Adoption Of Children (Amendment)

Adoption Of Children (Amendment) AN ACT TO AMEND THE ADOPTION OF CHILDREN ORDINANCE. BE It enacted by the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka as follows:- Short title. 1. This Act may be cited as the Adoption of Children (Amendment) Act, No. 38 of 1979. Amendment of section 3 of Chapter 61. 2. Section 3 of the Adoption of Children Ordinance (hereafter in. this Act referred to as the ” principal enactment”) is hereby amended by the repeal of subsection (6) of that section (as amended by Law No. 6 of 1977) and the substitution therefor, of the following subsection :- (6) An adoption order shall not be made in favour of any applicant who is not resident and domiciled in Sri Lanka or in respect of any child who is not so resident: Provided that an adoption order may be made on a joint application of two spouses who are not resident and domiciled in Sri Lanka where, after calling for, and considering a report from the Commissioner of Probation and Child Care Services on the social and, psychological aspects of the adoption to be authorized and on the matters specified in section 4, the court is satisfied that there are special circumstances that justify the making of an adoption order in favour of the joint applicants. The Commissioner shall submit such report to court within the period fixed by court for that purpose, such period being not less than fourteen days and not more than twenty-eight days from the date on which the court calls for the report, and shall annex to such report a home-study report in respect of the applicants from an Institution recognized by the country of the applicants and authenticated by. the accredited representative for the Republic of Sri Lanka in that country. In this subsection a ” home-study report” means a report on the mental health of the applicants, on their social, religious and financial background and on their suitability to adopt a child. Application of this Act. 3. The amendment made to the principal enactment by this Act shall apply to every application made under section 2 of the principal enactment and pending in any court on the date of commencement of this Act, and to every such application made after the date of commencement of this Act.