This is to inform you of the most recent news regarding the situation at the State Department for Adoptions and Protection of the Rights of the Child (SDAPRC).
On March 20, 2007 the SDAPRC Director Ludmyla Volynets, her First Deputy Ludmyla Balym, Deputy Director Inna Savchuk and Head of the Intercountry Adoption Unit Olena Remen have resigned. New leadership has not yet been appointed.
Currently, the SDAPRC is not accepting any new dossiers from foreign citizens. Dossiers that have already been submitted are being processed and registered, but the processing time can exceed the regular twenty working days. We have been told that the main reason for this is the large number of the submitted dossiers and the fact that the SDAPRC is short-staffed at the moment. According to the SDAPRC, this temporary suspension will last until April 16, 2007. The suspension will not affect the adoptive families with scheduled appointments.
The Embassy has discussed the situation with senior officials at the Ministry for Family, Youth and Sports, and we remain in regular contact with them. At this point, we are not aware of any pending changes in policy. However, the situation remains fluid and we will continue to monitor it.
We will provide further updates when possible.