Last reviewed in July 2022 by the Clicklaw Editors

Adoption in BC is governed by a provincial law called the Adoption Act. Anyone who lives permanently in BC can apply to adopt, including opposite- and same-sex couples.

There are four different types of adoptions:

• placement by the director of adoption (who works for the Ministry of Children and Family Development),
• placement by an adoption agency,
• direct placement (when the birth parent places a child with a non-relative), and
• relative adoption (adoption by a relative or step-parent).

Good starting points include:

• Adoption, from the Legal Aid BC, is a fact sheet that defines adoption, sets out how adoption works in BC, and provides links to other resources.
• Adoptions from the provincial government provides information on how to adopt a child in BC or from another country.
• Adoption of a child, from People's Law School, provides an overview of the adoption process.
• JP Boyd on Family Law: Family Relationships, from the Courthouse Libraries BC, contains a detailed section on Adoption.

Need more help?

• Call the Adoptive Families Association of BC (AFABC) at 1-877-ADOPT-07 (1-877-236-7807) to ask for more information about adoption in BC.

See our related common questions:

• We’re a gay couple thinking about adoption
• See all common questions about family law

tags

adoption, adoption agency, international adoption, adopting