Number 1/Pdt.P/2010/PN.Kgn, the applicant is a single parent who was never married and has been raising an abandoned child because his biological mother has died, as well as his biological father has been willing to give his child. Previously, the applicant had obtained a written permit from the Office of Social Welfare and Disaster Mitigation of Hulu Sungai Selatan Regency, which received a delegation from the Social Service of South Kalimantan Province. The judge granted the application for the child’s adoption with the consideration of his better future.

These are the answers we can provide, we hope you will find them useful.

Legal Basis:

1. Government Regulation Number 54 of 2007 on the Implementation of Child Adoption;
2. Government Regulation Number 44 of 2017 on the Implementation of Childcare;
3. Regulation of the Minister of Social Affairs Number 110/HUK/2009 of 2009 on Child Adoption Requirements.

Court Decision:

1. Court Stipulation of the Takengon Court Number. 04/Pdt.P/2014/PN.Tkn;
2. Court Stipulation of the Kandangan Court Number 1/Pdt.P/2010/PN.Kgn.

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[1] Article 13 Government Regulation Number 54 of 2007 on the Implementation of Child Adoption (“Government Regulation 54/2007”).

[2] Article 16 Government Regulation 54/2007 jo. Article 13 Section (2) Regulation of the Minister of Social Affairs Number 110/HUK/2009 of 2009 on Child Adoption Requirements (“Regulation of the Minister of Social Affairs 110/2009”).

[3] Elucidation of Article 16 Section (1) Government Regulation 54/2007.

[4] Article 14 Section (1) Regulation of the Minister of Social Affairs 110/2009.

[5] Article 1 Section (8) Government Regulation Number 44 of 2017 on the Implementation of Childcare (“Government Regulation 44/2017”).

[6] Article 19 Section (1) Government Regulation 44/2017.

[7] Article 19 Section (2) Government Regulation 44/2017.

[8] Article 19 Section (4) Government Regulation 44/2017.