An adopted child is regarded as the biological child of the adoptive parents. All parental rights and responsibilities of the child’s biological parents or previous legal guardians, will be terminated.If you are a contributor to the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), and have legally adopted a child younger than the age of two years, then you are eligible to claim adoption benefits.
To qualify for these benefits, you will need to take leave from work or stop working to look after that child.
Follow These Steps To Claim Your Adoption Benefits:
Step 1: Get these documents ready:
- 13-digit bar-coded ID or passport;
- form UI-2.8 for banking details;
- form UI-2.7;
- form UI-2.4 (application form)
- certified copy of the adopted baby’s birth certificate; and
- certified copy of the adoption order.
Step 2: Go to the nearest labour centre to hand in these documents.
Step 3: Follow all the instructions of the staff at the labour centre
The Adoption Act of 1985 outlines the criteria which must be met in order to qualify for these benefits, including being over the age of 21 years old, having lived in South African for at least two years prior to applying, and providing proof of financial support for the adoptive child.
Should an employee not claim their UIF money for any of their benefits, these funds are transferred to an unclaimed benefits fund and will be accessible to the relevant individuals through the proper channels.
How To Legally Adopt A Child In South Africa
To legally adopt a child in South Africa, you need to register with your local Department of Social Development office.
After this registration process, you will receive a “pre-approval” letter from Social Development, which is the document that allows you to start searching for a suitable child to adopt.
Once a match between parent(s) and child has been found, you will be required to attend court hearings where the judge will decide if the adoption should go ahead or not.
If approved, the finalisation hearing takes place three months after the initial court date. And at this stage, all legal paperwork is completed and the adoption becomes official.
