# Mexican Adoption Laws

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mexican-adoption-laws/719565>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 8, 2015, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mexican-adoption-laws/719565 "2015-05-08T15:58:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2015, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mexican-adoption-laws/719565/1 "2015-05-08T15:58:17Z")

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A Mexican man has found a baby by the side of the road, and claims he plans to adopt her. Story here: [Man 'plans to adopt' newborn baby girl he found abandoned in the dirt on his way to work | The Independent | The Independent](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/man-plans-to-adopt-newborn-baby-girl-he-found-abandoned-in-the-dirt-on-his-way-to-work-10235463.html)

What sort of hoops must one jump through in order to adopt a foundling in Mexico (Jalisco, if the state matters)?

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**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2015, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mexican-adoption-laws/719565/2 "2015-05-08T16:35:46Z")

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I’d guess two of those hoops would be:  
[ul][li]proving that the child was not kidnapped and abandoned[/li][li]showing the court that, out of all the candidates wishing to adopt this particular child, the court granting his request, instead of another candidate’s, to adopt is in the best interests of the child[/ul][/li]  
[Mexico Adoption](http://mexico.adoption.com/) has this to say:

> [@](#):
>
> Mexico requires that the child live with the prospective adoptive parents for a 1-3 week trial period. This must be completed in Mexico. With the combination of the trial period and the required paperwork, most applicants should expect to spend around 3 months in Mexico. It is required that potential adoptive parents be 25 years or older and at least 17 years older than the child. If it is a joint application, for a married couple, only one of the applicants must meet these requirements. The average time frame for Mexico adoptions is around 3-8 months. But that number can vary.

and

> [@](#):
>
> Efforts are first made to place children with relatives or Mexican applicants. Mexican adoption procedure includes a six-month trial period during which the child lives with the adoptive parents to assure mutual benefit. The adoption is not final until after this time, and the child cannot leave Mexico before it is complete.

So, presumably, the courts will expect officials to conduct a search to find any surviving family members of the foundling. And, reading those two bits from that site, it looks as though the court will grant first a provisional or temporary adoption decrer, then after six months a final adoption decree will be granted.

That site has more information, including requirements for the child to be eligible for adoption.