Obtaining information about parents of origin or a child given up for adoption

Social and biological history and reunion research services for persons domiciled in Québec at the time of their adoption and adopted by parents domiciled in Québec are offered by integrated health and social services centres (CISSS) and integrated university health and social services centres (CIUSSS).

Social and biological history and reunion research services for persons domiciled in Québec at the time of their adoption and adopted by parents domiciled outside Québec, as well as for persons domiciled outside Québec at the time of their adoption and adopted by parents domiciled in Québec, are provided by the Secrétariat aux services internationaux à l’enfant (SASIE).

In short, CISSS and CIUSSS are responsible for processing applications for research into social and biological history and reunions that concern provincial (Québec) adoptions. The SASIE is responsible for international and intergovernmental (Canadian provinces and territories) adoptions.

When a research request is received, the CISSS, the CIUSSS, or the SASIE looks for the information in the archives and records of the healthcare institution where the child was born.

When information is available, the CISSS, the CIUSSS, or the SASIE may produce a summary of family and medical antecedents to give to the person who requested its services. At this stage, this individual can also receive psychosocial support.

The summary of family and medical antecedents contains information that may be legally communicated. If this information is in the adoption file, the summary may include:

• The child’s usual given name before the adoption
• The child’s surname of origin, if this disclosure does not reveal the identity of a parent of origin who has registered an identity disclosure veto
• The date, time, and place of birth
• Medical information on the child and their parents of origin
• The circumstances surrounding the adoption
• The profile of the parents of origin, meaning:
  • Age
  • Civil status
  • Language
  • Religion
  • Ethnic origin
  • Education
  • Occupation
  • Lifestyle

The summary may also contain other information on the child, such as the date of placement for adoption and the year of adoption.

The summary of family and medical antecedents is sent upon request to:

• An adopted person who is 14 years of age or over
• An adopted person under 14 years of age, with the consent of their adoptive parent or legal guardian
• An adoptive parent, if the child is under the age of 14, for provincial adoptions, No age criteria for international and intergovernmental adoptions.

A parent of origin may also obtain a summary of family and medical antecedents of the adopter.

If an identity disclosure veto is registered in the file, the information included in the summary protects the identities of:

• The parents of origin
• The adopted child
• The adoptive parents
• The siblings of origin

This respect for the anonymity of persons is in accordance with the rules prescribed by the Civil Code of Québec and the Youth Protection Act.

A withdrawal of an identity disclosure veto or a contact veto can be registered at any time.

The identity of the adopted person will remain protected, and their personal information will remain confidential. This means that, unless they give consent, their identity cannot be revealed to their parent of origin if requested.

To consent to the disclosure of their identity or contact information (reunion) to their parent of origin, the adopted person must:

1. Fill out the Application to Withdraw an Identity Disclosure Veto or a Contact Veto  form
2. Print and sign the form
3. Submit the form and all requested documents to the CISSS or CIUSSS in the region or territory where the adoption judgment was issued or, in the case of an international or intergovernmental adoption, to the SASIE

Adopted persons have the right to know:

• Their original first name and surname, if this information is available and if disclosing this information does not reveal the identity of a parent who has registered an identity disclosure veto
• The first name and surname of their mother or father of origin, unless the parent has refused to allow this information to be disclosed
• Information allowing them to contact their parents of origin, if this information is available and provided there is no disclosure veto

For persons domiciled outside Québec at the time of their adoption, the rules governing the disclosure of information regarding their parents of origin are subject to the laws of the province or country of origin.

For a provincial adoption, if, at the time of the request, an identity disclosure veto concerning the parent of origin is registered in the file and the parent of origin has been deceased for more than 12 months, the person making the request will have the right to obtain the parent’s first name and surname. Otherwise, they must wait until 12 months after the parent’s death to have access to this information.

In the case of an international or intergovernmental adoption, the laws of the adopted person’s country of origin must also be considered.

Adopted persons and the siblings of origin of adopted persons have the right to obtain information about the identity of their siblings of origin who have come of age, whether adopted or not. They also have the right to obtain information that will allow them to contact their siblings of origin.

To do this, however, they must ensure that the following two conditions are met:

• Both the siblings and the adopted person have requested to know each other’s identity or to contact one another.
• Disclosure of this information does not reveal the identity of a parent of origin who has refused to allow their identity to be disclosed. This condition does not apply to parents of origin who have been dead for 12 months or longer.

Since June 16, 2019, adopted persons may obtain the identity of their parent of origin if they submit a request and if the parent of origin has not registered an identity disclosure veto.

If the parent of origin wishes that their identity remain confidential, they must:

1. Fill out the Identity Disclosure Veto and Contact Veto  form
2. Print and sign the form
3. Submit the form and all requested documents to the CISSS or CIUSSS in the region or territory where the adoption judgment was issued or to the SASIE

To find out where to send your application, contact the CISSS or CIUSSS in the region or territory where the adoption judgment was issued or, in the case of an international or intergovernmental adoption, the SASIE .

If the parent of origin wants their identity to remain confidential, they must complete the steps listed above before a request to obtain information concerning their identity is made by the adopted person.

If the parent of origin has already requested that their identity remain confidential, they do not have to do so again.

Information about the identity of a minor child given up for adoption will, however, remain confidential. Therefore, the parent of origin cannot obtain information about their child unless the child is of full age and has not registered an identity disclosure veto, or if the child has been deceased for 12 months or longer.