Number of adoptions declines last year

There were 370 adoptions in Finland in 2019, according to the Statistics Finland.

The number of domestic adoptions was 291 and that of international adoptions 79.

The number of adoptions of children born in Finland as well as in abroad decreased in 2019 year on year. In total, the number of adoptions was 34 less than in 2018.

Out of the adopted children, 186 were girls and 184 boys.

About one-quarter of the persons adopted were aged 18 or over, which is similar to the last few years.

The majority of those adopted as adults were born in Finland and in most cases, it was adoption within the family. In about 60 per cent of adoptions of persons born abroad, the adopted child was aged less than five, whereas in domestic adoptions, only about one-half of the adopted were aged less than five.

Of the adopted children born abroad, most were born in South Africa (25). The next most common countries of birth were Thailand (13 children) and Colombia (10 children).

Around 52 per cent of the adopted children born abroad were boys. South Africa and Thailand were the most common countries of adoption in the previous years as well.

Two out of three adoptions of children born abroad were adoptions by two parents. Of the domestic adoptions, 14 per cent were adoptions by two parents. In adoptions of children born abroad by two parents, the adoptive mother was typically aged 35 to 39 or 40 to 44 and the adoptive father was aged 40 to 44.