Adoptions, 2005

4 in 5 adopted children were adopted from foreign countries. Two third of these, 490, came from Asian countries. For the sixth consecutive year, China was the main supplier country with 330 children. Chinese children made up almost half of all foreign adopted children in 2005.

Increased number of foreign adopted

From1971 the number of foreign adopted children has increased constantly. The portion of foreign adopted children has increased dramatically to around 90 per cent. The main reason for this is a decrease in the number of adoptions of Norwegian children. Stepchildren are not taken into account in this context.

Decrease in adoptions of stepchildren

In the 1970’s and 1980’s it was more common to adopt stepchildren than now. In the 1970’s stepchild adoptions made up about 45 per cent of all adoptions. Since then it has decreased constantly to 16 per cent. Also in absolute figures the number of stepchild adoptions has decreased. On average 310 stepchildren were adopted per year in the period of 1966-1970 while the number of adopted stepchildren in the last fife-year period (2001-2005) was 140 on average.

The majority of adopted children were girls

In 2005 two third of all adopted children were girls. In absolute figures 570 girls and 320 boys were adopted in 2005. The high number of girls is influenced by the fact that almost all children adopted from China were girls - as in previous years.

In absolute figures, the counties of Akershus (119), Hordaland (118) og Oslo (89) had the highest number of adoptions. Almost one fourth of all adopted children went to live in Oslo andAkershus. The lowest numbers of adoptions were recorded in Finnmark (10) and Sogn og Fjordane (20).

Deviation

Adoption agencies in Norway count an adoption from the day the child arrives in Norway. Statistics Norway's figures are based on the date when the adoption is cleared from the Ministry of children and family affairs. Therefore the figures Statistics Norway publishes can differ from those adoption agencies announce.

Tables:

• Table 1 Adoptions, by the relationship of the adoptive parents to the child before adoption. 1966-2005
• Table 2 Adoptions, by the relationship of the adoptive parents to the child before adoption and county. 2005
• Table 3 Adoptions, by the relationship of the adoptive parents to the child before adoption, sex and age. 2005
• Table 4 Adoptions, by the child's sex, age and previous citizenship. 2005
• Table 5 Adoptions, by the child's previous citizenship. Both sexes. 1997-2005