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You can request that these documents are returned to you by writing to Domestic Adoption Unit, Adoption Authority of Ireland, Shelbourne House, Shelbourne Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 D04H6F6 or by emailing domestic@aai.gov.ie
Please note that original Birth Certificates for adopted children cannot be returned, as these have been superseded upon the making of an Adoption Order. An Adoption Certificate is available from the General Register Office.
The Contact Preference Register (CPR) is a statutory register for people who would like to make their contact preferences known, share or seek information, or lodge an item for a person.
Click here to find out more.
If you have previously joined the NAPCR you do not need to join again. All information currently on the NACPR will be transferred onto the new CPR. This means all the details you previously gave us will now be on the CPR, including your address, contact preferences and the details for the family member you are searching for.
However, if you would like to update the details or contact preferences you previously submitted to the NACPR, you will need to fill out a new CPR application form and send this to the Adoption Authority. The completed application form should include a copy of photo ID, such as a passport or driver’s licence. Once we receive the completed form and ID, we will acknowledge that we have received your application and update your details accordingly.
Section 42 of the Birth Information and Tracing Act 2022 provides that all current entries on the National Adoption Contact Preference Register will be transferred to the new Contact Preference Register. Following the transfer and after a period of six months, the National Adoption Contact Preference Register will be deleted.
This means that all entries on the National Adoption Contact Preference Register will remain valid, and you do not have to reregister a preference. However, it is advisable to do so if your preference has changed, or to update your information and contact details.
There are a number of ways you can join the CPR
- You can complete the online CPR application form which you can find here.
- You can complete and email a PDF version of the application form. The form for adopteed people can be downloaded here, and the form for relatives of adopted people can be downloaded here. This version can also be printed off and sent to the Adoption Authority.
- For help to complete the CPR form, please read the Contact Preference Register Information Leaflet
- You can request that a hard copy be sent to a specified address by emailing the Adoption Authority at the following email address: records@aai.gov.ie
If you are having trouble with the above options, you can contact us for assistance here.
Under the terms of the Birth Information and Tracing Bill, adoptees have the right to access their birth, early life and care information, including a copy of their original birth certificate. This means all adoptees will have access to historical information relating to their family, including names, addresses and background information.
Access to this information is a statutory right and will be released regardless of a ‘no contact’ preference being lodged on the CPR. However, if a ‘no contact’ preference is recorded on the CPR, the Adoption Authority will contact the specified person named on the application form and request that they respect the privacy of the applicant whom has lodged the ‘no contact’ preference.
The following is a list of who can join the CPR:
- An adopted person (a legally recognised adoption)
- A person who was nursed/boarded out.
- A person who may have spent time in a Mother & Baby Home or County Home as outlined in the schedule on the Birth Information and Tracing Act 2022 (this may have been prior to being adopted or placed in a care arrangement and includes mothers and children)
- A person who may have been illegally adopted (where a birth was illegally registered and no adoption took place)
- Mother or Father of an adopted person (where either parent placed a child for adoption or in a care arrangement)
- Sister or Brother of an adopted person (where a brother or sister has been placed for adoption or in a care arrangement)
- Grandparent, aunt, uncle or first cousin of an adopted person (where a relative has been placed for adoption in a care arrangement)
- Adoptive parent of an adopted child under 18
- Adoptive parent of an adopted person/child who is deceased
- A family friend of an adoptee or mother/father who is deceased
From July 2022, you may register a preference on the Contact Preference Register.
From October 2022, you can request a tracing service or request information about your birth and early years.
The Birth Information and Tracing Act 2022 provides access to birth certificates, birth information, images, early life information, care information, medical information and provided items for the following people over the age of 16:
- an adopted person
- a person who is or has been the subject of an incorrect birth registration
- a person who has been nursed out or boarded out
- a person who has reasonable grounds for suspecting that they may have been the subject of an incorrect birth registration
- a person who has reasonable grounds for suspecting that they may have been nursed out or boarded out
- a person who does not fall into any of the above categories but who resided as a child in a Mother and Baby Home Institution or County Home listed in schedule 1 of the General Scheme of the Birth Information and Tracing Act 2022.
If you do not know the name of the agency that handled your adoption, please email the Adoption Authority of Ireland, Information and Records Unit for assistance:
Email: records@aai.gov.ie
Please ensure that your email has photographic ID attached, such as a passport or driver’s licence.
If you are unsure if a formal adoption order was made for you, please email the Adoption Authority of Ireland, Information and Records Unit for assistance:
Email: records@aai.gov.ie
Please ensure that your email has photographic ID attached, such as a passport or driver’s licence.
If you are unsure of where your adoption records are held, please email the Adoption Authority of Ireland, Information and Records Unit for assistance:
Email: records@aai.gov.ie
Please ensure that your email has photographic ID attached, such as a passport or driver’s licence.
Under the new Birth Information and Tracing Act 2022 you can obtain birth, early life and care information, medical information and your original birth certificate.
Section 63 of the Birth Information and Tracing Act 2022 provides that the Adoption Authority of Ireland and the Child and Family Agency Tusla shall provide assistance and guidance to applicants for records, the tracing service and to the Contact Preference Register. They can help people to identify where their records might be held and guide them through the process.
The legislation also provides that, where parents register a preference for no contact, they will be informed of their right to access counselling, to be provided by the Child and Family Agency Tusla. Counselling can also be provided to all parents and relevant persons who request it.
- What is an entry in the Rica?
The recognition of an ‘intercountry adoption’ or a ‘foreign adoption’ by the Irish State
- Who can apply for entry?
The adopted person, a person by whom the adopted person was adopted and any other person having an interest in the matter
- Who cannot apply for entry?
Those not covered by above criteria.
- What kind of entries are refused?
Adoptions, the effects of which are not broadly similar to those of an Irish domestic adoption.
Adoptions abroad by persons resident in Ireland who have not been issued with a Declaration of Eligibility & Suitability to Adopt.
Adoptions by persons living abroad but whose adoptions are not Hague Convention adoptions or where those persons are not habitually resident in the country where the adoption was effected
- What are the main proofs required in order to review an application?
An adoption document that bears the seal of the court or other authority of that country, for example an original court order or a certified-copy-of-an-entry of an adoption. The AAI may also request proof of marital status, proof of residency status and other relevant documents such as an affidavit-of-laws.
Forming your family through adoption will have been a very personal matter and life-changing journey and experience for your family. How to talk to your child about their adoption is one of the most common questions asked and there is no single answer. Parents talking with their children have used different methods. Talking with other families who have experience of adoption has been useful for some people to gather ideas on how to tell, while retaining their child's personal information solely for the child. Using memorabilia, photos, documents, videos, books and facts generally interwoven into the family's direct experience is also commonly used. Giving children factual and truthful information appropriate to their age and development in a sensitive manner is important.
Many people find it helpful to talk with other parents who have adopted. Join a support group or speak to a social worker experienced in this area. Appropriate supports will assist your reflection and decision-making process around what will work for your family in the context of your individual experience and the facts of the adoption.
You can also contact your local adoption social worker or you can speak to one of the Adoption Authority social work team, telephone 01 2309 306 to discuss your family's experience of adoption and for assistance in how to tell your child about their birth circumstances.
People have a right to base their identity on factual information. Therefore, your phone call to the social worker about this matter is of fundamental importance to you and to your child.
