I don't know where I was born

[mmb 0]

I was adopted as a baby. My adoption certificate states my place of birth as Scotland, nothing more.

This has never been a problem.

When I had my visa interview last week in London, the guy who interviewed me said it likely to cause problems when I try to adjust status. He said in his experience adopted people used their original birth certificate and their adoption certificate together and that if I can't do that I will need sworn affadavits from people who remember my adoption.

The problem is the people who were around all those years ago are now dead.

Does anyone know if this is going to be a real problem?

And does anyone know a way around it?

We're getting married at the end of March and plan to file for AOS in April.

[KarenCee 3]

I was adopted as a baby. My adoption certificate states my place of birth as Scotland, nothing more.

This has never been a problem.

When I had my visa interview last week in London, the guy who interviewed me said it likely to cause problems when I try to adjust status. He said in his experience adopted people used their original birth certificate and their adoption certificate together and that if I can't do that I will need sworn affadavits from people who remember my adoption.

The problem is the people who were around all those years ago are now dead.

Does anyone know if this is going to be a real problem?

And does anyone know a way around it?

We're getting married at the end of March and plan to file for AOS in April.

Would you be able to find out if there are church records maybe? Could you contact the adoption agency, or whoever handled the adoption, to find out if there are any records available? This might be an issue for a family attorney to handle. He or she could possibly find out that information for you. Just suggestions, hope they help.

[lisanne 0]

I was adopted as a baby. My adoption certificate states my place of birth as Scotland, nothing more.

This has never been a problem.

When I had my visa interview last week in London, the guy who interviewed me said it likely to cause problems when I try to adjust status. He said in his experience adopted people used their original birth certificate and their adoption certificate together and that if I can't do that I will need sworn affadavits from people who remember my adoption.

The problem is the people who were around all those years ago are now dead.

Does anyone know if this is going to be a real problem?

And does anyone know a way around it?

We're getting married at the end of March and plan to file for AOS in April.

Here in the US if someone is adopted the records are sealed and the person is given a new birth certificate with their adopted information on it and that's acceptable for everything they need, i.e. passports, social security, etc. so I would make this huge assumption they would be ok with your adoption certificate too. But I don't really know and if the officer said that it might be a problem it's probably worthwhile trying to get the information you need while you're still at home.

I found this site: http://www.nas.gov.uk/guides/adoptions.asp which you should have a look at if you haven't already done so. There's more on this site than what I've cut and pasted here. From what I think I'm reading you will be able to look at your adoption record and will be able to make a copy of your original birth certificate, which might help in the AOS process. Anyhow best wishes to you because this can also be a very emotional journey too. The following is cut and pasted from the above website:

Who can inspect the legal records of an adoption?

Adoption processes are among the most confidential records held in the courts and the NAS and they are closed to general public access for 100 years. This means that the staff of the NAS are also forbidden to examine them. Each process is individually sealed and the indexes themselves are restricted. The processes may, however, be opened to access in the following circumstances:

*to the adopted person if he or she is over 16 years of age. They must produce their birth certificate (to prove that they are adopted), together with some independent proof of their identity (passport, driving licence, staff pass from place of employment, etc).

Can the NAS provide photocopies?

We can only provide copies of a process if the adoptee attends in person. These copies will be made in the presence of the adopted person. With the exception of a court order, there are no circumstances in which the NAS will provide copies to anyone else.

What information will the adoption process contain?

The process will normally contain a copy of the original birth certificate; an official report to the court at the time of the adoption; a petition by the adopting parents; the consent of the birth mother (occasionally the consent of the birth father); the name of any adoption agency involved; and confirmation from the court that the adoption may go ahead. What other information it may contain will depend on what the birth parents revealed. As they are under no obligation to reveal any information whatsoever, the information that can be obtained is often minimal and sometimes nothing. People examining their adoption process should be prepared both for this and for the possibility that the papers may reveal other distressing information.

[mmb 0]

My concern is that as I never bothered to get this information, and put "none" on the visa application where it asked had I been known by any other names, would suddenly producing these records be a problem.

Edited February 4, 2007 by mmb

[Ladylethal 12]

You can use the one you have and explain your situation at the AOS interview if it comes up.